Dinos Ads

What Does Bear Poop Look Like?

Black bear scat normally smells like a slightly fermented version of whatever the bear ate. If its diet primarily consists of strawberries, acorns, or nuts, the smell will be relatively pleasant compared to if the bear mainly eats meat. But besides the smell, what does bear poop look like? Being able to identify bear scat can alert you to any bears in the area the next time you’re in bear country.

Black Bear Scat

Black bear scat is commonly found at the base of plants, trees, or along trails. Moreover, bear scats appear tubular similar to human poop but larger, about 1.5-2.5 inches in width and 5-12 inches in length.

  • Shape and Size: Black bear scat looks like a loose ‘’cow pile’’ especially if the bear heavily feeds on berries and fruits. It also slightly seems like human feces but with a slight taper and blunt ends.
  • Color: The color of black bear scats is mainly dependent on what the bear feeds on. For example, if the bear is mostly feeding on grass, the scat color will be green, or if it is a mixed diet, its scat color can range from brown to black.
  • Content: The contents present in black bear scats are dependent on the time of the season. For example, during the spring and early summer, black bear scats majorly consist of insect parts and vegetation, while in the berry season, bear scats are mainly filled with seeds and berries. Moreover, since bears are omnivores, bear scats sometimes consist of remains of small animals or moose calves.

Grizzly Bear Scat

Despite the striking similarities between the black bear scat and the grizzly/brown bear scat, scat from the grizzly bear scat often tends to be slightly larger, about 2-inches or more in width than black bear scat.

  • Shape and Size: If the grizzly bear mainly feeds on meat and partially on berries, the scat is often moist, black, and alarmingly smelly. It is slightly tubular and fibrous, just like that of the black bear.
  • Color: Similar with the black bear scats, brown bear scats are green if it mainly feeds on grass.
  • Content: Grizzly bears are also omnivores, so their scat often contains berries, roots, tubers, vegetation, remains from elk, sheep, mountain goats, moose, and cutworm moth parts.

Other Signs of Bears

In addition, to bear droppings bears often leave behind markers such as an oval-shaped toe print of their wide heel pad with five rounded toes. Moreover, bear tracks are relatively larger than other animals and are easily visible on dusty dry trails or mud. Also, bears tend to leave their fur from rubbing, bite and claw marks on trees as they climb to get nuts or fruits.

Visit Yellowstone Bear World Today

Your holiday vacation to the Grand Teton National Park or Yellowstone National Park is certainly not complete if you do not have a wild adventure at Yellowstone Bear World. And now that you know the answer to ‘what does bear poop look like,’ you can keep an eye out for grizzlies and black bears on your next trip. For more information about how you can tour the park, contact us at (208) 359-9688.

Comments are closed.