Yellowstone Grizzly Bear Investigation 2014
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Photo courtesy of Jake Davis The research described in this report complied with current laws of the United States of America, was conducted in accordance with animal care and use guidelines, and was approved by Institutional Animal Care and Use Committees of the respective member agencies. Any use of trade, product, or firm names is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the U.S., State, or Tribal Governments. Data contained in this report are preliminary and subject to change. Please obtain permission prior to citation. To give credit to authors, please cite the section within this report as a chapter in a book. Below is an example: Frey, K. 2015. Grizzly bear-hunter conflicts in Montana. Pages 59-63 in F.T. van Manen, M.A. Haroldson, and S.C. Soileau, editors. Yellowstone grizzly bear investigations: annual report of the Interagency Grizzly Bear Study Team, 2014. U.S. Geological Survey, Bozeman, Montana, USA. Cover photo: Female grizzly bear with yearling offspring, Pilgrim Creek, June 2014. Photo courtesy of Jake Davis (revealedinnature.com). YELLOWSTONE GRIZZLY BEAR INVESTIGATIONS Annual Report of the Interagency Grizzly Bear Study Team 2014 U.S. Geological Survey Wyoming Game and Fish Department National Park Service U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks U.S. Forest Service Idaho Department of Fish and Game Eastern Shoshone and Northern Arapaho Tribal Fish and Game Department Edited by Frank T. van Manen, Mark A. Haroldson, and Suzanna C. Soileau U.S. Department of the Interior U.S. Geological Survey 2015 IGBST Partner Websites Interagency Grizzly Bear Study Team (USGS): http://nrmsc.usgs.gov/research/igbst-home.htm Grizzly Bear Recovery (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service): http://www.fws.gov/mountain-prairie/species/mammals/grizzly/yellowstoneindex.html Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks (National Park Service): http://www.nps.gov/yell/planyourvisit/bearsafety.htm http://www.nps.gov/grte/planyourvisit/bearsafety.htm Wyoming of Game and Fish Department : https://wgfd.wyo.gov/web2011/wildlife-1000674.aspx Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks: http://fwp.mt.gov/fishAndWildlife/livingWithWildlife/grizzlyBears/default.html Idaho Fish and Game: http://fishandgame.idaho.gov/public/wildlife/?getPage=248 Table of Contents Introduction ....................................................................................................................................................... 1 This Report ............................................................................................................................................. 1 The Importance of Long-Term Studies.............................................................................................. .... 1 Population and Habitat Monitoring........................................................................................................ 1 History and Purpose of the IGBST ........................................................................................................ 4 Previous Research .................................................................................................................................. 4 Acknowledgments .................................................................................................................................. 4 Bear Monitoring and Population Trend ............................................................................................................. 5 Marked Animals ..................................................................................................................................... 5 Estimating Number of Females with Cubs ............................................................................................ 11 Occupancy of Bear Management Units by Females with Young .......................................................... 21 Observation Flights ................................................................................................................................ 22 Telemetry Relocation Flights ................................................................................................................. 25 Estimating Sustainability of Annual Grizzly Bear Mortalities .............................................................. 26 Key Foods Monitoring ....................................................................................................................................... 31 Spring Ungulate Availability and Use by Grizzly Bears in Yellowstone National Park ........................ 31 Spawning Cutthroat Trout ...................................................................................................................... 35 Grizzly Bear Use of Insect Aggregation Sites ....................................................................................... 41 Whitebark Pine Cone Production ........................................................................................................... 46 Habitat Monitoring ............................................................................................................................................. 48 Grand Teton National Park Recreational Use ........................................................................................ 48 Yellowstone National Park Recreational Use ........................................................................................ 49 Trends in Elk Hunter Numbers within the Grizzly Bear Recovery Zone Plus the 10-mile Perimeter Area ............................................................................................................ 51 Grizzly Bear-Human Conflicts in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem............................................................. 53 Grizzly Bear-Human Conflicts inGrand Teton National Park .............................................................. 53 Grizzly Bear-Human Conflicts inYellowstone National Park ............................................................... 54 Grizzly Bear-Human Conflicts in Idaho ................................................................................................ 58 Grizzly Bear-Human Conflicts in Montana ........................................................................................... 59 Grizzly Bear-Human Conflicts inWyoming .......................................................................................... 64 Grizzly Bear-Human Conflicts on theWind River Reservation ............................................................ 69 Grizzly Bear-Human Interactions in Yellowstone National Park .......................................................... 70 Literature Cited .................................................................................................................................................. 75 Appendix A: 2014 Grizzly Bear Annual Habitat Monitoring Report ...................................................... 80 Appendix B: Monitoring Whitebark Pine in the Greater Yellowstone Ecoregion: 2014 Annual Report Summary ........................................................................................................................... 106 Appendix C: 2014 Wyoming Bear Wise Community Project Update................................................................108 Appendix D: Project Update: Grizzly Bear Response to Elk Hunting In Grand Teton National Park..............119 has reached high levels in portions of the ecosystem. Introduction Evidence from our analyses suggests that increased grizzly bear density, rather than a decline in food (Frank T. van Manen and Mark A. Haroldson, U.S. resources, may be a driver of this change in population Geological Survey, Interagency Grizzly Bear Study trajectory, possibly indicating the population is nearing Team) carrying capacity. These are key concepts in wildlife ecology that are often very difficult to study because This Report long-term population data are required to answer these questions. Clearly, if one were to consider any This Annual Report summarizes results of 5- or even 10-year period out of this entire monitoring grizzly bear (Ursus arctos) monitoring and research effort, our understanding of population status would conducted in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem have been much more limited and interpretations (GYE) by the Interagency Grizzly Bear Study Team might have been different. We are fortunate to have (IGBST) during 2014. The report also contains a a comprehensive, long-term dataset on grizzly bear summary of grizzly bear management actions to demographics. The combined evidence from a address conflict situations. number of studies based on years of demographic data has provided important insights into the dynamics of The Importance of Long-Term Studies this grizzly bear population. We anticipate publication of these findings sometime during 2015. Long-term trends tend to have a disproportionate influence on variability of population Population and Habitat Monitoring parameters (Pimm and Redfearn 1988). Long-term studies are particularly important for vertebrates with We continue to follow monitoring protocols relatively low reproductive potential, such as grizzly established under 1) the Revised Demographic bears. Now in its 42nd year since establishment, Recovery Criteria (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service the IGBST has documented important biological [USFWS] 2007b) and the demographic monitoring processes associated with different stages of recovery section of the Final Conservation Strategy for of the Yellowstone