Team effort goes into capturing bear

SILVER CITY - On the morning of July 14, New Mexico Department of Game and Fish officers worked with area law enforcement agencies to capture and relocate a bear that wandered into the northern part of town.

About 8:30 a.m., a resident spotted a bear in their backyard and called Central Dispatch to report the animal.

Silver City Police Chief Freddie Portillo said Central Dispatch sent out several of his officers as well as animal control to confirm the sighting and try to contain the animal before Game and Fish officers could arrive.

Portillo said the goal of the department when dealing with wild animals is "not harm, just try to somehow contain it."

After receiving the request for backup, Game and Fish reached out to the Grant County Sheriff's Department for assistance in monitoring and surrounding the bear. Game and Fish Cpl. Adan Jacquez said if the bear had left the area, it probably would have come back later.

According to Lt. Melvin Castillo, who spoke on behalf of the Sheriff's Department, several county officers helped to corral the bear in a backyard and monitored it until Game and Fish could arrive. When Jacquez arrived, he shot the male bear with a tranquilizer dart and tagged it after checking its health.

All the officers stayed on the scene until another Game and Fish officer arrived with a vehicle to relocate the bear.

Jacquez said that when relocating bears, the state does not have a set safe distance for their release, but does try to move the bears as far as possible from people, since bears can travel long distances.

"I thought it was cool to see both agencies, Silver City and Grant County - they're helping out on the same situation, and so I thought it was a cool picture moment for the community to see these guys," Jacquez said. "We try to protect and serve our community."

Portillo also acknowledged the departments that helped during this incident, as well as the work of his own officers.

As for why the bear decided to visit town?

"I don't think it was the fire that displaced this particular bear," Jacquez said. "They're opportunistic, and so they're looking out for the easy meal. That's why we always encourage people who live in these types of communities to bearproof their yard."

He said to prevent bears from becoming interested in an area, residents should keep their yard as clean as possible and free of food. He said those who see bears should act as aggressive and loud as possible and avoid taking close-up pictures.

"We want any kind of critter to be afraid of us, because when they lose that fear, it becomes habituated - and when they're habituated, they're comfortable around people, which is not normal," Jacquez said.