Wildlife officials: Watch out for bears

Utah wildlife officials are warning residents to be on the lookout for bears as they head to the outdoors.

Justin Dolling of the Division of Wildlife Resources says the agency has already responded to a dozen black bear incidents — but most of them have simply been sightings. Those 12 are just a fraction of the 3,000 to 4,000 bears that biologists estimate are living in Utah.

As temperatures warm, more people are drawn to the state's backcountry areas, and the number of bear sightings tends to increase.

Wildlife officials urge residents to keep their camps clean, store food away from tents and never feed a bear.