Colorado has recorded more than 7,000 bear sightings in 2026, surpassing its previous record for the entire year as hungry bears increasingly enter homes, stores and cities across the Western US.

Matt Errico was sitting in the bathroom of his Granby home when he heard strange sounds coming from the hallway. When he went to check it, he found two young black bears, the size of a golden retriever, standing in the hallway. After a brief glance, the bears ran out the front door. The incident in the small mountain town northwest of Denver is far from unusual. Black bears were also found inside a Granby vape shop, passed by a school in Santa Fe, New Mexico, and climbed a tree near a farmers market in Denver. Colorado has recorded more than 7,000 bear sightings in 2026, already surpassing its previous full-year record set in 2019, according to state wildlife figures. A detailed Reuters investigation explains how the severe drought in the American West has driven hungry bears into towns and cities in record numbers.

Record drought reduces wild food supply

The increase in bear encounters comes after the driest winter on record. The conditions destroyed much of the natural vegetation, berries, grasses and nuts that make up about 90 percent of a black bear’s diet. “I’ve definitely never heard of bears inside, you know, cubs inside someone’s house,” Errico told Reuters, describing his experience in Granby. Desperate to find enough food before winter, bears are using their strong sense of smell to find food in human settlements. Garbage, bird feeders, and stores can provide easy food sources. Wildlife experts are increasingly concerned about the long-term effect of environmental changes on bear behavior. “It’s like testing bears and humans in a new way,” Jon Beckmann, a black bear expert, said in comments to Reuters. Climate models predict that the western United States will continue to become drier. Biologists fear that bears will become accustomed to eating human food or change their normal hibernation patterns if warm, dry winters continue.

Decades of human expansion into bear territory

The environmental crisis occurs alongside significant population growth throughout the region. Over the past 50 years, Colorado’s population has more than doubled, pushing housing development into wildlife corridors and feeding areas around mountain communities like Vail and Colorado Springs. At the same time, black bear numbers have recovered in much of the West after the animals were nearly exterminated in some areas a century ago. State wildlife officials estimate that Colorado is now home to between 17,000 and 20,000 black bears, making them one of the healthiest bear populations among the world’s eight bear species. The combination of more bears, expanding cities, and decreasing natural food supplies has increased conflicts between people and wildlife. Colorado has recorded at least six direct bear attacks on people this year.

Increase in deaths and conflict management

Increased encounters can have deadly results for bears. Hundreds of bears in western states are being shot, electrocuted or euthanized after entering residential areas. Jonathan Livingston, a spokesman for Colorado Parks and Wildlife, told Reuters that between 1.5 percent and 2 percent of reported sightings end with a bear being euthanized. State authorities typically remove and kill bears that enter occupied homes or display aggressive behavior toward people. Livingston said early reports from residents give wildlife officials the best chance of scaring off the bears with non-lethal methods before the animals learn to rely on human buildings and food. Many encounters begin with simple problems, such as open trash cans or bird feeders left outside. But these food sources can pit residents against black bears that weigh between 200 and 400 pounds and have three- to four-inch claws. Community conservation groups, including the Colorado Bear Coalition, are calling on local officials to introduce stricter rules requiring bear-resistant trash containers. Field biologists warn that the problem could worsen as fall approaches and bears enter hyperphagia, a period of intense feeding in which they consume large amounts of food to build up fat reserves before winter hibernation. Heather Reich, a Nevada bear expert and former wildlife agency official, said she is deeply concerned about what could happen in the coming months as bears search for food more aggressively. “We can’t imagine what September and October will be like. It will be Armageddon,” Reich told Reuters.