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Bear hibernationMassachusetts

When Do Bears Hibernate in Massachusetts?

Massachusetts bears are feeding hard before winter, and go into their dens between mid November and early December.

Today, October 13

The bears

Fattening up

Bears start going into their dens in mid November.

Bird feeders

Keep feeders down all year

MassWildlife gives one rule for the whole year.

Where these dates come from

Photo: “Black bear on a snowy spring day”, Neal Herbert, National Park Service, Public domain

Dens and feeders in Massachusetts

By MassWildlife's den and wake months
Mid November to early December
Into the den
per MassWildlife
March to mid April
Out of the den
per MassWildlife
All year
Bird feeders
Keep feeders down all year

Bears go into their dens over several weeks and come out over several more, so each is a span. MassWildlife gives one feeder rule for the whole year, quoted below.

The sources

The dates, in the agencies’ own words

Into the den and out

Bears in Massachusetts go into their dens between mid November and early December and come out between March and mid April.

Depending on food availability and snow cover, bears will den between mid-November and early December and exit between early March and mid-April.

MassWildlife, Learn about black bears, read October 13, 2026

The bird feeder

Keep feeders down all year. MassWildlife's guidance holds all year, so it has no dates.

There is no safe time of day or year to have bird feeders out.

MassWildlife, Prevent conflicts with black bears, read October 13, 2026

You should remove bird feeders at the first sign of bear activity and avoid leaving empty feeders out.

MassWildlife, Prevent conflicts with black bears, read October 13, 2026

Bears in Massachusetts

Black bears live and breed in Worcester County, northern Middlesex County, and west to the Berkshires.

MassWildlife, Learn about black bears, read October 13, 2026
A dark opening dug into a hillside underneath a large grey fallen tree trunk, with green plants around it
A bear den under a fallen tree in Yellowstone, photographed in late May. Under fallen trees is one of the den sites BearWise names, along with hollow trees, dug out mounds and nests under briar patches. “Bear den underneath a fallen tree”, Jacob W. Frank, National Park Service, Public domain
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Month by month

The Massachusetts bear year

Where the bears are in each month, from the den and wake months above, and where the feeder stands.

  1. January: In the den
  2. February: In the den
  3. March: Waking up
  4. April: Waking up
  5. May: Out and hungry
  6. June: Out and hungry
  7. July: Out and hungry
  8. August: Out and hungry
  9. September: Out and hungry
  10. October: Fattening up, this month
  11. November: Denning now
  12. December: In the den

Keep feeders down all year: MassWildlife gives one rule for the whole year, so no month is marked up or down. The bar for this month is outlined.

Sightings

When Massachusetts bears are seen

The months people report black bears in Massachusetts on iNaturalist, from every year, and the reports from the last 30 days.

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920 research grade black bear reports from Massachusetts on iNaturalist, all years, by the month they were seen. Most come in May, fewest in February. Counted September 19, 2026. The bars count sightings people logged, not bears.

Reading the last 30 days of bear reports from iNaturalist.

Bears out in winter

How easily a denned bear is roused, in the words of NJ Fish and Wildlife:

While in torpor black bears are capable of being easily awakened if disturbed and they may leave their dens on mild winter days in search of food.

NJ Fish and Wildlife, Black Bear Biology and Behavior, read October 13, 2026
A cinnamon brown black bear walking through low shrubs and dry grass
A black bear at Great Sand Dunes, photographed by the park in spring as bears were coming out of their dens, hungry. “Black Bear, Great Sand Dunes National Park”, Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve, Public domain
Questions

Bears in Massachusetts: questions and answers

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By state

Bear hibernation in the other 41 states

Other guides for Massachusetts

Bear Season in MassachusettsFall activity and hunting dates by state.Hummingbird Migration in MassachusettsWhen hummingbirds arrive and leave, and when to take feeders down.Winter Backyard Birds in MassachusettsThe top feeder birds by state, December to February.Attic Wildlife in MassachusettsWhen you may and may not evict animals from an attic.Bear Hibernation in every stateDen, wake and feeder dates for all 42 states, with the eight that have no dens.

Den, wake and feeder sentences are quoted from MassWildlife, nearby agencies where named and BearWise, read October 13, 2026. The phase and the feeder verdict are worked out from those months and today’s date. Bear reports are research grade iNaturalist observations of the American black bear, counted September 19, 2026.