JACKSON (WNE) — Bears are emerging from hibernation in western Wyoming, leaving their pawprints in the melting snow in both Yellowstone and Grand Teton National parks.

A Grand Teton National Park employee observed a grizzly bear near Flagg Ranch on March 19, marking the first confirmed sighting of the season in the park. Meanwhile, staff in Yellowstone spotted the northern park’s first pair of grizzly tracks 10 days earlier, on March 9.

Teton Park has since received three more reports of bear sightings, including its first reported black bear sighting in the past few days, Grand Teton Bear Biologist Justin Schwabedissen told the Jackson Hole Daily. After the first sighting, two of the park’s subsequent reports came from members of the public.

“It’s definitely an exciting time,” Schwabedissen said.

The first bear to have emerged in 2025 is thought to be a male, based on its size and patterns of bear behavior.

“Looking at long-term trends across the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, male grizzly bears tend to emerge in March,” Schwabedissen said. “Female grizzly bears tend to emerge a little bit later.”

Females without offspring emerge in early April and those with cubs later.

“Females that have attendant young are just a little bit restricted by those offspring,” Schwabedissen said. “Cubs have to be big enough to keep up with the mother.”

After emerging, bears will head for lower elevations, along riparian corridors, looking for ungulate carcasses to feed on.

“It’s pretty challenging with all the snow we have around,” Schwabedissen said. “Bears are relying on knowledge of where food sources have been in the past.”

Now that bears have begun to show face in the area, residents should secure attractants such as trash, compost, bird feeders and chicken coops and brush up on bear safety.