Terrifying New Maps Show Explosion of Bear Sightings in Missouri

It's no secret that bears are becoming more common in Missouri, but how many official sightings have there really been? I found several maps that show how many and where bears have been spotted in Missouri and they're slightly terrifying.

If you're not aware, the Missouri Department of Conservation has a website where you can report a bear sighting. They also have a constantly updated map that shows where these apex predators are in Missouri. It defaults to just show the most recent year which looks like this.

That's a lot of bears, but that's nothing when you select the map option to show you bear sightings in Missouri for more than a decade. Then, it looks like this. (*gulp*)

There's one more interesting bear map of Missouri that shows how the population of these wild animals is expanding to nearly encompass the entire state with some random sightings even in the northern counties every now and then.

This is why I always assume that bears nearby if I'm ever in the woods in Missouri. I'd rather be bear aware and prepared than to have a surprise encounter that doesn't end well for me or the bear. The days of camping with food stored wherever are pretty much done in Missouri as they will seek out food sources and you don't want to be near one of those. Just look at all those fun maps if you doubt that's possible.