Yellowstone Grizzly Bear Ecosystem

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email: fcoise49@hotmail.com

Death of a Grizzly Bear

An anonymous visitor to my web site left the following message in 1998:

"Sadly, another grizzly was killed the first part of July this year.  The 3 year old male had once been into apple trees near Gardiner and later stopped off to eat sheep carcasses between Dillon and the Ruby Res.   He was killed for these actions as well as, apparently, there being no place for a 3 year old male bear anywhere in Montana. Doesn't seem right.  How long will it be before Montana is just like California?"

Thanks to Carl Core for this image of a Yellowstone Grizzly.

Image Copyrighted ©1995 by Raven Images

Habitat Protection And Limits On Human-Caused Mortality 

Keys For Yellowstone Grizzly

Protection of existing grizzly bear habitat, restoration of grizzly bear habitat, and linking grizzly bear ecosystems to each other are keys to the long-term survival of the the grizzly bear.  Threats to grizzly bear habitat from humans in the Yellowstone Grizzly Bear Ecosystem include:  forest service and other roads, logging, oil and gas development, and development of private lands.  Continued availability of reliable long-term grizzly bear food sources in protected habitat is also a concern--foods such as whitebark pine nuts, army cutworm moths, ungulate meat (particularly bison) and cutthroat trout.

Red squirrels cache whitebark pine cones--In late summer and  fall grizzly bears frequently find the caches and consume the seeds. In years when the whitebark pine cone crop is poor, grizzlies have been known to search elsewhere for food, and the number of encounters between humans and grizzlies increases.                                  

2000 Is Deadly Year for Yellowstone Grizzlies

The year 2000 was another deadly year for Yellowstone grizzly bears. The Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks reported  33 confirmed grizzly bear deaths in the Yellowstone area.

The Fish, Wildlife and Parks data are for the entire Yellowstone ecosystem and include grizzly mortalities that may have occurred in Montana, Wyoming, and Idaho.  The data indicate at least 23 of the  mortalities were human-caused, with 16 deaths hunter-related and five killed by agency management actions.  Most of the hunter-related deaths took place in Wyoming.   One mortality was caused by a sheep rancher protecting his dog.   Seven grizzlies reportedly died of natural causes.  Two others are dead of unknown causes.  Five yearling cubs were orphaned when their mothers were shot.

A poor whitebark pine cone crop in 2000 likely caused grizzlies to look elsewhere to store the fat they need to survive winter hibernation.  Hunters contributed heavily to the most lethal year in a long time for Yellowstone grizzlies.

In the lower forty-eight states the American Grizzly Bear occupies less than 2 percent of the former range.   Only about 1,000 grizzlies remain in the U.S. south of Canada.  Probably about 90 percent of those grizzly bears exist in the Yellowstone and the Northern Continental Divide grizzly bear ecosystems.  There are various estimates for the number of grizzly bears living in the Yellowstone Grizzly Bear Ecosystem.  The Grizzly Bear Recovery Plan goal for limits on human-caused grizzly bear mortality is about 4 percent of the estimated population with no more than 28 percent of the human-caused grizzly bear mortalities being adult females. 

Seventeen known human-caused grizzly bear mortalities and one suspected were recorded in 1995 in the Yellowstone Grizzly Bear Ecosystem.  Seven of those were females.  

Between September 15 and October 26, 1997, 8 grizzly bears were reportedly killed by hunters in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem.  In response to a suggestion from a member of the Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee, the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation has published a series of stories in a special section on grizzly bears in the September--October 1998 edition of their journal, Bugle.  Issues of hunter safety and protection of grizzly bears are discussed, including the effectiveness of the use of pepper spray to the benefit of both grizzly and human.  A story on the values associated with hunting in true wilderness--wild places "where grizzlies roam" is eloquently presented by Kevin Van Tighem, a wildlife biologist for Parks Canada.  Dave Moody, of the Wyoming Game and Fish Department, urged hunters to carry pepper spray after the first 5 of these 8 grizzly bears were killed by hunters during a two-week period in September, including a female and her 3 offspring killed on September 15.  Pepper spray is a non-lethal means of dealing with grizzly bear encounters.  Pepper spray has not prevented injury in all situations but neither have firearms. 

Yellowstone River at Seven Mile Hole

Hunters Can End Encounters Without Killing Grizzlies

Here's a story told to me by a hunter who had an encounter in September 2000 where both humans and grizzlies survived:

I was initially contacted by email.  Here is part of the message:

"I encountered 3 Grizzlies at one time while on a Yellowstone area, Wyo. hunting trip. Would like to talk to someone who is really qualified and knowledgeable about Grizzly behavior. My hunting partner and I feel very fortunate considering that we had an 18 yard stand-off with a big grizzly." 

He left his phone number and offered to pay for the call.  It sounded like an interesting story so I thought I should go ahead and pay for the call.  We talked for about an hour.

What an incredible story.  Two guys hunting south of Yellowstone with 4 horses.   A mule deer killed and hung.  Returning to camp in the evening when they spot 2 grizzlies peacefully grazing, but moving in the direction of their camp.  Then, a third grizzly, a larger bear comes out of nowhere, moving quickly toward the other two.   Sounds like trouble, right?  Not exactly.  The two adults "rubbed noses" in a sort of greeting.  The 3 bears grazed together out of sight.   What in the heck is up with that?  I guess they were just being bears.

A bear came into camp that night but appeared to be a black bear.  The next morning around 9:00 they were preparing to take the mule deer into Jackson to store it.   The larger of the 3 grizzlies from the day before showed up and proceeded straight for camp. One guy was performing his morning ritual.  The other guy was trying to control some spooked horses.  They got together and had a bit of a standoff with what sounded like a rather large and determined grizzly.  They had their rifles ready, as best they could under the circumstances.

An opportunity came for them to get on the horses and get out.  They made a big circle for about 45 minutes and returned to camp.  The bear had conducted a bit of an investigation and departed.

These two hunters probably made a couple of "mistakes" in the way they managed some items.  I won't go into detail about that.  The real message here is they did not panic.  They valued the life of a Great Bear and gave him enough opportunity to just be a bear and not get killed because of it.  They didn't get hurt and neither did the bear(s).  I commend them and hope their story will be told far and wide.

 Read the essay:   Closing Roads Protects Grizzly Bears and Their Habitat

Young Blond Black Bear

Yellowstone Grizzly Needs Continued Protection As A Threatened Species

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has recently indicated that the Yellowstone Grizzly Bear is ready to be removed from the endangered species list.   Removal of the Yellowstone Grizzly Bear from the endangered species list will jeopardize the long-term chances for recovery. 

While emphasis is placed on removal of the Yellowstone Grizzly from the endangered species list, grizzly bears in the Selkirk, Cabinet-Yaak, and North Cascades ecosystems hang on the brink of extinction. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service should be focusing on these critically endangered grizzly bear populations instead of striving to accommodate state officials who want to bring back grizzly bear hunting in Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho. 

Follow these links for more information on the Yellowstone situation or go to Recent Grizzly Bear News

THE YELLOWSTONE BISON

A senseless slaughter of Yellowstone bison has been going on for several years.  During harsh winters bison leave Yellowstone National Park in search of food and step across into Montana.  Because of an unfounded fear that bison will transmit a disease called brucellosis to cattle, the bison are systematically shot and killed or captured and sent to slaughter--even the bulls who do not transmit the disease under any circumstance. Much of the killing takes place on federal land, public land.

Visit the Buffalo Field Campaign web site (See "Links" Page) to learn the details of the war on the Yellowstone Bison being conducted by the state of Montana.   

During the winter of 1996-97, approximately 1100 buffalo were senselessly slaughtered. To slaughter even one buffalo is shameful and disgraceful. At dawn on January 29, 1998, the Montana Department of Livestock shot and killed six bison on Horse Butte, three calves and their mothers. That really makes me sick.  The struggle to protect the Yellowstone Bison continues in the year 2000.

To go to Yellowstone gallery click here: The Wonders of Yellowstone, a Photo Gallery

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email: fcoise49@hotmail.com