COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — The Ohio Department of Natural Resources has confirmed a rare sighting of a black bear in Franklin County.
A security camera captured video of the bear in the area of Three Creeks Metro Park, located near Obetz. The bear sauntered through a parking lot and passed behind two cars before disappearing from view. ODNR said this was the first time a bear had been spotted in Franklin County in nearly 20 years, as the last sighting was reported in 2004.
Black bears inhabited Ohio prior to settlement in the region, but unregulated hunting and deforestation as towns and farms rose in the 1800s have greatly reduced their numbers in the state, ODNR said. The state agency began tracking Ohio bear sightings in 1993, and uses evidence including video, photos, fecal and print tracking and damage as methods to confirm a legitimate bear visit. The list below includes all 29 central Ohio sightings prior to the most recent one:
- Franklin County – 1 confirmed sighting in 2004
- Pickaway County – 5 confirmed sightings in 2002, 2004 and 2010
- Fairfield County – 15 confirmed sightings in 2001, 2004, 2010, 2015, 2016, 2018, 2019 and 2022
- Licking County – 6 confirmed sightings in 1994, 1995, 1997 and 2003
- Delaware County – 1 confirmed sighting in 2020
- Madison County – 1 confirmed sighting in 2002
ODNR recommended anyone who thinks they have encountered a bear to give it appropriate space, and never try to corner to touch the animal. To report a bear or other animal sighting, visit ODNR’s website.