Crime & Safety

The Suburban Odyssey of the #BrooklineBear

Black bear sightings from Medfield to Newton.

A black bear that was spotted as far away as Medfield and Walpole on Saturday, then in Westwood and Dedham over the weekend may be the same bear that state Environmental Police were tracking through Newton and Brookline on Monday.

While it's unclear if it is the same bear, Patch has been tracking the state Environmental Police and local police who have been tracking the bear as it appears to have headed west from Medfield into Newton and, finally, into Brookline.

  • Medfield: Saturday morning, the bear was spotted in the areas of Granite Street, South Street, Indian Hill Road and Orchard Street.
  • Norwood: Saturday night bear sightings were reported in the areas of Churchill Drive, Iverness Road, Cypress Street, and Norwest Woods.
  • Dedham: Bear sightings also were reported Sunday near Legacy Place in Dedham, as well as in parts of Walpole,according to a MyFoxBoston.com report. Sunday night, Dedham Police activated the town's emergency response system to notify residents by phone of the sightings.
  • Needham: A . Needham also notified all its residents.
  • Newton: Later on Monday, in the evening, another bear sighting was reported on the Newton/Brookline line near .
  • Brookline: By Monday night, Brookline Police and state Environmental Police had tracked the bear to the area near the Baker School in Chestnut Hill, then the bear was spotted heading toward Francis Ryan Circle in Brookline. Early on Tuesday, June 26, the bear was tranquilized by Environmental Police around 9:45 a.m. after the bear was tracked to a tree on Pine Road.

In addition to the bear, state Environmental Police with Wellesley Police were also tracking a moose that was spotted in the Parker Road neighborhoods of Wellesley Monday afternoon. The moose ended up in a swampy area off Lexington Road.

Find out what's happening in Westonwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Phew — that's a lot of large animal sightings in the area. Did you see the bear or moose over the weekend or early this week? What kind of animals have you spotted in the area this summer? Moose, coyotes, bears — oh my? Tell us of your brush with wildlife.


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