NEWS
New Mexico sees spike in bear activity
Drought, bad habits blamed for incidents of livestock being attacked in the East Mountains
The video is framed in a familiar way: A dashcam captures a Santa Fe deputy traveling down a darkened road.
Then the subject trots out of a driveway and into view 鈥 big, brown and clunky.
The black bear runs across the road and disappears into the night, a common occurrence in rural areas outside Santa Fe and other municipalities statewide. This year, however, wildlife officials say more and more people are seeing bears, largely due to a stubborn drought.
The Santa Fe County Sheriff鈥檚 Office, using the video to encourage people to 鈥渄rive safe, sober and aware,鈥 said the deputy 鈥渇ound no good reason to engage in a possibly dangerous foot pursuit with this large subject.鈥
鈥淣o citation was issued. This time,鈥 according to the post.
A shelter-in-place order was issued for a Rio Rancho neighborhood Wednesday after a bear was spotted nearby before ambling onto Santa Ana Pueblo. On Thursday, a picture showing a bear atop power lines in Gladstone 鈥 likely spooked by traffic or people 鈥 made national headlines. The Department of Wildlife reported that bear was electrocuted and died.
The issue has become top-of-mind for those in the East Mountains, where bear depredations 鈥 in these cases, injuring or killing livestock 鈥 have nearly tripled over previous years. While some neighbors mourn the loss of beloved animals and some express panic over the bear sightings, others say the bears aren鈥檛 the problem.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a people problem,鈥 longtime Tijeras resident Chris Crouch said. She said many residents 鈥 especially an influx of 鈥渘ew鈥 arrivals 鈥 leave trash out, and the bears learn to come back, starting with refuse and eventually killing animals.
Department of Wildlife spokesperson Darren Vaughan said there have been 14 bear depredations in the area since Jan. 1, compared with five over that same time period in 2024, and two or fewer the previous three years. Vaughan said the department was 鈥渦nable to access records for 2025.鈥
鈥淭he increase appears to be a result of particularly dry conditions this spring and summer, leading bears to come into populated areas in search of food and water,鈥 he said. 鈥淒epredation issues typically increase during the hot, dry summer months. The number of incidents tends to decrease as moisture increases, which may lead to other available food sources.鈥
Vaughan said the 14 incidents included an attack on a meat rabbit, six attacks on chickens and several attacks on goats and sheep. He said the department did not have information on how many animals or which animals survived their injuries.
Vaughan could confirm one fatality.
鈥淥ne bear was shot by a landowner after attacking goats,鈥 he said.
Vaughan said the bear populations have remained 鈥渞elatively steady鈥 in the East Mountains, with 132 animals in the Sandia Mountains and 233 in the Manzano Mountains. The department believed 鈥渕ultiple bears鈥 were responsible for the depredations.
On apps like Nextdoor, residents in the East Mountains post stories, videos and photos of bears in their yards or the evidence left behind. One person said they lost two llamas to an attack while another said a bear killed 24 of their chickens, going in through the coop roof and busting out the side. A third person wrote they forgot to lock their chickens in the shed and found a bear had killed 14 the next morning.
鈥淏e diligent with pets and livestock, this bear is hungry,鈥 one person commented.
Vaughan said there is a lot that can be done to stop bear depredations.
鈥淧roperty owners can protect their livestock, as well as beehives and bird feeders, by erecting fencing that keeps bears out of their enclosures. Electric fencing has proven to be an effective deterrent while not causing long-term harm to bears,鈥 he said.
Other measures, he said, include not putting garbage out before pickup day, feeding pets indoors, keeping bird feeders, compost piles, livestock pens and beehives away from the house. Vaughan said bears 鈥渁re more likely to return to areas known to provide food sources, whether those are natural or human-provided.鈥
A 鈥榩eople problem鈥
Crouch said she has always seen bears 鈥渨addle by鈥 her Ring camera. This year, there鈥檚 a lot more waddling going on.
But Crouch blames the depredations on people, who she says are either dismissive, uneducated or obstinate. She said many people have moved in from the city and leave trash cans out or secure things with bungee cords 鈥 little defense for one of the smartest land animals, which can weigh several hundred pounds.
She said when she and others speak up on Nextdoor about following the rules, they get attacked by 鈥渁rmchair bear experts.鈥
鈥淭hey're training the bears to come around the houses, and then now this year, because of the drought, it's worse,鈥 she said. 鈥淭here's so many bears and so many people leaving stuff out.鈥
Crouch said when she first moved in she and dozens of neighbors attended a 鈥淏e Bear Aware鈥 meeting at the local ranger鈥檚 station. That鈥檚 where she learned how to keep her property, and the bears, safe.
Earlier this month, Alan Graves made a mistake by putting his trash out early. It only took once, he said, for a bear to tear into it. Then the bear opened the door to their storage shed and carried off bags of bird seed and a blue and yellow yoga mat.
Graves said he posted video of the raids 鈥 which shows a large bear toppling his trash can and carrying bags of birdseed away 鈥 on social media and was criticized for leaving trash out.
An avid outdoorsman who moved into the area a year ago, Graves said, 鈥淭hey're part of nature, and so I don't have any problem just letting them be around 鈥 live and let live.鈥
He said they did get a chuckle over the yoga mat, which they found down the hill with several chew marks. Graves added, with a laugh, 鈥淲e thought, 鈥榃ell, maybe he's going to try to work off some of those chickens he's been eating.鈥欌
Living in Tijeras the past six years, Stephanie King is no stranger to wildlife. This year, she said, 鈥淚t鈥檚 pretty shocking how many bears are roaming around.鈥
King blames the drought 鈥 they had one snowstorm this year 鈥 and the bad habits of people unaccustomed to mountain life. Whatever the cause, on May 5, she paid the price.
A bear was spotted on their security cameras and when King cleared the property, armed with a shotgun, she found their chicken coop ransacked.
鈥淗e ripped the back door of the coop right off 鈥 and he got all but two,鈥 she said. Nothing but feathers remained inside and the lucky few were wandering the property.
King said she called the Department of Wildlife and an officer set a trap filled with day-old cupcakes and cinnamon rolls. He told her bears 鈥渓oved sweet things.鈥
She said the bear came back but wasn鈥檛 interested, instead heading for the coop, 鈥淚 wonder if it's because he wanted chickens 鈥 he didn鈥檛 want dessert.鈥
The next night the bear was shot and killed by a neighbor. The outcome was one of the reasons she said she won鈥檛 call a game officer next time.
鈥淚 just have a real hard time with them killing the bear,鈥 King said. 鈥淏ecause, I mean, we live in their neighborhood. We moved into the mountains, you have to be prepared for wildlife.鈥
A few years ago, she said, a mountain lion killed her alpacas. King said while she understands the risks, some people don鈥檛 get it 鈥 leaving garbage bags in the driveway.
鈥淚t just boggles my mind. You don't live in town anymore,鈥 King said. 鈥淵ou have to get in that mindset, and I just think that's a journey for some people. But once you lose some animals, you definitely start to think about it.鈥
King said they got new chickens and have reinforced the coop with electrical wire 鈥 which should get their attention.
鈥淚t's a really strong current,鈥 she said.