If you see a bear, Anchorage police want to know about it — just don't call 911 unless it's an emergency.

APD dispatch supervisor Karren Symonds said in an interview Tuesday that over the last several weeks, 911 dispatchers have been busy taking calls on the emergency line for non-emergency sightings of bears.

She said it's not clear why calls have increased, but public awareness of bears went up in recent weeks after reports of maulings across the state, including two fatal incidents just a day apart.

She said people have called to report black bears hanging out on the side of the road or meandering through public spaces. Many calls have originated from the Muldoon Road area, particularly in the Tikahtnu Commons shopping area. She said one bear walking across the parking lot generated 20 calls in just a few minutes.

Symonds said APD wants to know about bears if they are in the city, but residents should call the non-emergency line — 907-786-8900 — unless the bear poses an immediate threat to the public.

"There is no need to call if the animal is passing through the area, walking on the side of the road or exhibiting other natural behaviors," says an APD press release.

However, "If it looks like (the bear is) a threat to you or another human's personal safety, then by all means call 911," Symonds said.

Dave Battle, area biologist for the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, said brown bears in the city should be reported, since they're more likely to act defensively once they get into trash and potentially be dangerous to humans.

Battle said the Anchorage Fish and Game office has also received more bear reports lately. He hasn't kept a count of the calls, but overall they've been up. The department also launched an online reporting form this year, making it easier for people to submit reports of wildlife.

Battle didn't know what was contributing to the increase in sightings, but said it appears a high number of bears are in Anchorage this year.

Battle said typically there are hot spots around town where the department hears reports of bears — Muldoon, Eagle River, Government Hill, South Anchorage and Girdwood. Some years, only a few of those places will have much bear activity. But this year the calls seem to be coming from "everywhere," with multiple bears in most of those locations, he said.

"It's hard to say what you would even measure to figure out why that is so," Battle said. "There are so many different things that can affect this."