STEVENSVILLE, Mich. – Authorities say a black bear that roamed into Indiana from southwestern Michigan last summer has been captured and euthanized after becoming aggressive and trying to get into homes.
Mark Sargent, a field operations manager with the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, says in a statement the male bear was considered a potential threat to public safety. He says it was tranquilized before being "humanely euthanized" Saturday.
WSJM-AM reports it was captured near Stevensville, Michigan.
Sargent tells The Indianapolis Star the roughly 300-pound bear was "the size of a bear who can get through a door, wall or a screen door."
When it crossed into Indiana last June it became the state's first confirmed wild black bear sighting in 144 years. Hunting and habitat loss eradicated the species in the 1800s.