A yearling black bear was captured in Laramie the night of Thursday, August 28.

According to Robin Kepple with the Wyoming Game and Fish Department, reports of a young bear in the west part of Laramie began coming in around 8 or 8:30 at night. Authorities believe the bear was in or near Laramie for two days, but they were unable to locate and capture it. After receiving reports Thursday night, authorities decided the best course of action would be to attempt to set a trap to capture the bear before it became a nuisance animal.

The bear was spotted in several areas around town including near the Fairfield Inn, Curtis Street Exit, Linford Elementary School and the National Guard Armory on Armory Road. Game and Fish officials worked with the Laramie Police Department to locate the bear. Kepple said the animal was captured and tranquilized by the Game and Fish Department near the National Guard Armory around 10:30 p.m.

According to Kepple, there were no reports of the bear damaging property, eating human food, or behaving in an aggressive manor. She adds that the animal was even seen grazing on vegetation in town which is a good sign that it did not learn to associate humans with food.

“By not receiving food rewards or not relying on human foods, the bear hopefully did not learn any bad behavior that would get it into trouble again in the future,” says Kepple.

She adds that wild animals going into Wyoming towns is not uncommon. According to Commander Mitchell Cushman with the Laramie Police Department, multiple bears and mountain lions have come into Laramie over the past several years, and the police department works together with the Game and Fish to safely remove them.

The bear was released in the national forest early the morning of Friday, August 29.

More From KOWB 1290