Seeing one of the approximately 300 to 500 black bears in Yosemite can evoke excitement, awe, and fear. If visitors spot a bear while in the park, it is a black bear-not a brown or grizzly bear.
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Where to See Yosemite Bears. Black bears are scaredy cats. They mainly stay away from humans, but you have a good chance of seeing one in Yosemite National Park among oak trees and meadows. Since they don't like being around humans, black bears live and travel in heavily wooded areas.
Make sure you know before you go. In national parks where grizzlies live, such as Glacier or Grand Teton, rangers encourage you to carry bear spray. In others, such as Yosemite, where only black bears live, bear spray is not even permitted.
Mountain lions—also called cougars, pumas or panthers—roam Yosemite's mountains and valleys. These important predators, native to the Americas, are a natural part of the Yosemite landscape.
If a bear approaches you or if you are in a campground, picnic area, parking lot, lodging area, or other developed area, act immediately to scare it away. Scare the bear away by yelling aggressively and as loudly as possible until the bear leaves.
These large individuals of the Mountain Coyote are the present day wolves of the Yosemite region. No true wolf is known to have occurred anywhere in middle California since about 1870.
Bobcats in Yosemite are elusive animals, but they have been spotted many times. It is not unusual to see bobcats hunting pray during the day. They are very important to the parks ecosystem because they keep the rodent population under control. Humans have nothing to fear from these beautiful cats.