9 black bear cubs headed back to the wild this week

Nine black bear cubs rounded up by Utah wildlife biologists last spring will be released back into the wild next week.

The cubs have been in two different bear rehabilitation facilities since they were captured by the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources.

One set of triplets was orphaned when a hunter mistakenly shot their mother in the La Sal Mountains east of Moab. When the hunter realized his mistake, he called authorities and helped them locate the cubs, said Justin Dolling, game mammals coordinator for the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources.

The triplets will be released Dec. 1 near where they were captured. It was not clear if the hunter was given a citation for shooting the mother.

The mothers of three of the other cubs suffered similar fates in Manti Mountains in central Utah.