Rare sighting of black bear spotted in yard of East Texas resident

An East Texas resident spotted something he’d never seen in his yard before – a black bear. Guy Bland told 12News that he found the rare black bear roaming in his yard on Thursday, November 9 in Orange, which is a city near Beaumont. 

Bland told the news station that he was drinking his coffee early that day when he thought he saw a hog. However, he then realized it was a bear. Bland said he saw it coming out from behind a dumpster and walked to an oak tree. He added he noticed the bear was eating something. 

It wasn’t long before the bear scurried away due to gunshots from duck hunters not far away. Bland was able to take a picture before the bear left, saying he couldn’t believe his eyes. Bland told 12News that he’s never seen a black bear on his property, which he has lived at since 1977. 

Wildlife expert Chester Moore told the TV station that the sighting is rare but noted that black bears are on the rise in the Southeast Texas region. Moore said the black bear population has been increasing in Louisiana, which isn’t far from Orange. 

John Tomacek, an associate professor of wildlife studies at Texas A&M University and a wildlife specialist with the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service, recently told the Killeen Daily Herald that black bears aren’t being hunted anymore, which is causing the animals to dip back into areas where they once roamed free.

In 2022, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department confirmed 154 black bear sightings in Texas. The state accounted for 80 the year prior and 25 in 2020, 20 of those were in the Black Gap region with Big Bend.