Yellowstone visitors, heads up: grizzly bears are officially awake, and they’re hungry

Spring bear season starts in the north

Yellowstone is officially back in bear season. Park biologists spotted the first grizzly of 2026 on March 9, watching it feed on a bull bison carcass in the northern backcountry.

The National Park Service announced the sighting the next day.

It is the clearest sign yet that bears are waking up from winter — and that visitors heading to the park need to start thinking about bear safety now.

Date matches a familiar pattern

The March 9 sighting fits right in line with recent years. The first grizzly of 2025 showed up on March 14.

In 2024, one appeared on March 3. Both 2022 and 2023 produced first sightings on March 7.

The timing is not random — it reflects the natural rhythm of how grizzlies come out of hibernation each spring, with males leading the way as temperatures begin to climb.

Hungry bears head straight to carcasses

After months without eating, grizzlies wake up hungry and start searching for food fast.

Elk and bison that died over the winter are among the first meals available in early spring, and bears go straight for them. That is exactly what this bear was doing.

One important note: bears guarding a carcass can be especially aggressive. If they feel their food is threatened, they may charge without much warning.

Females and cubs come out later

The first bears to emerge each spring are adult males, and that lines up with what biologists saw on March 9. Females with cubs typically stay in their dens longer, coming out in April and early May.

Over winter, bears enter a state called torpor, a deep rest that relies on fat reserves built up during summer and fall. Those fat reserves can make up a big share of a bear’s body weight going into the cold months.

More than 1,000 grizzlies call this region home

The Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem stretches across parts of Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho and ranks among the largest intact ecosystems in the lower 48 states.

According to the USGS Interagency Grizzly Bear Study Team, roughly 1,030 grizzlies live within the ecosystem’s core monitoring area. More bears live on the fringes, outside the monitored zone.

Both grizzly bears and black bears share the park, and the Greater Yellowstone region is one of the few places south of Canada where both species live side by side.

Population bounced back from near collapse

Grizzly bears in the lower 48 states were listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act in 1975. At that point, the Yellowstone region population had fallen to an estimated 136 bears.

Decades of federal protection and management brought them back.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has proposed updates to how grizzly bears are managed under the ESA, and the bears remain listed as threatened today.

Every corner of the park is bear country

It is easy to think of bear encounters as something that only happens deep in the backcountry. It is not.

All of Yellowstone is considered grizzly and black bear habitat. That includes boardwalks, parking lots, and the areas around popular stops like Old Faithful.

Visitors should stay bear-aware from the moment they enter the park, not just when they head off the main roads.

Keep 100 yards between you and any bear

The National Park Service requires all visitors to stay at least 100 yards from grizzly and black bears. That is about the length of a football field.

Getting closer violates park regulations. The best way to watch bears safely is with binoculars or a telephoto lens.

The distance rule applies everywhere in the park, no matter how calm a bear appears or how good the photo opportunity looks.

Bear spray works better than you think

The NPS says bear spray has proven effective at stopping aggressive bear behavior, and every person in your group should carry their own canister.

Keep it somewhere you can grab it fast — not buried in a backpack. Firearms are allowed in Yellowstone, but discharging one violates park regulations.

Bear spray is the tool rangers and biologists actually recommend when a bear charges.

Smart hiking habits can prevent encounters

A few habits go a long way in bear country. Hike or ski in groups of three or more, stay on maintained trails, and make noise so bears hear you coming.

Avoid being out at dusk, dawn, or after dark — those are the hours when bears are most active. If you do run into a bear, do not run.

Running can trigger a chase response, and you will not win that race.

Food storage protects bears too

Store all food, garbage, and barbecue gear in a hard-sided vehicle or a bear-proof storage box. Never walk away from food, even for a minute.

Report any bear sighting or encounter to a park ranger right away. Bears that learn to associate people with food can become aggressive over time.

When that happens, rangers may have no choice but to kill the animal.

More bears emerge throughout March

Now that the first male grizzly is up and moving, more males should follow throughout March. Females with cubs will start appearing in April and early May.

Anyone planning a spring trip to Yellowstone should look up the park’s bear safety guidelines before they arrive.

The park also updates its bear management area closures throughout the season to reduce the chances of a close encounter.

This article was created with AI assistance and human editing.

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