Jackson Hole Residents
Nearly 500 animal species inhabit the Greater Yellowstone area. Viewing wildlife can be the highlight of any vacation, but remember, these animals are truly wild and unpredictable. Stay at least 100 yards away from bears and wolves and 25 yards away from other wildlife. jht.guide/wildlife
Grizzlies have a distinctive shoulder hump, and their ears are short and rounded. In the Greater Yellowstone area, males, or boars, can weigh up to 600 pounds. Grizzly bears are opportunistic omnivores, which means they’ll eat anything from berries, grasses and insects to fish and newborn animals.
Grizzly Bear
BEST PLACES TO VIEW: Willow Flats, Oxbow Bend INTERESTING FACT: Grizzly sows (females) give birth to one to four cubs mid-winter while in their dens; the number may depend on the mother’s health.
Black Bear
Black bears have tall, pointed ears, no distinctive shoulder hump, and weigh 200-plus pounds. BEST PLACES TO VIEW: Signal Mountain and Jenny Lake in summer
INTERESTING FACTS: Cubs, born mid-winter, weigh less than a pound. Black bears are great tree climbers. MYTH BUSTER: Bears don’t hibernate. They go into a deep sleep, called torpor, but their body temperature doesn’t drop as low as that of true hibernation.
Wolves
Male wolves are slightly heavier than females, weighing up to 130 pounds. Usually seen in packs of about 10, wolves are capable predators. In Jackson Hole, they mostly feed on elk.
BEST PLACES TO VIEW: Infrequently seen in the Willow Flats area or among sagebrush flats throughout Grand Teton National Park. More commonly seen in northern Yellowstone. INTERESTING FACTS: Wolf reintroduction efforts in the ’90s released 66 wild wolves into the Greater Yellowstone area—now home to about 1,600 wolves.
Pronghorn
Males weigh up to 140 pounds. Pronghorn are herbivores and prefer shrubs and forbs (wildflowers) to grasses.
BEST PLACES TO VIEW: Elk Ranch Flats and Antelope Flats INTERESTING FACTS: It’s thought that pronghorn evolved their quick speed when pursued by a now extinct North American cheetah. They have been recorded sprinting up to 60 mph, which is faster than any other mammal in the Western Hemisphere. 30
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