BEARS FOUND FORAGING NEAR THE SUBURBS.

Byline: Enrique Rivero Daily News Staff Writer

Ventura County animal control officials have had a bear of a time lately dealing with the recent visits to residential areas by the cuddly looking but potentially dangerous creatures.

About two months ago a bear was hit by a car and killed while crossing Highway 126 in Santa Paula, and last week the Ventura County Sheriff's Department spent several hours chasing down one of the furry critters that stopped traffic in Oxnard.

But there's no cause for alarm. What's happening to the bears is something human teen-agers can relate to - they have been kicked out of the nest by their parents, says Morgan Wehjte, associate wildlife biologist for the California Department of Fish and Game.

It appears that female bears breed every other year and the cub will remain with the mother for about two years, she says.

When the bear's younger sibling arrives, mama or papa bear may say it's time for the older cub to find its own place in the world.

``Either she or the boar will often tell the youngster basically to beat it, go find your own home, especially if it's a male youngster,'' Wehjte said. ``So the bear will disperse - it's a perfectly common and natural thing - and it'll go off and find its own territory.''

And when they go, they sometimes make their way to the Santa Clara River, a trek that frequently takes them through orchards that look just like a forest.

In Ventura County, the California black bears are found all through the Los Padres National Forest and can be found in parts of Ojai, Santa Paula and Fillmore adjacent to the forest, Wehjte said. They've also been spotted as far east as Rocky Peak in Simi Valley and at Happy Camp in Moorpark, she said.

But she hasn't heard of sightings in Thousand Oaks, because bears that come out of the mountains tend to get no further than Camarillo before they're captured, she said.

The two bears in question were at that get-out-of-the-house age and appeared to have been moving toward the river, she said.

The female bear that was killed was an approximately 2-year-old, 150-pounder that was hit near Wells Road, indicating that she was probably on her way to the river, Wehjte said. The male that led authorities on the merry chase was also about the same age and weight.

Something else may have led the wayward male toward Oxnard - the sweet smell of strawberries, she said. Bears are omnivores that will eat just about anything and the strawberries may have been too good to resist.

``You get the westerly winds and they pick up the scent of the strawberry fields,'' Wehjte said. ``It's not that the scent draws them out, it's that it smells very sweet and very good and they move toward it.''

The bear was eventually tranquilized and taken back into the hills, where he was released.

On Easter Sunday two years ago an approximately 1-1/2-year-old bear made its way to the Ventura County Government Center and nearby drive-in theater, she said.

The latest two bears may also have been led to the populated areas by a search for water, said Kathy Jenks, director of the Ventura County Department of Animal Regulation.

``The difference this year is that we haven't had rain since December, so it's real dry,'' Jenks said. ``So bears, like all other wildlife, have come out early to follow the food source and the water.''

Though there is no count of bears in Los Padres, there are probably 400 to 500 living in that forest, said Melody Fountain, district resource officer for the Santa Lucia District of Los Padres National Forest.

``There is a healthy population, they're not rare or endangered or anything,'' she said.

Wehjte estimates there are 100 in Ventura and Santa Barbara counties.

A series of watering holes or ``guzzlers'' have been created throughout Los Padres National Forest by the U.S. Forest Service for the parched wildlife. Though most are for small game like quail, some bears have been sighted guzzling away or splashing their faces in them, Fountain said.

When encountering a bear, don't panic, because they're not particularly interested in going after a person unless one gets between a mother and its cub - that's when they tend to get most aggressive, Wehjte said.

When confronted by a bear, back away, wave your arms and make a lot of noise, she said.

And never, ever turn tail and run. ``Immediately in their head is the idea `Ooh, chase,' '' Wehjte said.