Wed 10 Oct 2007
Reducing a Grizzly Toll in Alberta
Posted by Barb under Call to Action , Grizzly Bear Info , International Info , Large Carnivore Habitat Info , NewsCalgary Herald
Tuesday, October 09, 2007
Even though the final tally on grizzly numbers has yet to be counted, there’s enough evidence suggesting the animal’s population in the province is threatened to a degree that warrants immediate action. The implementation of the province’s bear recovery strategy — expected within weeks — can’t come soon enough.
The details of the plan are sketchy, but a spokesman with the Department of Sustainable Resources Development confirmed minister Ted Morton will shortly outline what will be done to help the dwindling grizzlies. And, with the latest figures in a government-commissioned multi-year census coming in at under 400, those animals need all the help they can get.
The grizzly’s habitat must be protected from human encroachment: The animal is a large predator that requires a great deal of space.
Grizzlies are killed routinely while crossing a road, or hanging around a train track in search of berries or grain. Sometimes orphaned cubs are left behind, facing almost certain death sentences, as they are too small to survive on their own in the wild.
Anecdotal evidence reported each year forms a bigger picture, that paints the need for humans to rethink how they may live less intrusively alongside these majestic beasts. With a three- to four-year interval between litters, grizzlies experience a reproduction rate that’s extremely low at the best of times.
The draft recovery plan on the province’s website found that 89 per cent of human-caused grizzly mortalities in Alberta were within 500 metres of a road. In the national parks, 100 per cent of the deaths were within 200 metres of a road or trail.
Recovery work is possible, as proven with the success of the Yellowstone grizzlies, likely the most intensely studied bear population in the world. The Yellowstone Grizzly Bear Recovery Plan has resulted in the animals being removed from the endangered list earlier this year, after nearly disappearing three decades ago.
Alberta’s attempt to begin similar recovery efforts without further ado in Alberta is the prudent and responsible decision. Otherwise, the course is set for the province’s beloved grizzlies to continue along the path of roadkill.
© The Calgary Herald 2007
