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Bear hibernationOhio

When Do Bears Hibernate in Ohio?

Ohio bears are feeding hard before winter, and go into their dens in early November.

Today, October 13

The bears

Fattening up

Bears start going into their dens in early November.

Bird feeders

Keep feeders down until early December

Feeders go back up once bears are in their dens, in early December.

Where these dates come from

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

Dens and feeders in Ohio

By Ohio Division of Wildlife's den months and Kentucky Fish and Wildlife's wake months
Early November
Into the den
per Ohio Division of Wildlife
Late March to early April
Out of the den
per Kentucky Fish and Wildlife
Late March
Feeders down
when the first bears wake
Early December
Feeders back up
once the dens are full

Bears go into their dens over several weeks and come out over several more, so each is a span. Feeders come down as the first bears wake and go back up once the dens are full.

The sources

The dates, in the agencies’ own words

Into the den

Bears in Ohio go into their dens in early November.

Typically, cubs weigh between 25 and 65 pounds by September and may, provided high quality food is readily available, weigh nearly 70-80 pounds by the time they enter the overwinter den with the sow in early November.

Ohio Division of Wildlife, Black Bear, read October 13, 2026

Out of the den

They come out between late March and early April.

Black bears typically den during the winter months and emerge in late March or early April.

Kentucky Fish and Wildlife, Black Bears, read October 13, 2026. Its wake months are used here for Ohio.

The bird feeder

Down in late March, back up in early December. The dates follow BearWise, the bear program state wildlife agencies run: remove feeders when bears are active. They are when bears start waking and when dens are full, by Ohio Division of Wildlife's den months and Kentucky Fish and Wildlife's wake months.

When bears are active, the best option is to remove bird feeders.

BearWise, Remove Bird Feeders When Bears are Active, read October 13, 2026

Bears in Ohio

However, in recent years, evidence of adult females with cubs have been documented in several counties in northeast Ohio, near the Pennsylvania border.

Ohio Division of Wildlife, Black Bear, 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 Ohio 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, feeders up
  2. February: In the den, feeders up
  3. March: In the den, feeders up
  4. April: Out and hungry, feeders down
  5. May: Out and hungry, feeders down
  6. June: Out and hungry, feeders down
  7. July: Out and hungry, feeders down
  8. August: Out and hungry, feeders down
  9. September: Fattening up, feeders down
  10. October: Fattening up, feeders down, this month
  11. November: Denning now, feeders down
  12. December: In the den, feeders up

Up and Down mark where the feeder stands in the middle of each month. The bar for this month is outlined.

Sightings

When Ohio bears are seen

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

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81 research grade black bear reports from Ohio on iNaturalist, all years, by the month they were seen. Most come in August, 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 Ohio: questions and answers

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By state

Bear hibernation in the other 41 states

Other guides for Ohio

Bear Season in OhioFall activity and hunting dates by state.Hummingbird Migration in OhioWhen hummingbirds arrive and leave, and when to take feeders down.Winter Backyard Birds in OhioThe top feeder birds by state, December to February.Attic Wildlife in OhioWhen 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 Ohio Division of Wildlife, 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.