Living with Black Bears

Black Bear distribution: Black bear’s have a preference for forested habitat. That means wherever there’s a forest in Tahoe, there are probably black bears-including forested areas where humans live, work and recreate. They are extremely adaptable creatures, but their numbers have declined since the dispersal of Europeans across the continent. This map shows the current distribution in dark grey, with the lighter grey indicating the historical presence in which bears no longer reside.

Black bear populations are stable in Nevada and stable to growing across the majority of California. However, many local bears are becoming less wild and more dependent on human-generated garbage for food.This change in behavior often leads to "garbage bears" or what some call "problem bears". In the Tahoe basin, several of these "garbage bears" are killed each year because they have lost their wildness. It’s everyone's responsibility to help keep our bears alive and wild.

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