A photographer’s trail camera filmed the “first grizzly bear of the year” near Yellowstone National Park — as the animals emerge out of hibernation.
Trent Sizemore, a full-time photographer and guide in Yellowstone National Park, shared footage that his trail camera captured in West Yellowstone, Montana on March 13.
In a video, that amassed 500,000 views on his Facebook page (Trent Sizemore Photography) a large grizzly bear can be seen walking across the snow and passing directly in front of the lens of his trail camera.
In a caption, accompanying the clip, Sizemore says it was the first time that a grizzly bear had been filmed on his trail camera setup in 2025.
“The first grizzly bear of the year passed by my trail camera last night near West Yellowstone,” the photographer writes.
Sizemore says that he captured the footage on a Tactacam Reveal X Pro trail camera and that he set up the recording device in a location known to be an animal in the hope of filming a grizzly bear emerging out of hibernation.
“I set it up there with the intent to capture bears moving through. It’s set up on a known animal trail that’s also captured moose, deer, elk, fox, and coyote,” Sizemore tells PetaPixel.
“The first bear was captured on March 13 around 10 P.M. It’s always exciting to see a bear show up on my camera, and I could tell what it was right away by the eyes in the background.
“Later this spring and summer, I plan to set up some cameras in new areas with the goal of capturing a mountain lion, bobcat, lynx, or wolverine.”
West Yellowstone is just outside the entrance of the West Entrance of Yellowstone National Park. Sizemore’s trail camera footage came just a week after Yellowstone National Park announced that grizzly bear tracks had been discovered by employees, signaling the start of the 2025-26 bear season.
“It’s that time of year when bears are coming out of hibernation, and staff observed grizzly bear tracks in the northern part of the park on March 9,” Yellowstone National Park writes in a post on social media. “It’s important to Be Bear Aware!”
Yellowstone National Park advised people to keep at least 100 yards away from grizzly bears and never approach a bear to take its photo.
Grizzly and black bears in the Northern Rockies and Sierra Nevada typically start emerging from their dens around mid-March. Their hibernation generally lasts several months, beginning in mid-November, though it can extend into December if the weather stays mild and food remains accessible. Males usually emerge first, while females, especially those with cubs born during the winter, tend to emerge later.
More of Sizemore’s work can be seen on his Facebook page and website.
Image credits: All photos by Trent Sizemore Photography
Source link
