The Gravelly Range Grizzly Project
The Gravelly Range Grizzly Project focuses on conservation of grizzly bears and other species in a crucial linkage habitat west of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem in Montana. GRGP's goal is conservation of Gravelly Range grizzly bears in coexistence with local people. We are pursuing this goal through our key program areas:
- Participatory conservation design. We tailored the project in response to local requirements for participatory management planning. The Gravelly Range lies outside the designated grizzly recovery zone and thus is under no special management for grizzlies.
- Developing practical conservation measures. We work with ranchers, citizens, agencies, and conservation groups to design conservation plans for grizzlies in the Gravellies.
- Monitoring grizzly bears and their habitat in the Gravellies. We gather information to facilitate informed planning and increase awareness of grizzly bears. Hands-on projects to foster coexistence between grizzlies and people in the backcountry. We work with the US Forest Service to construct low-impact food storage structures to keep bears from getting unnatural meals at backcountry camps.
- Education and outreach.To promote awareness and understanding of grizzlies in the local mountains, we make numerous presentations to citizens and students in the community.
The immediate outcome of these activities will be successful conservation of grizzly bears in a working landscape. We expect this outcome to generate much broader conservation gains in two ways: first, grizzly recolonization of the Gravellies will be a major step toward reconnecting Yellowstone with other wildland ecosystems. By joining isolated populations together to function as a single, larger population, we greatly increase the survival prospects for grizzly bears in the lower 48 states. If grizzly bears are thriving, it is likely that the ecosystems that support them are healthy as well. Second, effective grizzly conservation in the Gravelly Range will serve as a successful model for similar efforts in the Rockies and beyond. This project can instruct and inspire others who are working to reconnect wildlands, conserve large predators, and work cooperatively with a wide range of people.