HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) State officials say Connecticut has seen an increasing number of bear attacks on livestock and bee hives.

The state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection issued a release Thursday saying there have been more than a dozen reports this year of bears attacking livestock and killing goats, sheep, chickens and rabbits.

The attacks have occurred in Barkhamsted, Winchester, Morris, Bethlehem, Watertown, Thomaston, Campville, and Roxbury.

The department says bears are also being more aggressive in getting into bee hives.

The department recommends that livestock owners and bee keepers use well-maintained electric fences with barbed wire to keep the bears away.

There were 4,488 sightings of black bears across Connecticut during 2015.