Bear sightings spread to Cary

Cary police said they got at least 10 calls starting around 8 a.m. about a black bear around the Wellington Place subdivision.

Officers didn't see the bear themselves, but all the calls were similar so they seem to be credible sightings, police said.

Calls about the bear died off around 10 a.m.

A four-foot tall, 200-pound, male black bear roamed through Garner on Wednesday, causing a lockdown at some schools to keep students inside. The next day, a female black bear, between 150 and 300 pounds, was spotted near the Carolina Pines neighborhood, off South Saunders Street in Raleigh.

Authorities have tracked the bears but haven't interfered with them since they don't appear to be aggressive. They urged people to also leave them alone.

Experts said black bears are usually found near the coast and western mountains of North Carolina, but the search for food during the spring and summer can take them into more urban areas in the center of the state.

The bears seen in the Triangle are probably just moving through, said Beth Gardner, an assistant professor of quantitative wildlife biology at North Carolina State University.