Grizzly Hiding
As state and federal biologists determine just how many grizzly bears roam Western Montana, state officials are sorting out how best to make sure the population thrives without creating conflicts. Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks recently released a management plan and draft programmatic environmental impact statement for grizzly bears in Western Montana. A series of public hearings kick off this month, offering residents a chance to weigh in on the issue. “This is the time for the public to give us their ideas,” said Arnie Dood, FWP endangered species coordinator. “People can review the plan and then comment on things they like or don’t like.” The grizzly bear was listed as a threatened species in 1975. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has proposed removing the federal protections now in place over grizzlies in the Yellowstone area. Delisting grizzlies in areas of Western Montana, however, is still several years down the road, according to officials.

But the existing bear management plan, coupled with population studies in the area, put the population on the right track. The plan focuses on grizzly bears — or potential populations — in the Northern Continental Divide, Cabinet-Yaak and Bitterroot ecosystems. The plan looks at grizzly bear populations and habitat in 17 Montana counties. FWP analyzed alternatives for each ecosystem, focusing on different management activities. Management activities ensure human safety, prevent conflicts with livestock and mitigate property damage, according to the FWP. The Northern Continental Divide Ecosystem, Montana’s largest grizzly bear habitat, runs north to south from Highway 200 to the Canadian border and east to west from Highway 93 to Highway 89. In the Northern Continental Divide Ecosystem the plan proposes keeping existing programs in place. It evaluates existing grizzly bear management programs and finds that most are working. It recognizes the role private-landowners play in supporting grizzly recovery. In the Divide ecosystem, for example, grizzly bears are established well beyond existing “recovery areas.” Ranchers have worked with agencies and organizations to put up electric fences to protect livestock and made other changes to coexist with bears. “We are trying to find ways to fit grizzly bears into the landscape,” Dood said. That means developing management programs that ensure that people and property are not threatened.

The plan recognizes that preventative measures are better than just responding to problems. It also zeroes in on the point that “public support and tolerance for grizzlies is the key to their long-term recovery.” Minette Johnson, Northern Rockies representative of the Defenders of Wildlife, said that overall the plan is excellent. “There is an emphasis on preventing conflicts,” she said. Defenders is a group that compensates ranchers for livestock killed by wolves and grizzly bears. They also work with ranchers on preventative measures, such as electric fencing. The plan also proposes protecting roadless areas that are core grizzly habitat and monitoring grizzly populations, she said. One concern in the plan is a proposal to make Wildlife Services the lead agency in dealing with livestock depredations, Johnson said. In the past, Wildlife Services and FWP jointly handled issues. “Defenders feels like Fish, Wildlife & Parks should maintain that role,” she said. “Simply because we think they are doing an excellent job right now.”

Based on the management plan, grizzly bears also would be moved from other thriving populations to the Cabinet-Yaak ecosystem in northwestern Montana where officials want to speed up recovery efforts. The FWP estimates that there are between 30 and 40 grizzlies in that area, and officials would like to see that number grow to 90 or 125 bears. The population there is currently declining, largely because of human-caused bear deaths. “In the Cabinet-Yaak, recovery has been very tenuous,” Dood said. Sterling Miller, senior wildlife biologist with the National Wildlife Federation in Missoula, said that as delisting discussions start in the future, it will be important not to combine the Cabinet-Yaak and the Northern Continental Divide Ecosystem. He also supports transplanting bears in the Cabinet-Yaak. “Any delisting in the NCDE should not imply the populations in the Cabinet-Yaak are somehow included,” he said. Unless there is strong evidence that the two populations are linked in a robust way, the Cabinet-Yaak grizzlies remain a highly vulnerable population, he said. Miller said he is still taking an in-depth look at the plan, but overall he believes the plan appears to be comprehensive. He also said that the plan is an important step in efforts to delist some grizzly bear populations in Western Montana, or remove federal protections.

A population study, confirming the number of bears in Western Montana, and a trend study, showing whether that population is on the rise, also are critical steps in delisting grizzlies. And both of those studies are under way. In 1998 Kate Kendall, a researcher with the U.S. Geological Survey, began using DNA samples collected from grizzly bear hair to count bears. Kendall is working with local, state and federal agencies and volunteers to complete a DNA study across the NCDE. Biologists will analyze the hairs, collected over the last couple of years, to calculate how many grizzly bears are in the NCDE. Data from the study is expected by the end of the year. Preliminary results are expected to show that there is a larger grizzly bear population in the NCDE than originally believed, Miller said. “A population estimate showing a robust grizzly population and a management plan are necessary prerequisites for delisting to occur,” he said. A “trend” study of the grizzly bear population also is under way in Montana. The trend study will tell biologists if the bear population is stable, increasing or decreasing. It will be another seven years before the study yields population information, but the state management plan commits to continuing with that study. “To evaluate how management plans are working, we need to know the trends as well as having an estimate of how many bears are in the ecosystem,” Dood said. In addition to the population studies and the management plan, a conservation strategy for bears in Western Montana also must be developed. A final decision on the Western Montana management plan is expected by the end of the year.

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