Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks Black Bear Program coordinator Anthony Ballard is photographed with a sedated bear that was captured in Mississippi for research and weighs 510 pounds, the heaviest bear recorded in the state.

Officials with the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks (MDWFP) announced the record for the largest black bear in the Black Bear Program’s history has been broken. M18 is a 510-pound black bear that was collared earlier this week in Sharkey County.

A 510-pound black bear was tranquilized and collared as part of the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks Black Bear Program.

Wildlife officials in Mississippi said researchers trapped and tagged a 510-pound bear that is officially the largest ever documented in the state.