Window Trail Stop #4

A well-earned nap

NPS/CA Hoyt

Quick Facts

Location:

Big Bend National Park

In the early 1900s, black bears were common in the Chisos Mountains and throughout Big Bend country. By the time Big Bend National Park was established in 1944, there were virtually no resident bears left. Shooting and trapping by ranchers, federal predator control agents, recreational hunters, as well as loss of habitat contributed to their decline. In the late 1980s an amazing series of events transpired. In 1988, a visitor photographed a female with three young cubs in the Chisos Mountains. Throughout 1988 visitors reported seeing bears on 27 occasions. Observations increased in the 1990s. In 1996, 572 bear observations were recorded! Today, visitors regularly observe black bears throughout the Chisos Mountains. If you see a bear, remain watchful but do not approach it. Give the bear plenty of space, and do not run. Slowly back away and increase your distance from the bear. If the bear approaches you, talk loudly, clap your hands, or shout at it. Make yourself look as large as possible, and if in a group, stand together and make lots of noise.