Eight impactful stories of human encounters with bears across the U.S.
This collection of stories examines varied human interactions with bears across the United States.
People in Tega Cay kept their distance after seeing a young black bear near Lake Wylie, while a Tennessee deputy shot a bear scavenging a motorcyclist's body after a fatal crash. A veteran survived a grizzly attack in Grand Teton National Park by playing dead, and a retired soldier harvested Louisiana’s largest recorded bear during a regulated hunt. Tourists in Yellowstone blocked a grizzly’s path to film it, and Ohio residents pulled bear cubs from a tree thinking they needed rescue. Homeowners in California discovered a mama bear set up a nursery under their house, and St. Clair County in Illinois now experiences regular black bear sightings.
Read the stories below.
NO. 1: BEAR CUBS DON’T NEED YOUR HELP. SAFETY TIPS FOR BEAR ENCOUNTERS IN THE STATE OF OHIO
People in NC grabbed a cub to take selfies with it. See why it’s never a good idea to pluck a bear cub out of a tree and find out how likely you are to come across a black bear in Mahoning County. | Published April 23, 2024 | Read Full Story by Sundi Rose
NO. 2: VETERAN PLAYED DEAD AS GRIZZLY MAULED HIM IN GRAND TETON NATIONAL PARK, OFFICIALS SAY
“It was the most violent thing I have ever experienced.” | Published May 24, 2024 | Read Full Story by Brooke Baitinger
NO. 3: LATEST BLACK BEAR SIGHTING IN THE CHARLOTTE REGION CAME NEAR LAKE WYLIE
Tega Cay police said there were three reported sightings over the weekend | Published June 10, 2024 | Read Full Story by Andrew Dys
NO. 4: TOURISTS CROWD GRIZZLY TO FILM IT — AND BLOCK ITS PATH IN YELLOWSTONE. SEE TENSE MOMENT
“This bear has been trying to cross the road for quite some time now. It’s just completely surrounded by people.” | Published September 16, 2024 | Read Full Story by Brooke Baitinger
NO. 5: DEPUTY SHOOTS BEAR SCAVENGING BODY OF MOTORCYCLIST KILLED IN CRASH, TN OFFICIALS SAY
The bear guarded the body as the deputy tried to approach, the state’s wildlife agency said. | Published September 26, 2024 | Read Full Story by Olivia Lloyd
NO. 6: ‘LARGEST EVER’ BEAR HUNTED IN LOUISIANA IS TAKEN DOWN BY ARMY COMBAT VET, STATE SAYS
“I knew he was gonna be big.” | Published January 9, 2025 | Read Full Story by Mark Price
NO. 7: HOMEOWNERS HEAR ‘CRYING’ UNDER HOUSE — LEADING TO MAMA BEAR’S ‘NURSERY.’ SEE THE CUB
“It’s that magical time of the year... All the tiny little bear cubs are being born,” California officials said. | Published January 31, 2025 | Read Full Story by Brooke Baitinger
NO. 8: ANOTHER BEAR SIGHTED IN ST. CLAIR COUNTY. IS THIS THE ‘NEW NORMAL’?
“(Males) are just eating machines, and they cover a tremendous amount of territory,” an Illinois game warden said. | Published May 26, 2025 | Read Full Story by Teri Maddox
The summary above was drafted with the help of AI tools and edited by journalists in our News division. All stories listed were reported, written and edited by McClatchy journalists.