WOONSOCKET — Woonsocket police officer Thomas Gormley was on duty Tuesday night on Sunrise Avenue and Dawn Boulevard when he saw a prowler he didn’t expect in a yard.

A black bear ran into a yard on Dawn Boulevard and then walked into a wooded area off Bound Road at the city’s border with Cumberland and disappeared.

The day before, on Monday, North Attleboro residents had spotted a black bear on Fales Road, Hoppin Hill Road and Sheldonville Road, prompting officials to put out an activated phone and e-mail message warning residents to beware of the black bear and not to leave young children and animals unattended.

In Rhode Island, the Department of Environmental Management is issuing tips on “coexisting with black bears,” after receiving several calls from people who said they saw a black bear in Cumberland and Woonsocket near the Massachusetts border.

As black bear populations continue to increase in neighboring states, it is likely that the presence and sightings of bears in Rhode Island will become more frequent, according to the DEM.

Young male bears, which usually leave the care of their mother at about 18 months, have a tendency to wander great distances when on their own for the first time. This usually takes place in early summer.

Black bears are generally shy and secretive and usually fearful of humans. However, if they become dependent on human food sources, they can lose their fear and become a nuisance, according to the DEM. Bears are intelligent and adaptable and can learn quickly to adjust to the presence of humans. They have a keen sense of smell and will investigate food odors. Things people leave in their yards, like bird seed, pet food, garbage or compost piles attract bears to residential areas. Once they find an accessible food source, it’s Yogi Bear and the picnic basket time.

In Rhode Island it is illegal to shoot black bears because they are protected animals here.

tpina@projo.com