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- FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE AS AN EDITORIAL OPINION PIECE ONLY -
November 12, 2009 Idaho Falls, Idaho
Yellowstone Grizzlies Benefited from Collaboration
Steve Schmidt, Chair of the interagency Yellowstone Grizzly Coordinating Committee, provides his perspective on the status and future of grizzly bears in the greater Yellowstone area.
I am confident that grizzly bears in the greater Yellowstone area are doing well and have a bright future. A team of highly qualified and committed professionals have worked tirelessly since 1983 to increase grizzly bear numbers from roughly 200 in 1983 to 600 today. Many members of the public have assisted with this effort. Now that we’ve come this far, we should give these folks the space to continue their good work.
Recently, the interagency team of federal, state, tribal, and local officials who comprise the Yellowstone Grizzly Coordinating Committee met in Jackson, Wyoming to continue their charge of implementing the Yellowstone grizzly bear conservation strategy. In a presentation before the 22 member committee, Dr. Chuck Schwartz, team leader of the Interagency Grizzly Bear Study Team, stated the population of grizzly bears is currently estimated at almost 600 bears.
“This is a very conservative estimate and we feel the population continues to grow by at least two percent annually. Of the females observed with cubs in 2009, 19 were accompanied by twins, 11 by triplets and there were two females with quadruplets.” Schwartz said. Multiple offspring is generally a sign of a healthy and vibrant population.
Dr. Schwartz suggested core grizzly habitat may be approaching carrying capacity, a term wildlife biologists use to describe the number of animals a geographic area can support. “As bears approach carrying capacity, some disperse and attempt to live in areas with humans. These bears are prone to conflict and sometimes killed,” Schwartz added.
The committee has been aggressively applying actions to reduce conflicts between the bears, humans, and livestock. The committee is pursuing 27 specific recommendations to reduce bear/human conflicts and bear mortalities. It is rewarding to see multiple agencies come together toward the common objective of successfully managing this recovered population of grizzly bears. This collaborative approach is important to ensuring the long term viability of Yellowstone grizzlies.
The Yellowstone grizzly population had been delisted and managed by the committee since April of 2007. The decision to delist the bears was opposed and litigated by the Greater Yellowstone Coalition. Recently, a federal district court overturned the delisting and put grizzlies back on the federal threatened species list. That decision put Yellowstone grizzlies back under federal management. The responsive and highly successful system developed to manage the bears upon delisting is now threatened. Two facts remain, grizzly bear populations are doing well in the Yellowstone ecosystem, and subsequent conflicts and management challenges will follow.
The Yellowstone Grizzly Coordinating Committee maintains the bears have thrived under a team of local, state, tribal, and federal government officials and have a secure future. The multiple partnerships developed to manage the delisted Yellowstone grizzlies are the best solution to the challenges the species will face in the years ahead. We believe that the Yellowstone grizzlies should continue to be managed as a recovered and delisted population by these partners, and that the courts should not interfere in this successful and productive partnership.
Steve Schmidt is the Regional Supervisor of the Upper Snake Region of the Idaho Department of Fish and Game. His office is located in Idaho Falls, Idaho.
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