Watching for Bear Signs - Tracks

by Derek Ryder, Volunteer Wildlife Ambassador & IGA Interpretive Guide

Kananaskis Country is home to a lot of animals, including bears. Recreating safely in bear country means more than just knowing what to do in a bear encounter. It’s also understanding signs that bears are around, so that maybe those encounters can be prevented.

Bears are big enough that they almost always leave evidence that they’ve been present – if you know what to look for. Keeping your eyes peeled for this evidence can help you be aware if bears are present, and will decrease the risk that you’ll accidentally run into a bear. In this series of articles, I’m going to help you learn about some of the signs bears leave in the forest.

One of the most obvious signs that bears are around is the footprints they leave. Tracks are only left on soft or wet ground. If you remember the last couple of days of the weather, it can help you understand when Ms. Bear might have passed. If you know it hasn’t rained or been wet where you are for several days, then that track in what is now dried up mud is now old. Rain and water wash away tracks, so if the ground is still wet or it’s raining, and you find an obvious track, it’s very fresh. In the fall, knowing when it snowed last can be a big giveaway as to when tracks were made. Tracks in snow exposed to sun will melt out over several days, going from quite distinct to less well defined. Tracks melting out will also get bigger. The track above was very fresh (less than 12 hrs. old). The pads remain distinct, even though there is ice underneath.

When the mud or snow is just right, it becomes easy to tell Black Bear from Grizzly Bear tracks. The two tracks are similar, but different. As the graphic shows, the simple difference is that you can draw a straight line under a Grizzly’s toes, but not under a Black Bear’s. The claw marks are also MUCH farther in front of the toes of the Grizzly, too. However, in practice, I find claw impressions often are not that noticeable. And track size alone won’t help you tell the difference between bear types. A full-grown male Black Bear can be as big as a smaller full-grown female Grizzly. Accordingly, their feet can be similarly sized.

In this photo, the tracks are obviously Black Bear tracks. Notice how much curve there is in the toes; there’s no chance you could draw a straight line under them. But also notice how indistinct the claw marks are, even given the quality of the other aspects of the track. You can only clearly make claw marks out in only two of the tracks. When you see and are trying to identify bear tracks, go by toe shape first, then look to see if you can see claw marks.

Another great thing to look at with tracks is gait, or distance between the tracks. This will give you an excellent idea of the size of the bear. Coupled with overall print size, you can often readily identify when cubs are present. In this photo, that’s my feet just shoulder width apart against the gait of an obvious Grizzly track. That’s a very short gait, telling me it’s a cub. The print is very small compared to my foot as well, confirming this was not a particularly big cub that went by. Mom’s nearby track confirmed it. You can also look for multiple tracks, meaning bears travelling together. Recent, multiple tracks, with evidence of cubs, is grounds for making a bunch of noise and getting very bear aware.

Finally, you have to remember: big animal = big feet. The card in this photo is 10” long, which is longer than my foot. That is one VERY big grizzly track, meaning it was left by a VERY big bear. That serves as a reminder that, if you’re taking photos of tracks, it’s REALLY helpful to put something in your photo (like your foot or a card or a pole basket) to provide a sense of scale.

Make it a habit when you’re out in the wilderness to stop at every mud puddle, dried up or otherwise. Look for tracks. You’ll often be surprised as to what you see.

Click here to find out about some of the other signs that bears leave behind!