DEEP Urges Residents to Avoid Conflicts with Bears this Fall

Help Protect Your Neighborhood by Never Feeding Bears

(HARTFORD)—The Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) strongly urges residents to follow best practices to reduce the likelihood of conflicts with black bears this fall.

Conflicts with bears continue to follow a long-term increasing trend in Connecticut, and bears have been observed in all of the state’s 169 cities and towns. One of the leading indicators of rising human-bear conflicts and associated public safety risks in Connecticut is the annual number of bear home entries. So far in 2026, DEEP has documented over 60 bear home entries across 20 municipalities. This year's data continues to show a concerning long-term pattern as demonstrated in DEEP’s annual State of the Bears Report: bear home entries have risen significantly over the past seven years and remain far higher than those reported in neighboring states. By comparison, data shared with DEEP by the Massachusetts Department of Natural Resources documented only five bear-home entries in Massachusetts in 2025, despite Massachusetts having a much larger black bear population than Connecticut.

Black bears may attempt to enter homes after repeatedly gaining access to human-associated foods such as birdseed, trash, and pet food. Over time, these bears can become “habituated” (comfortable around people) and “food-conditioned” (associating people and developed areas with food). Habituated and food-conditioned bears can pose risks to themselves and public safety and may cause property damage or attack pets and livestock.

Human-sourced foods are especially attractive to bears because they can provide many calories with very little effort. In the fall, bears enter “hyperphagia”, an annual period of intense feeding when they may consume up to 20,000 calories per day in preparation for winter. Connecticut’s landscape provides abundant natural foods such as acorns (about 2,100 calories per pound) and blueberries (256 calories per pound) but obtaining enough calories from natural foods requires many hours of foraging. By contrast, a single bird feeder or unsecured garbage bin can provide as many calories in less than an hour as a bear might obtain during a full day of natural foraging.

The best way to keep your neighborhood safe is to prevent bears from ever getting a taste of these easy meals – every resident has a responsibility to secure potential food sources, protect their community, and help ensure that Connecticut’s bears remain wild.

“When bears find food in our trash, birdfeeders, or pet dishes, they lose their natural fear of people and end up in our backyards, putting our families and pets at risk,” said Acting DEEP Commissioner Emma Cimino. “Every resident has a role to play in protecting our communities. Be a good neighbor, keep people safe and keep bears wild.”

“Bears lose their natural fear of people when they eat food from trash, birdfeeders, grills, or other human sources, causing them to spend more time in neighborhoods and near people, creating public safety risks and increasing the possibility that the bears may be hit and killed by vehicles,” said Jenny Dickson, DEEP Wildlife Division Director. “Never feed bears, don’t be the reason your family or neighbors are put in a dangerous situation. Please do your part to keep both bears and people safe.”

How to Avoid Human/Bear Conflicts

NEVER feed bears. Intentionally feeding bears is illegal in Connecticut.
Invest in a bear-resistant trash can. Properly designed bear-resistant containers are a proven method for breaking the habituation cycle by preventing bears from easily accessing human food. Discuss options for bear-resistant trash receptacles with your local trash hauler, since bear-resistant trash cans can be compatible with trash collection trucks.
Never toss leftover food outside “for the animals to clean up,” as that can be a source of food for bears.
Avoid putting out birdfeeders (including hummingbird and suet feeders.) Birdfeeders are an attractant to bears any time of day and year. Empty feeders left hanging serve as a visual attractant, have residual seed odor, and will still attract bears to houses. Instead, support birds by planting ecologically valuable native plants and adding water features which provide food and shelter year-round and benefit far more species than seed or sugar-water.
Store garbage in secure, airtight containers inside a garage or storage area. Garbage for pickup should be put outside the morning of collection and not the night before. Periodically clean garbage cans with ammonia to reduce residual odor.
Do not store leftover bird seed, suet cakes, or recyclables in a porch or screened sunroom as bears can smell these items and will rip screens to get at them.
Keep barbecue grills clean. Store grills inside a garage or shed and remove any fuel source before storing.
Always supervise dogs when outside. Keep dogs on a short leash when walking and hiking. An off-leash dog might be perceived as a threat to a bear or its cubs.
Do not leave pet food outdoors or feed pets outside.11
Use electric fencing to protect beehives, agricultural crops, berry bushes, chickens, and other livestock.
Avoid placing meat scraps or sweet foods, such as fruit and fruit peels, in compost piles.

These practices will greatly reduce the chance of encountering a bear around your home, but won’t entirely eliminate it. Bears are generally not hostile toward people, but they are wild animals that can behave in an unpredictable manner. If you do encounter one near your home or out in the wild, exercise caution.

In Your Yard:

If you see a bear in your yard, do not approach it, and don’t hang around to get a photo or a video! Go into your house, garage, or other structure where you are safe and secure. Get yourself, and any children or pets, to a safe and secure place.

Once in a safe place, if possible, it is a helpful practice to try and scare the bear away. Scaring bears is an important tool residents can use to help keep bears out of their yards. However, ensuring your own safety while doing so is the most important consideration.

Here are some best practices to follow if you attempt to scare a bear away from your yard:

Never approach, corner or chase the bear.
Stand in a safe place. Bring kids and dogs inside. You can effectively scare a bear from inside your home. If you’re outside, make sure you’re a significant distance from the bear, and that you can quickly move inside your home should the bear move toward you. Never put yourself in harm’s way.
Be sure the bear has an escape route, away from you.
Yell, shout, or clap loudly.
Bang pots and pans, or blow a whistle or an airhorn, which can be accomplished through an open window.
Stop hazing when the bear runs away or climbs a tree.

Here is a great resource from our friends at BearWise explaining how to safely scare a bear: BearWise Scare the Bear

On the Trail:

Bears in natural settings normally leave an area once they have sensed a human. If you see a bear, enjoy viewing it from a distance. Aggression by black bears towards humans is exceptionally rare.

Here are some best practices to follow when hiking:

Hike in groups and make noise periodically.
If you see a bear before it sees you, do not approach the bear. Stay still and then back away quietly.
If you encounter a bear while hiking, yell or make other loud noises. Wave your arms over your head. Back away slowly and do not run or climb a tree. If the bear keeps approaching you, use bear spray (make sure you know how to use the spray before heading out on your hike). Black bears rarely attack humans. If you are attacked, do not play dead. Fight back aggressively with anything available.
Keep dogs on a short leash when walking and hiking. This is for the safety of your dog, yourself, and the bear. A roaming dog might be perceived as a threat to a bear or its cubs. (Dogs are required to be on a leash when visiting State Parks, State Forests, and Wildlife Management Areas. Check dog and leash regulations for town properties, land trusts, and other public properties before heading to those areas.)

Residents are also advised to use caution when approaching an area that might attract bears - for example, non-bear-proof dumpsters outside a restaurant or in an apartment or condominium complex.

Helpful resources: BearWise Outdoors - Dogs+Bears=Trouble;

DEEP video: Tips for Living with Black Bears: How to React if You Encounter a Black Bear Outdoors

For more information about how to safely and responsibly coexist with black bears, please visit: The Basics of Living with Black Bears

In the rare instance that a bear appears to be aggressive toward people, residents should immediately contact DEEP’s 24-hour Dispatch Center at 860-424-3333.

Bear Reporting:

Bear sightings reported by the public provide valuable information to assist DEEP in monitoring human-bear conflicts and changes in the black bear population. Anyone who observes a black bear in Connecticut is encouraged to report sightings online or send an email to the Wildlife Division at DEEP.wildlife@ct.gov. Information about a conflict that has occurred or the presence or absence of ear tags, including tag color and numbers, is particularly valuable. A common misconception is that a tagged bear is a bear that was involved in conflicts, and a bear with two ear tags was caught on two different occasions because of conflicts. Every bear receives two ear tags (one in each ear) the first time it is handled by DEEP biologists. Most tagged bears have not been caught due to human-bear conflicts but rather as part of a project researching the state’s bear population.

A portion of this press release was provided by BearWise®, a program created by bear biologists and supported by state wildlife agencies.

Twitter: @CTDEEPNews

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Contact

DEEP Communications
DEEP.Communications@ct.gov
860-424-4100

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