Harry and Meghan forced to tighten security after 4 bears seen prowling near home

Prince Harry and heavily-pregnant Meghan Markle are being warned to tighten security measures after four black bears were seen near their California home.

The alert came after it was reported that a black bear tried to attack a neighbour’s chicken coop last month.

Two cubs have been sighted in upmarket Montecito, with a further sighting of a mother bear and her two cubs.

A local residency group, that includes the Duke and Duchess of Sussex as members, sent emails alerting the couple to the dangers and telling them what they should do to protect their chickens.

Sharon Byrne, boss of the Montecito Association, said during an online meeting: “We’ve nicknamed the male bear Carlos and now he has a Carla to go with him. It’s spring, they’ve woken up and they’ve been seen in the past two weeks.

“One at the eastern edge of Montecito and one at the western edge in the space of a day. We’ve also had a sighting of the mama bear with cubs.”

The Duke and Duchess are a couple of animal lovers and so have been warned to invest in bear-resistant bins, better safety for their chickens and to freeze waste food so the smell doesn’t attract the bears.

Harry and Meghan moved to the A-list favourite Montecito after stepping away from royal duties.

The California Department of Fish and Wildlife said: “People should not give bears access to food.

“If you come across one, talk quietly and back off slowly.”

Montecito local Penny Bianchi built her own “predator proof” coop last month after a male bear ate her chickens.

She said: “Last time he was here, I scared him off by banging frying pans together.”

Meanwhile, it was revealed that Harry and Meghan have been moved below the Wessexes on the Royal Family’s website following their move.

The Sussexes now sit beneath Harry’s father Prince Charles and Camilla, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, Princess Anne, Prince Andrew, and Prince Edward and Sophie, the Countess of Wessex.

The website says the couple will be “balancing their time” between the UK and North America, in light of their move to Los Angeles.

The heavily pregnant Duchess has not made her due date public – and refuses to even be drawn on the month her baby is predicted to arrive.

Meghan is reportedly planning a home birth in California, US, and the Sussexes will take time to bond as a family of four.

Sources close to the couple claim that they plan to take both paternity and maternity leave when their baby girl arrives.

Sources in the US suggest the baby is due on June 10, on what would have been Prince Philip’s 100th birthday.