America spent millions through taxes and donations to restore the iconic apex predator, one that can easily kill a human. Some of the money was spent on relocations. Wildlife biologists supplemented the Cabinet-Yaak population with bears from Canada in the 1990's. It is those bears that have now moved into the Bitteroot Range near the Montana-Idaho boarder, which was devoid of bears for decades. The Yellowstone population has expanded northward. Bears in the Northern Continental Divide recovery zone are moving south. These two population are now only 50 miles apart, the closest they have ever been, and which demonstrates the need for protected connective habitat. The species now numbers just below 2,000 in the contiguous states. This increase represents a significant conservation success story, especially for a large carnivore with a slow reproductive rate. An adult male can have a range of over 600 square miles, and is a danger to humans, having four inch claws and 800+ pounds of muscle and fat. Only the wolf engenders more hatred and distrust.
The southern range states--Wyoming, Montana and Idaho--want to re-introduce trophy hunting now that the bear is becoming more numerous and visible. In 2007 the federal government declared the Yellowstone population recovered and removed protection under the ESA. Wildlife advocates disputed that finding on grounds that the USFWS failed to consider the impact of climate change on the white bark pine, a critical food source for the Yellowstone bears. The court agreed with the 'bear huggers'. Responding to the loss in court, the government conducted its own study of grizzly food sources. Researchers concluded that the bear does rely on the white bark, but it eats more meat than other populations. The study proposed that cubs and yearlings were dying because they are crowded into limited space. Adult males will kill cubs not their own. Federal authorities again recommended culling the population. In 2017 grizzlies lost their legal protection for a second time. Less than a year later Wyoming began selling grizzly hunt tags for only $20. Eight thousand nimrods signed up. The white bark pine, suffering from a beetle infestation exacerbated by rising temperatures, was declared endangered in 2023.
Government was sued again, this time by the Tribes who faulted wildlife managers with not seeking to connect the isolated bear populations so Yellowstone bears could disperse naturally. Since 2016 more than 100 Indigenous Nations have signed a treaty committing themselves to restoring grizzly bear populations across North America. A tribal chief wrote, “In our Genesis, it was the great grizzly that taught the people the ability for healing and curing practices, so the grizzly is perceived as the first ‘medicine person.’ ... It is no coincidence that the spiritual reawakening of Native people on this continent has coincided with the modest recovery of the grizzly since the 1970s --a recovery that will end with delisting and trophy hunting in a return to the frontier mentality of the 1870s.” Fortunately the judge presiding over the conservationists suits ruled that the decision to de-list without considering the impact on other bear populations was premature. Trophy hunting has abated for now. All grizzlies in the lower 48 are still protected under the ESA, but in February 2023 the Service once again announced it would review de-listing for the Yellowstone and Northern Continental Divide populations. It seems the grizzly is a victim of the never-ending human culture wars.
