There were several black bear sightings this summer in the Hudson Valley.

Recently in the Dutchess County area, a black bear was seen roaming the grounds of an East Fishkill park and back in June in Orange County a black bear was hit on 17K causing major delays.

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With black bear sightings becoming more common, the Department of Environmental Conservation is working on a project with other wildlife organizations that will provide information to New York black bear research.

The DEC and New York Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit at Cornell University have teamed up to create the new mobile app called iSeeMammals. The app gives hunters and hikers the opportunity to share information about bear sightings and bear identifiers such as scat, tracks, hair and markings.

The information collected by the app will help "researchers and DEC biologists study the distribution and size of the black bear population in New York" as stated in a press release.

Photos from trail cams that collect photos through several months are encouraged to be shared.

For more information visit the iSeeMammals and DEC websites. The app is free to Apple and Android users.