Black bears have lived in the foothills and forests of Colorado since long before the pioneers arrived. Today 8,000 to 12,000 black bears are trying to share space with an ever-growing human population. With many more people living and playing in bear country, human-bear encounters are on the rise.

Colorado Bears Have People Problems

Every year, bears attracted to human food sources damage property, vehicles and even homes. Bears don’t know they’re doing anything wrong. They’re just following their super-sensitive noses to the most calories they can find. Bears that find food around homes, campgrounds and communities often lose their natural wariness of people. Even though black bears are not naturally aggressive and seldom attack or injure people, they are still strong, powerful animals. A bear intent on getting a meal could injure someone who gets in its way. Every year bears that have become too comfortable around people have to be destroyed.

Bears Need Your Help

Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) is charged with protecting and preserving the state’s wildlife. Every time we must destroy a bear, it’s not just the bear that loses. We all lose a little piece of the wildness that makes Colorado so special.

Learn more about living with bears by clicking the following link.