5 Adorable Animals Tourists Might Spot At Yellowstone National Park

Yellowstone National Park has some incredible natural scenery, from vibrant hydrothermal pools and stunning geysers to towering mountain ranges and surging rivers. For many visitors, however, the breathtaking landscapes are just a bonus — the main attraction is the wildlife. Yellowstone is one of those national parks where you're almost guaranteed to see a bear, plus there are bison everywhere (they might even cause a traffic jam), and it's common to see mountain goats traversing the rocky slopes. Seeing any of these incredible creatures can be a life-changing experience, but finding some of the cutest animals in Yellowstone National Park requires a bit more searching.

If you're in the right place at the right time, you might just see river otters splashing around in the water, little martens looking down at you from the tree branches, a pika perching on a rock, a ground squirrel popping up out of the meadow grass, or an elusive bobcat peering out of the underbrush. Seeing one of these adorable critters is a matter of time and luck, but if you understand the habits of the creatures you most want to see, you can improve your chances. Planning your trip to the park in the right season, heading to the right area, and being there at the right time will give you the highest chance of getting an absolutely adorable animal sighting.

When you imagine yourself seeing incredible wildlife in Yellowstone National Park, you probably picture land-dwelling creatures. While that might be true for animals like wolves and elk, if you want to see some of the park's cutest animals for yourself, you'll have to check in the rivers or along the banks. River otters, which technically belong to the weasel family, can grow up to 54 inches long and love swimming through Yellowstone's quick currents. Their tiny round eyes paired with their big black noses make them look like little cartoon characters, and you'll often find them splashing around in the water together thanks to their playful nature. The only thing cuter is when they all pile up on the shore to cuddle and nap together.

The best time of year to visit Yellowstone in search of cute animals is likely in the spring, as this is when you can see fluffy baby bison and little bear cubs, but if you want to see river otters, plan a winter visit. Not only are they more likely to be out during the day when it's warmer, but they have fewer choices for non-frozen water to swim in, so you'll have fewer spots to search for them. Consider following Soda Butte Creek to the Lamar River, checking Sylvan Lake, and camping at Pebble Creek Campground to look for them.

There are lots of different names for these long, furry, pointy-faced creatures, but no matter what you call them, there's no denying how precious weasels look, whether they're bounding across the snow or standing up on their back feet to check out human visitors. There are long- and short-tailed weasels (also called ermines), both of which are extremely cute, but the most exciting weasel to look for might be the American pine marten. These creatures are a rich, warm brown color, and they look like a cross between a fox and a ferret with a big fluffy tail. They're also surprisingly large, about the size of the average house cat. They're pretty common in Yellowstone but are rarely seen by visitors because they avoid humans and spend a lot of their time in trees.

Your best bet for seeing one is going to be first thing in the morning, just as the sun rises. While it's not the most hospitable time to be walking around in Yellowstone, a winter visit might be your best option if you want to see martens leaping through the trees like enormous squirrels. You can spot them almost anywhere in the park if you get lucky, but visitors have spotted them on the South Rim Trail near the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone. You may also have luck in the area around Steamboat Geyser or in the woods near Bridge Bay.

Picture your beloved pet cat. Now imagine it twice as big with a chunky body, puffy cheeks, dark spots on its coat, and tufts of fur sticking up off the tips of its ears. You definitely shouldn't try to take a dangerous selfie with any wildlife in Yellowstone National Park (or get too close in general), but even though bobcats have been known to hunt and take down deer on their own, an adult human doesn't usually have much to fear from them. In fact, most of the time, these elusive felines do everything they can to go unnoticed by people. If you long to see a bobcat for yourself, however, Yellowstone National Park is a great place to start your quest. While the exact number of bobcats in the park is unknown, they are considered widespread. Still, very few park visitors get to see these adorable creatures.

If you want to see a bobcat in Yellowstone, your best chance is in the dead of winter. The park is known for its interesting geothermal pools, and that same natural heat affects the Madison River. Even when most water in the park has frozen over, the Madison River continues to flow through Yellowstone. That means that small mammals and winter birds are drawn to it, so hungry bobcats are often seen around its banks, too. Head out at dawn or dusk and look for areas with dense underbrush or fallen logs along the water. If you look from the right angle, you might spot a bobcat hiding inside, waiting to pounce on unsuspecting prey.

You may think you know squirrels, but have you met the Uinta Ground Squirrel? These creatures look more like small woodchucks or prairie dogs than the tree-dwelling squirrels that you may see raiding your bird feeder, and for good reason. They, too, live in underground burrows and seem to appear suddenly, poking their heads up out of grassy meadows. They look especially adorable standing up on their back legs while munching on a flower inside their big cheeks.

Compared to many of the park's cutest animals, Uinta ground squirrels aren't too difficult to see in Yellowstone, but you'll have to visit the right place at the right time. For one thing, they hibernate for almost half of the year, so if you want to see them, you should plan a Yellowstone trip between April and mid-July. In warm weather, however, you can see them all over the park, wherever there are grasslands or sagebrush areas for them to dig. Sometimes visitors spot them right outside the park's shops and restaurants, probably hoping to score a snack.

The only hard part about seeing these critters is that, unlike the bison you'll almost definitely see around the park, they're too small to spot from your car, so you'll have to get out and look around. If you can't find any Uinta ground squirrels while exploring, head to the Soda Butte Creek Picnic Area. They aren't the only wildlife to frequent Soda Butte Creek, though, so make sure you know what to do if you see a bear.

When you think of tough Yellowstone National Park animals, you might imagine the park's huge grizzly bears, striking gray wolves, or territorial wolverines. These powerful creatures are certainly impressive, but there's one tough little animal you shouldn't overlook: the pika. These small mammals are only around 7 or 8 inches long and weigh up to 6.2 ounces — less than the average pet hamster. When positioned just so, a pika's entire body is spherical and fluffy, except for its two perfectly circular ears on top. Their big, dark eyes and tendency to carry bunches of leaves in their mouths make them serious contenders for the cutest animals in the park.

Pikas are small and camouflage easily, so they can be tough to spot running around Yellowstone, but they're not hard to hear. As you stroll around the park, listen for their resounding squeaks — they're telling you to back away from their snacks. Not only are these remarkable creatures able to live in harsh, cold environments, but they work hard to defend their food cache.

There are lots of pikas in Yellowstone, but if nothing is done to protect them amid the climate crisis, their numbers will decline as temperatures rise. For now, however, you can see them in the Mammoth and Tower areas of the park. Specifically, you may want to look along the Terrance Mountain Trail or the rocky Sheepeater Cliff around the Hellroaring Trailhead. Unlike a lot of wildlife, you don't have to get up at dawn to see them, as they're active all day long.