It’s not common for a 400-pound animal to be wandering around West Salem, but a Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources said it’s not unheard of either. There have been a few reports of a black bear being spotted near Lake Neshonoc.

On Dec. 6, the owner of cornfields just behind Lakeview Health Care Center reported to the West Salem Police Department he spotted a black bear in his fields. Police Chief Dennis Abbott said there had been another report a few days earlier of a black bear seen in the area.

And West Salem resident Jerry Unser, who had also spotted the bear near the cornfields, said he saw it about a week ago run into a ravine near Lake Neshonoc. He said he also knows of someone’s combine falling into a supposed bear den when the farmer had been harvesting corn.

“She was really big and really sloppy,” Unser said, speculating the bear is a pregnant female because of its size.

According to the DNR, however, females normally weigh less than males — as little as 225 pounds and as much as 450 pounds. Males usually weigh between 200 and 300 pounds and up to 500 pounds.

So should people be concerned there is massive animal wandering around the area?

The answer is “no,” according to Mark Anderson, Mississippi River wildlife biologist with the DNR.

“Just avoid it is the best course, and keep dogs away from it,” Anderson said.

By now, however, the bear might be snuggled away in a den, not to be seen again until spring.

Anderson said black bears generally go into hibernation at the end of October, with the vast majority hibernating by mid-November.

He said there are two reasons that could be contributing to this bear still wandering around. One, very mild temperatures — which the area has had — could disturb a bear’s normal hibernating patterns. Two, it might have already established a den, which was disturbed, and it’s on the search for a new den.

“If people stop by and look at them several times, they’ll abandon it,” Anderson said.

According to the DNR, black bears are rare in this part of the state and are more common farther north.

Anderson said there is a low bear population in La Crosse County, but significantly more in Jackson County, and more in Monroe and Trempealeau counties as well.

Anderson said the bear seen wandering around West Salem might be interested in snacking on some bird feeders — particularly suet — but more than anything, it probably just wants to go back to sleep.

“Very likely, the bear is just looking for some place to hide out and spend the rest of the winter,” Anderson said.