Black Bear and Cubs Spotted in Cedar Grove

Cedar Grove Police are monitoring a family of black bears, spotted by residents Wednesday morning. The mother and three cubs are thought to be the same black bear family found foraging through West Caldwell on Sunday.

The initial call came in at 6:43 a.m. Wednesday morning from a resident on Eileen Drive, said Cedar Grove Police Chief Richard Vanderstreet. Since then, police have received numerous calls as the bear family continue to explore the township.

“We have been tracking and monitoring them,” said Vanderstreet. “We have been in contact with the New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife, whose advice was to leave them be as long as they are not displaying aggressive behavior.”

At this time the bear and her cubs have just been wandering and have not been aggressive. They were last spotted in a wooded area between Pompton and Grove Avenues in Cedar Grove as of 10 a.m., police said.

“Our main concern right now is making sure they do not wander into a roadway and potentially get hit by a car,” said Vanderstreet.

Bear sightings are not all that common in Cedar Grove, although a young male bear was spotted meandering through the town in July 2011, said Vanderstreet. The bear was monitored until they lost sight of him near Mills Reservation.

That same bear is thought to have made his way onto route 46 in Clifton and was ultimately destroyed, police said.