Search for bear continues near UCSB

BY ERIC LINDBERG
DAILY SOUND STAFF WRITER

Fish and Game officials continued their search on Wednesday for a black bear spotted near UC Santa Barbara in the Goleta Slough, setting out humane traps and roaming the brush with tranquilizer guns.
Lt. Jorge Gross said wardens have had a few close encounters with the wild animal, coming as close as 15 feet but failing to get a clear shot with tranquilizer darts due to thick brush.

Authorities said the bear, estimated to be a young adult weighing between 250 and 300 pounds, has been spotted infrequently since Saturday, when it was seen behind UCSB’s communication services building heading toward the airport.
“So far it hasn’t done any kind of property damage or affected livestock or threatened humans,” Lt. Gross said. “…Right now, it’s very docile.”
Fish and Game workers set one trap in the slough near Campbell Hall and placed another closer to Harder Stadium in hopes of trapping the bear and transporting it back to the Los Padres National Forest.
Lt. Gross said the animal likely followed a creek down from the hills, passed below Highway 101, and found itself lost in the slough with airport fencing blocking most escape routes.
However, he added it might have found its way out, noting a resident in Winchester Canyon called in to report a bear had been sighted in that area on Tuesday evening.
Authorities plan to continue searching until they catch the animal or are convinced it escaped.