Black bear sighting prompts police warning

Despite a team of police officers and fish and wildlife officers on bikes and on foot scouring Edmonton's river valley, a black bear was never found within city limits on Thursday morning. 

The bear's decision to wander into the Emily Murphy Park area prompted police to issue an advisory asking people to stay away from the south side of the river near the Groat Road Bridge and the park. 

Police carried rifles as they searched for the bear and closed trails in the area to cyclists and joggers. Those trails have since been reopened. 

"There's no indication that this bear is at all habituated," said fish and wildlife officer, Dennis Prodan.

"As a matter of fact it's acting exactly as you would think a wild black bear would act, trying to get away," he said adding that several people who called in to report seeing the bear said they saw it sitting on the shore of the North Saskatchewan River. 

Prodan said the bear has not been spotted since initial reports came in about the bear early this morning. 

"If the bear hunkered down he could still be in there or he could have wandered off into the bush undetected eventually he's going to work his way through the river valley and out."

Prodan said there are bear sightings in the city about once every two years.