Grizzlies in the Cascades - Harold Fletcher

Grizzly Bear (Ursus arctos)

Listed Status: Threatened (since announcement in 1975)

Ecology

The grizzly bear is a subspecies of the North American brown bear. It was named after its rugged attitude and appearance. While usually thought of as carnivorous grizzlies are actually omnivores, eating both plants and animals. Eating a significant amount of fish, photographs often depict them standing in rivers or near bodies of water. Grizzly males can weigh up to 800 pounds and usually live for about 22 years (Storer). Grizzly females are slightly smaller and have slightly longer lifespans at 26 years. Females typically give birth to about 2 cubs per reproductive cycle which happens every 6 years depending on various factors (MacDonald). With such a long reproductive cycle getting the population to bounce back has not been easy.

National Geographic: Grizzly teaching cubs to fish

Geography and Population Changes

Back in the 1800s grizzlies inhabited mountain prairies from California to Washington and West to North Dakota. Years of hunting wiped them from almost everywhere in the U.S. Now thanks to recovery efforts in Wyoming and Montana Grizzles are somewhat stable in Yellowstone National Park and around Glacier National Park. This is hardly any part of their once vast range and recovery efforts have been talked about. In 1997 a report outlined a path to help them once again inhabit North/Central Washington in the Cascade Mountains. Listed as “Threatened” they are not in danger of going extinct. In fact areas north of Washington’s Cascade mountains have a fair amount of grizzlies (Servheen).

Threats to Existance

Firstly, its important to clarify why they disappeared from that specific area in the first place. Starting in the 1830s Washington was being explored. Forts were being set up and a common way to make a living was through the fur trade. Between 1837 and 1859 over 3,000 grizzly furs were shipped from the forts in the cascades (Servheen, Grizzly Recovery Plan). This essentially wiped most of them out beyond rare sightings almost 40 years apart. Now that the fur trade is illegal the most common threats to grizzlies is through human activity. Dr. Servheen reports that out of the proposed grizzly area 90% is federal land and 10% is private. Also 72% isn’t accessible by car.

Video: North Cascades National Park

Cascade Recovery Plan

The recovery plan outlines some basic goals for the project. First the population should be sustainable, i.e. the survival rate is at least equal to the mortality rate. Second the population should be distributed evenly and comprised of 200-400 bears. Third, starting out human induced mortality must be basically zero otherwise it will be hard to recover the population. In the years that follow researchers will monitor the populations health through recording all grizzly sightings, keeping track of mothers with cubs (Dr. Servheen, North Cascades Grizzly Recovery Plan). Maintaining a low female mortality rate is crucial for the recovery programs success. In the Yellowstone Grizzly recovery program it was estimated that female mortality couldn’t fall below 7.6% and have a sustainable population (Servheen, Yellowstone Recovery Plan). Again limiting human contact is the most crucial part of recovery. Education is essential for people to understand the implications of grizzlie contact. Conflicts with livestock, hunting, farming, and logging could have consequences if not handled carefully and with awareness (Servheen North Cascades Grizzly Recovery Plan). Lastly, creating habitat linkages is an important step in ensuring connectedness throughout the recovery area. Grizzlies must be free to use the whole area and not separated in fragments (Servheen North Cascades Grizzly Recovery Plan).

Grizzlies in the U.S. were re-evaluated in 2007. Unfortunately 10 years later there were still only an estimated 20 grizzlies in the Northern Cascades. Efforts to recover the population are being implemented through education in Washington and not reducing their core habitat. The latest confirmed grizzly sighting was in 2010 and is  still a promising sign that one day the population will recover (Eric Wagner, Missing Grizzlies).

Works Cited

Servheen, Christopher. "Grizzly Bear Recovery Plan." North Cascades Ecosystem (1997): 1-64. Web. 5 Mar. 2015.

Tracy Irwin Storer. California Grizzly. Lloyd Pacheco Tevis. Publisher University of California Press, 1996 ISBN 0-520-20520-0

MacDonald, Jason; MacDonald, Paula; MacPhee, Mitchell & Nicolle, Paige. "Endangered Wildlife: Grizzly Bear" .Edu.pe.ca.