Two black bear cubs were rescued from a tree in the median of U.S. Route 58 Monday morning after their mother was struck and killed by a vehicle.

The rescue required the orchestration of the Suffolk Police Department, Suffolk Animal Control, Suffolk Public Works, the Virginia Department of Transportation and the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries.

Suffolk’s 911 call center began receiving reports of a dead bear on the side of the road with cubs wandering nearby about 7:30 a.m. Monday, said Tim Kelley, a spokesman for the city. The cubs and mother’s body were spotted on Route 58 west between the landfill and the downtown Suffolk exit.

Responding officers found the mother bear dead of an apparent hit from a vehicle, although no reports were ever received about such an accident, Kelley said.

Aaron Proctor and Steve Living with the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries arrived about 9:15 a.m.

Police blocked off the left lane on the westbound side and brought in a bucket truck from the city’s Public Works department.

The two cubs, both males, were in trees in the median upon their arrival, Proctor said. Game officials shot tranquilizer darts at the two cubs.

The first bear decided to come down from the tree after he was hit with the dart, plopping into a tarp held by game officials at the bottom.

But the second cub went higher after being hit, falling asleep in the crook of a branch about 40 feet from the ground.

The bucket truck was unable to reach the cub, so officials pried him out of his resting place with a pole and he fell to the ground.

Proctor said that was the best option, because when the cub woke up from the tranquilizer, he probably would fall out of the tree anyway.

He did not seem to suffer any serious injuries from the fall, Proctor said.

Both cubs were being taken to a facility in Richmond to be evaluated. On Monday, Proctor said, they would be given water and nutrition. Evaluations of their feces determined that the bears already were eating some solid food, Proctor said.

There are a number of options for what to do with the cubs after they recover from their ordeal, Proctor said. They could be released into the wild or, if that is not an option, be transferred to a facility equipped to take care of them.

“This is the third time I’ve responded to a bear rescue this year,” Proctor said. “We are seeing more bears due to a good reproductive season and the heavy amount of rain, which has pushed the bears into different areas.”

Proctor said the mother bear was about 2 to 2 ½ years old and weighed about 120 pounds. The cubs, which were likely born this February or March, weigh about 20 pounds each, Proctor said. They were probably the first cubs born to the young mother.

“We want to thank Suffolk Police, Animal Control and Public Works for being with us on scene and giving us lots of good help,” Proctor said.