Waterfall from our May 2002 backpack trip: Coyote Gulch to the Escalante River in Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument and Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, Utah

Utah has some great wild places. Unfortunately, the grizzly bear is not part of it. The last grizzly in Utah was killed in 1923.

• Grizzly Bear Recovery Zones

  The Grizzly Bear Recovery Plan identified six ecosystems as grizzly bear recovery zones and one ecosystem as an evaluation area:

  • Yellowstone Grizzly Bear Recovery Zone

  • Northern Continental Divide Grizzly Bear Recovery Zone

  • Cabinet/Yaak Grizzly Bear Recovery Zone

  • Selkirk Grizzly Bear Recovery Zone

  • Bitterroot Grizzly Bear Recovery Zone

  • North Cascades Grizzly Bear Recovery Zone

  • San Juan Mountains: officially an evaluation area (Southwestern Colorado--not shown on map)

  Map of Grizzly Bear Recovery Zones in the Lower 48 States
  (Used here with permission. Copyright by: Center for Wildlife Information.
  P.O. Box 8289, Missoula, Montana 59807 USA 406/523-7750 )
  
  

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  The Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee

  The Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee is described as "a group of high-level administrators that represent the federal and state agencies involved in grizzly bear recovery, and coordinate agency efforts in implementing the Grizzly Bear Recovery Plan."  Subcommittees have been formed to oversee recovery of grizzly bears in Grizzly Bear Recovery Zones.

  As an example of the organization of the   subcommittees; the Selkirk and Cabinet-Yaak ecosystems have been combined--representatives of four national forests (in Montana, Idaho, and Washington), two U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service regions, the state fish and game agencies (from Montana, Idaho, and Washington), and the province of British Columbia serve on the subcommittee.  In addition, the Governor of Idaho appoints a citizen representative from that state (in reality, a representative of the timber industry).  The subcommittee is responsible for determining recovery goals, management standards, education and information needs, and research needs for both ecosystems.  I question whether or not the Selkirk/Cabinet-Yaak Subcommittee has taken reasonable actions required to:

  1.  Protect grizzly bears and their habitat in the two recovery zones and

  2.  Recover viable populations of grizzly bears in the Selkirk Grizzly Bear Recovery Zone and the   Cabinet-Yaak Grizzly Bear Recovery Zone.

  Possibly as a result of the failure of the subcommittee (or the way the subcommittees are organized), on April 22, 1999, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced a new finding:

  Based on an analysis of the status of the grizzly bear population in the Cabinet-Yaak and Selkirk recovery zones of Idaho, Montana, and Washington, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has determined that reclassifying the population from threatened to endangered is warranted but precluded by the need to protect other species.

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  All Grizzlies in the Lower 48 are Listed as Threatened Under the Endangered Species Act

  There is much debate about how many grizzly bears exist in any given Grizzly Bear Recovery Zone.  The Grizzly Bear Recovery Plan established target numbers for each recovery zone.  If those numbers are reached and other criteria are met, it is possible to remove the threatened status from grizzly bears inhabiting that ecosystem.  The following is an excerpt from a U.S. Fish and Wildlife web page--they were a little over-anxious and still are:

  "The grizzly bear recovery effort has been met with some successes thus far.  Grizzlies in the Yellowstone ecosystem have now reached the recovery target.  Grizzlies in the North Continental Divide ecosystem have nearly reached recovery goals, and are expected reach them within a year or two.
  
  These successes have been largely due to a cooperative effort among several organizations called the Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee.  Established in 1983, the committee includes the U.S. Forest Service; National Park Service; Bureau of Land Management; state agencies in Montana, Wyoming, Idaho, and Washington; Canadian wildlife management agencies; and Native American Tribes.  The committee coordinates habitat management, research, and education and outreach for the grizzly
  bear.
  Updated August 1995"

  These claims of reaching recovery targets were premature.  Grizzly bears in the Yellowstone and Northern Continental Divide grizzly bear recovery zones remain listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act (ESA).  There were indications that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service would   propose a plan in 1999 for removal (delisting) of the Yellowstone Grizzly from protection under the ESA.  Now, it appears plans for delisting are on hold, for several reasons.  Varying estimates of actual numbers of grizzlies, threats to their habitat, and uncertainty of continued availability of critical food sources are but a few of the reasons why removing ESA protection is still a bad idea.

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  Roads are Threat to Grizzlies

  It is possible to drive more than half the number of miles across the United States, never leave the Targhee National Forest, and not drive the same mile of road twice.  Read the essay:  Closing Roads Protects Grizzly Bears and Their Habitat.

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    ALERT             

October 1998: (Remains an Alert because of the likelihood that these conditions will occur again)  Grizzly bears had a tough time finding their usual and accustomed foods in many areas of the Northern Rockies in 1998 and were looking elsewhere for food, often in developed areas.  As the end of summer approaches, bears enter a biological phase called hyperphagia, the period of time when they eat tremendous amounts of food to store extra pounds of fat before entering the den.  Huckleberries are one of their favorite foods at this time of year.  In 1998, the huckleberry crop failed.  Grizzly bears and black bears were trapped in record numbers from north Idaho to Glacier National Park, as they were attracted to developed areas in search of food.  Human food and garbage  must be properly stored to prevent bears from obtaining it.  For more information see Living With Grizzlies.

• Links To Pages On This Site

  • The American Grizzly Bear: Back to Top
  
  
  • Grizzly Bears and Garbage
  
  
  • Recent Grizzly Bear News
  
  
  • Grizzly Bear News Archive
     
  • Northern Continental Divide Grizzly Bear Ecosystem/Glacier National Park
     
  • Yellowstone Grizzly Bear Ecosystem
     
  • Selkirk/Cabinet-Yaak Grizzly Bear Ecosystems
     
  • North Cascade Grizzly Bear Recovery Area
     
  • Bitterroot Grizzly Bear Ecosystem
     
  • Grizzly Country
     
  • Grizzly Bear References
     
  • Grizzly Bear Encounters
     
  • Photo Galleries -- NEW> Utah's National Parks and Monuments, Glacier, Yellowstone, Grizzly Bear, Canadian Rockies, Alaska/Yukon, and North Cascades,
     
  • Links to Grizzly Bear & Related Sites
     

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