page_title: Shoshone National Forest
section_title: Fauna
hierarchical_section_title: Shoshone National Forest / Natural resources / Fauna
caption_attribution_description: English: A grizzly bear (Ursus arctos horribilis) sow and cub in Shoshone National Forest, Wyoming, United States
context_page_description: Shoshone National Forest is the first federally protected National Forest in the United States and covers nearly 2,500,000 acres in the state of Wyoming. Originally a part of the Yellowstone Timberland Reserve, the forest is managed by the United States Forest Service and was created by an act of Congress and signed into law by U.S. President Benjamin Harrison in 1891. Shoshone National Forest is one of the first nationally protected land areas anywhere. Native Americans have lived in the region for at least 10,000 years, and when the region was first explored by European adventurers, forestlands were occupied by several different tribes. Never heavily settled or exploited, the forest has retained most of its wildness. Shoshone National Forest is a part of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, a nearly unbroken expanse of federally protected lands encompassing an estimated 20,000,000 acres.
  The Absaroka and Beartooth Mountains are partly in the northern section of the forest. The Wind River Range is in the southern portion and contains Gannett Peak, the tallest mountain in Wyoming.
context_section_description: Since the migration of the endangered gray wolf into Shoshone National Forest after the successful wolf reintroduction program in the Yellowstone region commenced in the mid-1990s, all of the known 70 mammal species that existed prior to white settlement still exist in the forest. Altogether, at least 335 species of wildlife call Shoshone National Forest their home, including the largest population of Bighorn sheep and one of the few locations Grizzly bears can still be found in the contiguous U. S..
  At least 700 grizzly bears are believed to exist in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, which includes Shoshone National Forest, with approximately 125 grizzlies in the forest. The grizzly is listed as a threatened species by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the forest is one of their last strongholds. For what are considered to be "nuisance bears", non-lethal traps are set to capture them so that they can be relocated to remote areas, away from civilization. In the case of the grizzly, each captured bear is tranquilized and then ear tagged with an identifying number. Each number is registered, and if the bear continues to return to areas where they pose a risk of imminent threat to human safety, they are exterminated. The grizzly recovery efforts implemented by federal agencies have often resulted in major disagreements with local landowners and surrounding municipalities. This situation occurs less frequently with the smaller and less aggressive black bear. An active management program, in conjunction with other National Forests and National Parks within the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, works cooperatively to maximize human safety and to ensure habitat protection for both species of endemic bears. Visitors are mandated to store their food in their vehicles or in steel containers found in campgrounds, and bear-proof trash receptacles are located in the front-country zones throughout the forest. In the backcountry, food must be stored some distance from campsites, and other related precautions are enforced to help prevent bad encounters.
  Cougars and timber wolves are large apex predators that inhabit the forest. Since the 1990s wolf reintroduction program in Yellowstone National Park, wolves have migrated into the forest and established permanent packs. Approximately a dozen wolf packs totaling 70 individual wolves were documented in the forest in 2012. The wolf was delisted as endangered once their population levels had reached management objectives and limited hunting of wolves was permitted in the forest starting in 2012. Cougars are generally nocturnal and rarely seen but hunting of this species is also allowed in highly regulated harvests. Wolverines are rare and elusive so documentation is often only from their tracks. The Canada lynx was native to the forest, but no known populations may still exist due to the rarity of its primary food source, the Snowshoe hare. Shoshone National Forest is considered critical habitat for lynx recovery since the species is listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act and the forest is in their historical range. Other generally carnivorous mammals include coyote, bobcat, weasel, marten, ferret and  badger.
  Omnivorous mammals such as the raccoon and skunk and herbivore mammal species such as the porcupine and pika, are common to the forest. The beaver is considered a species of special interest to Shoshone National Forest since its dam building activities improve habitat for numerous other species such as the moose, breeding waterfowl, various amphibians and other species dependent on a riparian environment.
  Native herbivores such as the moose are found in small numbers near waterways, especially at lower elevations. Moose populations in northwestern Wyoming and other areas of North America have been on the decline since the end of the 20th century, possibly due to a parasite. There were an estimated 739 moose in the forest in 2006 which is almost 300 fewer than there were 20 years earlier. Other ungulate species are much more common and there are over 20,000 elk (also 
caption: Grizzly bear mother and cub
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