Long term monitoring of the grizzly bear’s activity range is a goal of this research project. Currently, we need an additional $20,000 to complete a match challenge to support the remainder of this project.

The Northern Continental Divide Ecosystem (NCDE) which includes all of Glacier National Park, the Bob Marshall Wilderness and the millions of acres of public lands is the home of about 765 grizzly bears – as determined by Kate Kendall after a large DNA sampling study. Their goal was to count grizzlies in a unique and non-invasive manner by capturing their hair from barbed wire catches.

The study does not mean that grizzly bears in the NCDE will be taken off the endangered species list any time soon. It simply provides a baseline count of how many grizzlies are in this area and where the grizzly bear populations habitat. To de-list the bears, a host of criteria must still be met, including a trend monitoring study that will examine whether bear populations are increasing or decreasing. 2005 was a bad year for the grizzly bear and bear mortality that year was twice the sustainability rate, according to Kendall’s study. In 2007, at least 35 grizzlies were killed in the NCDE region. However, since 1999, there has only been a single human-caused grizzly mortality in Glacier National Park. The Park has strict garbage protocols including the bear-proof storage lockers (purchased by GNPF) for fore and back country campgrounds – mostly in wilderness areas.

A gift of $5,000 will allow you to receive periodic updates about this project along with an opportunity to take a hike with a USGS biologist from the project to look at their tree rub findings.