Big Bear Alpine Zoo

Big Bear Alpine Zoo is a mountain wildlife facility with a distinctive rehabilitation mission. It provides care for injured, orphaned, and human-imprinted wild animals, releasing those that recover and can safely return to their native environments while giving permanent care to animals that cannot survive independently. The zoo is home to more than 85 species of mammals, birds, and reptiles, with its alpine setting reinforcing the focus on wildlife associated with mountain and northern ecosystems.

Visitors can see animals such as black bears, grizzly bears, mountain lions, wolves, coyotes, snow leopards, and native birds and reptiles. Exhibits are paired with educational information about where the animals came from, why some must remain in human care, and how rehabilitation works. Guided tours provide additional context about individual animals and the zoo's release efforts, while daily enrichment activities offer opportunities to observe natural behaviors. The destination is particularly suited to travelers interested in wildlife rescue and rehabilitation, especially those who want animal viewing connected directly to the stories of injured and orphaned animals in care.