Most lethal year for grizzly bears triggers inquiry

By BRODIE FARQUHAR

Casper Star-Tribune staff writer

CST - Wildlife biologists and environmentalists will grope for answers today in Jackson Hole, as the Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee tries to explain why 2000 has been the most lethal year for grizzly bears in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem in recent history.

With 33 confirmed grizzly bear deaths in the region this year, this may have been the worst year for the grizzly bear since Yellowstone National Park shut down its dumps and hundreds of bears died, said Louisa Willcox, project coordinator for the Sierra Club Grizzly Bear Ecosystems Project in Bozeman, who cited data collated by the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks.

"It is bitterly ironic that 25 years after the bear was listed under the Endangered Species Act, more bears die than before legal protection was in place,'' she said.

Bears had been getting much of their food from dump sites in the park. Between 1967 and 1972, a minimum of 229 bears died, according to the official history of the Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee.

The Montana study shows that at least 23 of the grizzly mortalities were human-caused, with 16 deaths hunter-related, five killed by agency management actions, one still under investigation and one due to a sheep rancher protecting his dog. The agency listed seven bears dead of natural causes, two dead of unknown causes and five yearling cubs orphaned when their mothers were shot.

One of the bears shot by Wyoming Game and Fish personnel for livestock depredation, was bear No. 212, a nine-year-old male, soon to be stuffed and mounted for display in Meeteetse. Nearly nine feet and 900 pounds, bear No. 212 may be one of the largest bears ever shot in the lower 48 states.

"This bear has been in trouble with livestock for most of his life," said Gary Brown, regional wildlife supervisor for the department in Cody. The bear was captured several times, transplanted once and finally tracked and killed on Oct. 3 because several cattle had been killed.

Bear No. 212 is being stuffed by Cody taxidermist James Marsico, and will be displayed in the Meeteetse Museum, which will need to expand its facility to display the giant bear.

Last year in the region, there were six known man-caused deaths of grizzly bears and one probable death.

"There's a direct correlation between grizzly mortality and food supply," said George Schwartz, leader of the Interagency Team. "This year we had a poor production of whitebark pine nuts. Bears were roaming farther to find food," he said.

Schwartz will present a full report on grizzly demographics and mortality at today's meeting in Jackson Hole. State wildlife agencies from Idaho, Montana and Wyoming will attend the meeting and discuss how to avoid so many grizzly bear deaths next year, Schwartz added.

"We're appalled at the high number of hunters, outfitters and professional guides that still insist on not carrying or using pepper spray during encounters with grizzlies," said Lloyd Dorsey of Wyoming Wildlife Federation's Jackson Hole field office.

"Most summertime recreationists have displayed appropriate behavior in grizzly country by carrying and using pepper spray, but it's in the fall after big game hunting starts, that most bears die. The solution is pepper spray -- and all hunters, guides and outfitters should never be without it when hunting in grizzly country."

According to U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service studies, pepper spray is the most effective way to avoid injury to bears and people alike during a confrontation. Statistics show that 93 percent of pepper spray users emerge unhurt from grizzly bear encounters, compared to 64 percent of people who use guns.

Conservation groups recently asked the Wyoming Game and Fish Department to require hunters to complete a short course or video version of the "Living in Bear Country" workshop, to ensure they know how to hunt safely in grizzly country. The groups have also asked the agency to require hunters to carry and use pepper spray in the field.

"It's unfortunate that we have to start the new millennium on such a sour note, but there are unfortunately still many people out there who haven't learned how to take proper precautions in grizzly country," Willcox said. "If this is what we can expect when the bear is fully protected under the law, what will happen when the population is delisted?"

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is proposing a 2005 deadline for removing Endangered Species Act protections from the grizzly. The Sierra Club and other groups oppose delisting the grizzly, due to high human-caused mortality, threats to natural food supply, habitat loss from regional development and continued separation of the Yellowstone grizzly from other populations.