Wildlife officials have euthanized 294 bears in Colorado so far in 2026

New numbers from Colorado Parks and Wildlife provide a grim look at the record-amount of bear sightings this year – the state is seeing an unprecedented surge in bear activity, with thousands of reports pouring in as drought and wildfires reduce natural food sources and bears enter their fall feeding period.

CPW's preliminary headline numbers through Aug. 31 are striking with 8,672 human-bear incident reports, up from 3,680 through August 2025 — about 2.4 times as many.

The agency said 294 bears have been euthanized versus 33 in 2025.

Colorado's black bears are in the early days of hyperphagia, the period when bears aggressively forage for food and build up fat reserves before winter. The bears normally rely heavily on grasses, berries, fruits, nuts and other natural foods. As those resources become scarce, bears can move into residential and urban areas in search of easier calories.

Recent reports have included bears entering homes, vehicles and businesses, with encounters occurring in both mountain communities and Front Range neighborhoods.