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Bear sightings are increasing in Castle Pines; here's how to stay safe in Colorado bear country

Posted at 10:00 PM, May 27, 2020
and last updated 2020-05-28 01:25:13-04

CASTLE PINES, Colo. — It appears the bears have had enough social distancing, as they've been spotted making their way into Castle Pines neighborhoods.

'We’ve been expecting them to come through. We would probably be disappointed if they didn’t," said Castle Pines resident Nancy Browning.

Browning got her wish over Memorial Day weekend when a sow and her two cubs were spotted on her backyard surveillance video.

"I pulled up my camera to see that yes, it’s a bear," Browning said.

Her neighbor also captured video of the bear family walking right down the Browning's street in the early morning.

Colorado Parks and Wildlife officials said they've received a lot of calls for bear sightings, which isn't unusual for this time of year: As the bears begin coming out of hibernation, they are looking for food. Memorial Day weekend can be a buffet when homeowners leave the trash cans out all weekend.

CPW also warns homeowners that bird feeders can attract bears.

"I do know of people who put lots of bird feeders out and even put food out there," Browning said.

While the Brownings do have a few feeders, Nancy said they only fill a little each morning for the birds.

"I don’t necessarily want them to hang around but we have acorns," Browning goes on to say, "there’s berries over there, that God put there. So they are going to come whether I put bird seed out or not."

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