RDR2 legendary animals: all 16 locations and rewards

In Red Dead Redemption 2, nature is never just scenery: wolves hunt in packs, vultures circle over carcasses, deer lift their heads at the snap of a branch. Few game ecosystems have ever felt this alive, and the 16 legendary animals sit at the top of it. They're the best hunts in the game: one encounter per save, an always-perfect pelt and, as a reward, unique Trapper outfits and talismans with permanent bonuses. Here's where to find each one, when it becomes available and what it gives you. If you're just starting out, read our Red Dead Redemption 2 beginner tips first.

Unlocking the legendary animals map

It all starts in Chapter 2 with Hosea's mission "Exit Pursued by a Bruised Ego". Arthur and Hosea track a giant grizzly in the Grizzlies East: that's the Legendary Bharati Grizzly Bear. At the end of the mission, Hosea hands you the Legendary Animal Map.

• You'll find it in your satchel, under Documents, then Maps.
• It's incomplete and approximate: use it to find the zones, not the exact spot.
• As you get close to a territory, an icon of the animal wearing a crown appears on your map. The crown means legendary.

During the mission you can choose to keep chasing the bear or back out. If you back out, you can come back and hunt it later.

How to track a legendary animal

The method is the same for all 16:

1. Ride to the zone. A message must appear in the top-left corner telling you you've entered legendary animal territory. Without that message, the animal won't spawn.
2. Get off your horse and use Eagle Eye (click both sticks on a controller) to highlight the yellow clues: tracks, fur, droppings.
3. Inspect the clues one after the other. There are usually three, each revealing a trail to the next. The last trail leads to the animal.
4. Crouch-walk the end of the trail, then take it down.

Take a moment to read the trail: prints in the mud, tufts of fur caught on bushes, a half-eaten carcass. Every trail is staged with care, and that attention to detail is what turns a simple hunt into a real moment of play.

If the territory message doesn't show up, or the area is "too busy", ride away, set up a camp, sleep, then come back. Do the same if the animal escapes.

Which weapon, and how to use Dead Eye

In story mode, a legendary animal always drops a perfect pelt, whatever weapon or ammo you use. Forget the bow and clean-kill rules: bring your most powerful gun. A scoped rifle, a shotgun loaded with slugs or a repeater all do the job.

Fill your Dead Eye meter before the final trail. Predators (grizzly, wolf, cougar, panther, Bullgator) charge fast and hit hard: trigger Dead Eye as soon as they break cover, paint the head and empty your gun. Herbivores like the buck or the elk bolt at the first shot, so pick a weapon that kills in few rounds.

Skinning, selling the pelt and crafting talismans

Always skin the animal. You get two things:

• the legendary pelt, to sell to the Trapper;
• a legendary part (claw, tooth, horn, antler, heart, eye), which can't be sold to the Trapper and is used to craft a talisman or trinket at a Fence.

Where to find the Trapper

Selling the pelt to the Trapper earns you money and unlocks unique outfit pieces he then crafts for a fee (sometimes with other pelts). He sets up shop in five places:

• the Saint Denis market (his permanent store);
• on a hill northeast of Riggs Station (West Elizabeth), the closest one to the Horseshoe Overlook camp;
• west of Big Valley, near the northwest edge of the map (West Elizabeth);
• in the woods of Roanoke Ridge, southwest of Annesburg (New Hanover);
• in Tall Trees, west of Blackwater, only reachable after Chapter 6.

Where to craft talismans

Any Fence crafts talismans and trinkets, for example in Saint Denis (east side of the city), Rhodes or Van Horn. Trinkets only need the legendary part and a bit of cash. Talismans also need two specific items (a piece of jewelry and a collectible).

Summary table

Ambarino: the northern mountains

Legendary Bharati Grizzly Bear

• Where: in the clearing north of the lake at O'Creagh's Run, Grizzlies East.
• When: it appears in "Exit Pursued by a Bruised Ego" (Chapter 2), and stays huntable if you let it go.
• Approach: the biggest bear in the game, recognizable by its scars. Keep your distance and go for the head in Dead Eye.
• Reward: the Bear Claw Talisman (your Health core drains 10% slower) and, at the Trapper, The Bear Hunter set (Legendary Bear Head Hat, Bear Coat, Bear Roper).

Legendary Wolf "Hotah"

• Where: around Cotorra Springs, in the Grizzlies East just east of the line with the Grizzlies West, southwest of the Wapiti Reservation.
• When: after "Exit Pursued by a Bruised Ego".
• Approach: it likes to ambush. Move crouched with your gun drawn.
• Reward: the Wolf Heart Trinket (you handle twice as much alcohol) and, at the Trapper, the Legendary Wolf Batwing Chaps and the Legendary Cougar/Wolf Vest (which also needs the legendary cougar pelt).

Legendary White Bison

• Where: on the north shore of Lake Isabella, Grizzlies West.
• When: after "Exit Pursued by a Bruised Ego".
• Approach: a massive animal in the snow, it takes several powerful shots.
• Reward: the Bison Horn Talisman (your Stamina core drains 10% slower) and, at the Trapper, the Legendary White Bison Hat and White Bison Coat.

Legendary Bighorn Ram

• Where: near Cattail Pond, in the hills just north of the railroad.
• When: after "Exit Pursued by a Bruised Ego".
• Reward: the Ram Horn Trinket (picking oregano, creeping thyme or wild mint yields twice the herbs) and, at the Trapper, the Legendary Ram Hat, Ram Batwing Chaps and Ram Rifleman Gloves.

New Hanover: Roanoke Ridge and Cumberland Forest

Legendary Beaver "Malia"

• Where: at Elysian Pool, in the middle of Roanoke Ridge, west of the Van Horn Trading Post.
• When: after "Exit Pursued by a Bruised Ego".
• Approach: one of the simplest of the 16, a small target that doesn't fight back.
• Reward: the Beaver Tooth Trinket (your weapons degrade 10% slower) and, at the Trapper, the Legendary Beaver Cavalry Gloves and Beaver Flop Hat (which also needs the legendary boar pelt).

Legendary Moose "Anoki"

• Where: in the far northeast corner of the map, in Roanoke Ridge. Follow the train tracks north from Annesburg, or head up the river from Brandywine Drop.
• When: after "Exit Pursued by a Bruised Ego".
• Approach: its territory is full of river channels. Try to drop it on dry land, not in the water, so you can skin it without trouble.
• Reward: the Moose Antler Trinket (+10% Health XP) and, at the Trapper, the Legendary Moose Hunting Jacket and Moose Moccasins.

Legendary Elk "Enyeto"

• Where: in the woods of Cumberland Forest, just east of Bacchus Station, northeast of Fort Wallace.
• When: after "Exit Pursued by a Bruised Ego".
• Approach: keep a safe distance with a scoped rifle.
• Reward: the Elk Antler Trinket (+10% money from looting) and, at the Trapper, the Legendary Elk Moccasins, Elk Half Chaps and Elk Range Gloves.

Lemoyne: Scarlett Meadows and the bayou

Legendary Fox "Layla"

• Where: just east of Mattock Pond, north of Rhodes.
• When: after "Exit Pursued by a Bruised Ego".
• Reward: the Fox Claw Trinket (Eagle Eye lasts 5 seconds longer) and, at the Trapper, the Legendary Fox Moccasins and Buck & Fox Range Gloves (with the legendary buck pelt).

Legendary Coyote "Suki"

• Where: near the west end of Dewberry Creek, northwest of Rhodes.
• When: after "Exit Pursued by a Bruised Ego".
• Reward: the Coyote Fang Trinket (+10% Dead Eye XP) and, at the Trapper, the Legendary Coyote Mountain Hat and Coyote Half Chaps.

Legendary Boar "Oryx"

• Where: in the northwest part of Bluewater Marsh, on the northern edge of Bayou Nwa, not far from Lagras.
• When: after "Exit Pursued by a Bruised Ego".
• Reward: the Boar Tusk Talisman (your horse's Health and Stamina cores drain 10% slower) and, at the Trapper, the Legendary Boar & Bison Fowlers and the Beaver Flop Hat.

Legendary Bullgator "Lacartus"

• Where: in the swamps south of Lagras, west of Lakay, Bayou Nwa.
• When: only from Chapter 6, after the mission "That's Murfree Country". Before that, it doesn't appear on the map.
• Approach: huge, tough and faster than it looks. It charges when shot: keep real distance.
• Reward: the Alligator Tooth Talisman (your Dead Eye core drains 10% slower) and, at the Trapper, the Legendary Alligator Fowlers, Alligator Vest and Alligator Gambler's Hat.

Legendary Giaguaro Panther

• Where: in the woods south of Bolger Glade, west of Shady Belle, almost down to the coast.
• When: only after completing 9 Master Hunter challenges. Killing it completes the 10th.
• Approach: a fearsome predator in thick vegetation. Full Dead Eye meter, fast and powerful gun.
• Reward: the Panther's Eye Trinket (your Dead Eye bar drains 10% slower for three seconds) and, at the Trapper, the Legendary Panther Cloak and Panther Range Gloves.

West Elizabeth: Big Valley

Legendary Buck "Obie"

• Where: in the heart of Black Bone Forest, at the western foot of Mount Shann, northwest of Strawberry.
• When: after "Exit Pursued by a Bruised Ego".
• Approach: it bolts once hit, so shoot fast and hard.
• Reward: the Buck Antler Trinket (better chance of higher-quality parts when skinning). It's the one to grab early if you hunt a lot. At the Trapper: the Legendary Buck Vest and Buck & Fox Range Gloves.

New Austin: the Epilogue

New Austin only opens after Chapter 6, during the Epilogue with John. These three animals are the last on the list.

Legendary Cougar

• Where: in Gaptooth Ridge, west of Tumbleweed, north of Gaptooth Breach.
• Approach: a predator, keep your distance. Rifle and Dead Eye ready.
• Reward: the Cougar Fang Trinket (+10% Stamina XP) and, at the Trapper, the Legendary Cougar Flop Hat, Cougar Riding Gloves and Cougar/Wolf Vest.

Legendary Pronghorn "Ira"

• Where: in Río Bravo, slightly southeast of Fort Mercer.
• Reward: the Pronghorn Horn Trinket (carcasses stored on your horse no longer spoil) and, at the Trapper, the Legendary Pronghorn Coat and Pronghorn Range Gloves.

Legendary Tatanka Bison

• Where: in Hennigan's Stead, south of Stillwater Creek.
• Approach: its size means several shots, and it may run after the first ones.
• Reward: the Tatanka Bison Horn Trinket (10% less melee damage taken) and, at the Trapper, the Legendary Bison Vest, Bison Batwing Chaps and Boar & Bison Fowlers.

Go further

• All our Red Dead Redemption 2 guides in one place
• Red Dead Redemption 2 beginner tips
• Every RDR2 treasure map solution, to make your rides pay
• How to make money fast in Red Dead Redemption 2
• The best horses in RDR2, essential to cover the map
• RDR2's incredible details

FAQ

Where do you get the legendary animals map in RDR2?

Hosea gives it to you at the end of the mission "Exit Pursued by a Bruised Ego" in Chapter 2. You'll find it in your satchel under Documents, then Maps. It's only approximate: the exact crowned animal icon appears on your map once you get close to its territory.

Do legendary animals respawn after they die?

No. In story mode, a legendary animal that dies is gone from your save for good, even if an NPC or another predator kills it. Always skin it, or you lose both the pelt and the talisman part.

Why won't the legendary Giaguaro Panther spawn?

It only appears once you've completed the first 9 Master Hunter challenges (Progress menu, then Challenges). It then roams the woods south of Bolger Glade, west of Shady Belle, in Lemoyne. Killing it completes Master Hunter challenge 10.