FWP Launches Dashboard To Monitor Grizzly Bear Interactions
Along both sides of the Continental Divide and in the Greater Yellowstone region, grizzly bear populations in Montana have increased in both number and distribution. Grizzly bears are frequently spreading into regions that they haven't visited in over a century.
With this growth, Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks is putting more of an emphasis on assisting communities and individuals in staying safe and averting confrontations. FWP employees are putting in a lot of effort throughout Montana's bear country to respond to conflicts, give communities and landowners tools to avoid conflicts, and inform people about safety measures.
In support of that endeavor, FWP launched a new Grizzly Bear Conflict Dashboard to provide information on the kinds of conflicts people are facing and where FWP staff are assisting communities and landowners with conflicts.
“Managing grizzly bear conflicts continues to be a priority for our staff and the workload is increasing every year,” said FWP Director Christy Clark. “This dashboard will help inform the public about just what kinds of conflicts Montanans are dealing with and where they’re happening.”
Last year, FWP released a Grizzly Bear Mortality dashboard to raise public awareness. Additionally, FWP is in the process of developing a relocation dashboard, which will unveil information on black bear and grizzly bear relocation later this summer. The FWP website has the relocation details until then.
The dashboard's conflict information is updated on a regular basis, but only after a conflict has ended. Depending on the nature of the conflict and the course of action, this could take several days. The dashboard displays conflict data starting in mid-June.
The Endangered Species Act continues to protect grizzly bears in the contiguous United States. Despite populations in the Northern Continental Divide Ecosystem and the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem exceeding recovery targets, this protection is still in place.
Montana, Idaho, and Wyoming petitioned the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service to delist grizzly bears.
For more information on grizzly bear management, FWP has many resources for communities, landowners, and recreationists. A link to the Grizzly Bear Conflict Dashboard can be found on the grizzly bear management webpage.
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