Overview
- An angler in his 60s was attacked while walking to a Jefferson County trail parking lot on Friday and suffered leg injuries; wildlife teams tracked a 50–60 lb subadult female and euthanized her the next morning under CPW policy.
- Wildlife officers tranquilized a roughly 100‑pound, yearling male in Denver’s Platt Park over the weekend and safely relocated him to mountain habitat after police assisted with the capture.
- Colorado Parks and Wildlife has logged 6,129 bear sighting and conflict reports through Aug. 13, which is nearly double the same period in 2025 and puts 2026 on pace to set a record since statewide tracking began in 2019.
- CPW attributes the surge to drought and wildfire damage that have reduced natural food, plus hyperphagia—the late‑summer drive to bulk up before winter—which pushes bears into neighborhoods and recreation areas in search of unsecured trash, grills, birdseed and pet food.
- State and federal teams are using dog teams, tracking, necropsies and DNA analysis to link animals to conflicts, and CPW is stepping up BearWise outreach at events and door‑to‑door to reduce attractants and lower the chance bears will be removed or killed.