Officials in Burlington County remained on alert Saturday after a Shamong Township resident reported seeing a bear eating from her bird feeder.
The bear, which was spotted in the Oakview trailer park, had retreated to the nearby woods by the time police responded.
A New Jersey state police official said that although the bear did not threaten anyone, park rangers and officials from the state Department of Environmental Protection remain on alert.
The day before, police shot a bear with a tranquilizer gun at an office park in the northern part of the state, where the animals are more frequently found. The bear, which was captured in Parsippany, was moved to a state park when it woke up.
On Wednesday, another bear was seen in South Jersey. This one led a Waterford Township elementary school principal to put the school on lockdown before police pushed it into the woods.
Waterford and Shamong both border Wharton State Forest, as does Medford Township, where a resident of the Highbridge Development Thursday reported a bear sighting. A notice posted on the township's website alerted residents of the sighting. While black bears are native to New Jersey, their population has increased in recent years causing them to move southward, the notice said.
Anyone who sees a bear should call 9-1-1, police said.
Contact staff writer Julie Zauzmer at 215-854-2771 or jzauzmer@philly.com
