First black bear photographed in Bernheim Forest

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Officials have photos of a black bear roaming around Bernheim Forest just south of Louisville.

Bernheim Director Mark Wourms told The Courier-Journal (http://cjky.it/2dHqeU5) that remote motion-triggered cameras caught images of the healthy looking animal at two locations. The newspaper reports it is the first time a bear has been photographed in the arboretum since it formed 87 years ago.

He said the bear has a scar on its nose that will help officials identify and track it.

Wourms said the bear will likely return to eastern Kentucky for the winter, but that Bernheim is big enough to support a small population of bears.

Kentucky wildlife officials estimate that about 1,000 black bears live in eastern Kentucky.

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