Grizzly bear release in Whale Creek drainage, April 11, 2016
Yet another delinquent grizzly was moved to the North Fork earlier this month. The Hungry Horse News has the story. Also, check out the video . . .
A 3-year-old male grizzly bear was captured April 10 at a private residence along Tamarack Road northwest of Columbia Falls. The 211 pound bear was captured by Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks bear and lion specialist Erik Wenum after the resident reported a bear had killed some of his young chickens.
The young bear was anesthetized, radio-collared, and released by grizzly bear management specialist Tim Manley. The Interagency decision was made to release the bear back into the wild since it had no previous known conflicts. The grizzly bear was released on the afternoon of April 11 in the Whale Creek drainage of the North Fork of the Flathead, 34 straight line miles from where it was caught.
Here’s a strong editorial by Todd Wilkinson, Environmental Columnist for Explore Big Sky, making the case for disallowing trophy hunting of grizzly bears, even after they are delisted . . .
Nowhere in the legal framework of the federal Endangered Species Act does it mandate that animals removed from federal protection be subjected to trophy sport hunting.
America spent millions of dollars reversing the downward spiral of bald eagles. Indeed, someone today could argue that the majestic white-crowned raptors would be fun to shoot and look stunningly beautiful as dead stuffed prizes of avian taxidermy.
Yet when the great birds were finally declared biologically recovered in 2007, society didn’t celebrate by turning around and initiating sport seasons on eagles, selling licenses to generate revenue for the coffers of state wildlife agencies. Why not?
From a Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks press release . . .
A 3 year old male grizzly bear was captured April 10th at a private residence along Tamarack Road northwest of Columbia Falls. The 211 pound bear was captured by FWP Bear and Lion Specialist Erik Wenum after the resident reported a bear had killed some of his young chickens.
The young bear was anesthetized, radio-collared, and released by Grizzly Bear Management Specialist Tim Manley. The Interagency decision was made to release the bear back into the wild since it had no previous known conflicts. The grizzly bear was released on the afternoon of April 11th in the Whale Creek drainage of the North Fork of the Flathead, 34 straight line miles from where it was caught.
Black bear activity has picked up as well. FWP Bear and Lion Specialist Erik Wenum reports that he has handled two problem bears in the last two days and is attempting to trap four other black bears that have ranged close to residences. Wenum reminds
residents to take down bird feeders, secure garbage, feed pets inside, clean up chicken and livestock feed, and in general remove all odorous substances that can draw bears.
On Monday morning, a radio tracking flight was conducted to locate radio-collared grizzly bears in the Swan and Mission mountains. A total of 8 radio-collared grizzly bears were located. Seven of the bears were out of their dens, but still in the upper elevations in the snow. A total of 16 grizzly bears were observed which included cubs, yearlings, and two-year-olds that were with their mothers.
Additional flights are planned during the month of April to locate radio-collared grizzly bears in the Whitefish Range and the Middle Fork of the Flathead. One of the main objectives of the flights is to get visuals on adult females and the number of young they have when they first emerge from their dens. This allows biologists to track cub reproduction and cub survival throughout the year.
Here’s a good article from the Flathead Beacon about the local bears emerging from hibernation. It also discusses the usual spring headache of people not securing bear attractants . . .
With the arrival of spring, bears are emerging from their mountain dens and descending into the lower valleys in search of food, and one young bruin has already pried its way into a Whitefish home to snack on leftover Easter candy.
As local black bears and grizzlies begin to stir in the Flathead Valley, wildlife managers are receiving an uptick in reports of bear sightings and conflicts, prompting wardens to issue a stern reminder to residents who forget to lock up pet food, bird seed, trash, and other food attractants.
“It is entirely avoidable if we start at the beginning of the season and make a conscious effort to secure these food attractants,” Erik Wenum, bear and lion specialist with the Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks, said. “Bears don’t just go from wandering around in the woods doing bear things to going into homes. It’s a taught learning curve.”
Grizzly Sow with Two Cubs – – Wikipedia en:User Traveler100
There were fewer grizzly bear deaths last year in the Northern Continental Divide Ecosystem . . .
On the heels of the federal government’s proposal to delist the grizzly bear population in the Yellowstone National Park area, this year’s annual report on Glacier National Park and the surrounding region shows the population continuing to hit its recovery targets.
Grizzlies in the lower 48 states were listed as “threatened” under the federal Endangered Species Act in 1975, after their historic range and population plummeted over decades of over-harvesting and habitat loss.
The Northern Continental Divide Ecosystem boasts the highest number of great bears among the five geographically distinct populations in the Northwest. It covers more than 5.7 million acres in Northwest Montana and includes Glacier National Park, the Bob Marshall Wilderness Complex and surrounding lands.
Documented mortalities in the Northern Continental population, now estimated at 982 individuals, dropped substantially in 2015 from the two preceding years. That’s something of a return to normal, according to Cecily Costello, a research wildlife biologist for Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks who was one of the lead authors on the annual report.
Here’s some useful information about Yellowstone grizzly bear delisting from an announcement passed along by John Frederick. Note the link at the end to a federal site for submitting written comments . . .
Last month the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service issued a proposed rule that would remove Endangered Species Act protections for grizzly bears in the Yellowstone region. Next week, the USFWS will be hosting a public meeting to explain the delisting rule and “Conservation Strategy” (how bears will be managed post-delisting). They will accept written and oral public comments at the meeting:
Tuesday, April 12, 5:00-8:00pm—Bozeman, MT—Holiday Inn, 5 E. Baxter Ln. There will also be an informational open house from 2-4pm before the public comment begins. (This meeting, and one the night before in Cody, WY are the only currently scheduled USFWS public meetings on Yellowstone grizzly bear delisting.)
While the recovery of this grizzly bear population has been an amazing Endangered Species Act success story, we need to make sure it continues if grizzly bears are delisted! Your comments and support for grizzly bear conservation is crucial to this effort.
Grizzly bears are making an early start on the east side this year . . .
Grizzly bears on the Rocky Mountain Front are emerging from their dens this year earlier than ever after the mild winter, Montana wildlife officials said.
Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks officials flew over the area on Friday to check on nine bears that had been fitted with radio collars, the Great Falls Tribune reported. Eight were already gone, and several female bears had already traveled far down river drainages east of the mountains. One bear’s radio signal was picked up east of U.S. Highway 89 on the open plains near the Marias River.
“This is by far the earliest we’ve had as many transmitted grizzly bears outside of their dens,” FWP grizzly bear management specialist Mike Madel said.
The Wyoming Game and Fish Commission is making plans for grizzly bear delisting . . .
The state of Wyoming is moving to take over management of grizzly bears as environmental groups increasingly scrutinize whether the bear population in the Greater Yellowstone region could sustain hunting.
The Wyoming Game and Fish Commission held its first public hearing Wednesday outlining how the state will manage grizzly bears when they come off of the federal endangered species list. It plans other meetings around the state.
The federal government announced in early March that it intends to lift threatened-species protections for grizzlies in Wyoming, Montana and Idaho.
Grizzly Sow with Two Cubs – – Wikipedia en:User Traveler100
Here’s a lengthy, rational discussion of the concerns many conservationists have about the looming removal of grizzly bears from the Endangered Species List.
Kudos to Bill Fordyce for finding this one . . .
The federal government’s imminent release of plans to let states manage Yellowstone-area grizzly bears — including by hunting — rekindles debate about whether gunning down grizzlies will undo years of conservation work.
Federal officials are on the cusp of releasing and seeking public comment on draft rules and regulations that would remove Endangered Species Act protection from more than 717 Yellowstone–area grizzly bears. As officials propose the dramatic change, conservationists wonder whether hunters’ bullets might upend 40 years of advances.
The following op-ed in the New York Times provides broad visibility for grizzly bear conservation issues . . .
In 1805 the explorers Meriwether Lewis and William Clark, making their way across the West, were warned by American Indian tribes of grizzly bears’ awesome strength. At first Lewis scoffed at the tribes’ advice, writing in his journal that “in the hands of skillful riflemen they are by no means as formidable or dangerous as they have been represented.” A few terrifying encounters with the bears, though, changed his mind about that.
A little more than a century later, crowds at Yellowstone National Park would gather in delight to watch the bears dine on food scraps. Signs were marked “Lunch Counter … for Bears Only.” Those days are long gone, but crowds still flock to Yellowstone — nearly four million visitors every year — partly to catch a glimpse of the storied creatures.
I’ve seen a few wild grizzly bears, mostly in Alaska and British Columbia, and always from a distance. But each grizzly I’ve caught sight of was as fearsome and sublime as the last. You never get used to their raw power and massive bodies, or the mysterious intelligence in their dark, close-set eyes.
