Yellow 2291, the bear spotted in Chatsworth, has made her way from Claremont west across the 210 corridor, crossing the 5 and 14 Freeway and down the 118 corridor to the Simi Hills.In many ways, it was a typical Southern California sight that played out this week when yet another black bear wandered into an area too close for comfort.
West spoke with NBC4 to explain more about how the agency tracks bears across the state, beginning with that first interaction.In the case of this particular female bear, known to the agency as Yellow 2291, that first interaction came in late May, when she wandered into a wildlife trap about 60 miles away in Claremont.“She actually has had some of the most interesting collar data that we've ever seen,” said West. “She's just wandering.
“This bear has, again, had some of the craziest movement,” West explained, adding that bears have incredible homing skills and was likely trying to make its way back to a more familiar area. “We just sort of were watching her and, you know, saying, okay, it looks like she was already heading towards back towards Angeles National Forest. Let's just basically assist her and get her there a little faster.”The battery life of adult bear GPS collars can last anywhere from 1-2 years.