West Virginia officials say the number of bears killed because of nuisance complaints more than quadrupled last year to 155 animals.

Some Department of Natural Resources officials attribute the increase to a lack of food sources that forced bears to wander into more urban areas in search of food.

In comparison, Virginia wildlife officials said Friday they issued 95 bear kill permits in 2007 that resulted in 120 bears killed. Twelve other bears were euthanized.

In all, West Virginia reported 2,032 reported bear deaths in the state last year. That includes a record harvest of 1,804 black bears, along with 62 deaths from vehicle accidents and four illegal kills.