Distinctly Montana Magazine

w w w . d i s t i n c t l y m o n t a n a . c o m 27 INTERVIEW WITH LOUISA WILCOX PREMIER GRIZZLY ADVOCATE LOUISA WILLCOX has been a wildlife and wilderness advocate in the Northern Rockies for 35 years. She has served as Senior Wildlife Advocate for the Natural Resources Defense Council (10 years), Project Coordinator for the Sierra Club's Grizzly Bear Ecosystems Project (nine years), and Program Director for the Greater Yellow- stone Coalition (10 years). IN ORDER, WHAT ARE THE THREE MOST CHALLENGING ELEMENTS OVER THE NEXT FEW DECADES FOR GRIZZLIES? Although all elements have the potential to interact in syn- ergistic ways, the three most critical issues include management arrangements, coexistence, and climate change. Starting with management arrangements, prior to when grizzlies were given ESA protections in 1975, the states were contributing to the demise of bear populations by allowing trophy hunts and other excessive killing. Indeed, pioneering grizzly bear researchers John and Frank Craighead feared the imminent extinction of grizzlies in their last few refuges. ankfully, that did not happen because the federal government stepped in and, through the ESA, im- posed a ban on sport hunting, high fines for poaching, and tough rules to keep human foods away from grizzlies. Under federal oversight, the states and local communities have made a positive difference, especially in fostering coexis- tence between bears and people. Future challenges center on the adequacy of funding, law enforcement, and the framework for grizzly bear conservation. e best arrangements have proven to be under a national system that gives all citizens a voice in management, but at the same time ensures meaningful roles for state managers and local citizens. Insofar as coexistence is concerned, because people cause most bear deaths and can be either benign or deadly, the future of grizzlies is literally in our hands. For example, despite record-breaking numbers of tourists in Glacier and Yellowstone National Parks, we see very few conflicts because of effective education and rigorous enforcement of sanitation rules by the Park Service. But even relatively few people can have devastating impacts on grizzlies. e last 45 grizzlies in the remote Cabinet Yaak ecosystem are critically endangered in large part because of unjustifiable killing and poaching. If even one more female grizzly is killed there every other year, the population will likely go extinct. (See yaakvalley.org). Our attitudes and behaviors will have a major impact on whether grizzlies survive or not. Finally, warming temperatures and massive wildfires are radi- cally changing the abundance and distribution of bear foods, prompting grizzlies to forage nearer people. As a result, climate change will increase the imperative to redouble our efforts to re- duce conflicts rather than respond by simply killing more bears. At this point in time, the verdict still out on what our collective response will be. 2018 WAS A SIGNIFICANT YEAR FOR THE NUMBER OF GRIZZLY MORTALITIES. DO YOU BELIEVE THAT THERE IS AN OPTIMAL SIZE FOR THE GREATER MONTANA BEAR POPULATION? Grizzly bear deaths did indeed shatter records in the North- ern Continental Divide and Yellowstone ecosystems last year, but death rates have been high for the past 15 years. ere is a scientific consensus that long-term recovery will only be ensured when our isolated or semi-isolated populations are reconnected with each other and to more robust popula- tions farther north in Canada. A "meta-population" of several thousand grizzlies—more than double current numbers—can be achieved, providing a buffer against the impacts of climate change and human development, but only if we allow grizzlies to colonize the ample potential suitable habitat that currently exists. But ultimately the "optimal" number is not a scientific ques- tion, but rather one of worldviews and values. If we don't care about grizzlies or opt for high-risk approaches, we will have fewer bears. If we value grizzlies for intrinsic reasons and agree we have a moral duty to protect them, then we will not only have more in our midst but will also have figured out how to peace- fully coexist with them. HOW WILL THE PACE OF CLIMATE CHANGE IMPACT GRIZZLIES OVER THE NEXT 30 YEARS. CAN BEARS ADAPT? Like us, grizzlies are amazingly adaptable and can eat a wide variety of foods. But warming temperatures, invasive non-native species, and wildfires are changing where nutritious foods are located on the landscape—and as a result, where bears are rela- tive to people and, with that, the rates at which bears die. For example, the fatty seeds of whitebark pine had boosted female reproduction and kept grizzlies in remote high elevation wilder- ness but starting in the early 2000s, whitebark pine collapsed due to an unprecedented climate-driven outbreak of mountain pine beetles. Grizzlies have responded by foraging more on meat from elk and cows, which has increased bear deaths as a result of run-ins with livestock operators and big game hunters. Looking to the future, the current consensus is that climate warming will cause the collapse of key berry-producing shrubs, as well as populations of army cutworm moths that rely on nectar from flowers growing in alpine tundra—a habitat that will largely disappear during the next century. ese losses will almost certainly exacerbate conflicts with humans. e question is not whether grizzly bears can adapt, but whether people can. Conflicts over big game can be dramatically reduced if hunters exercise simple precautions such as not leav- ing freshly killed animals out overnight, keeping clean camps, carrying pepper spray, and hunting with people knowledgeable about grizzlies. Similarly, livestock-related conflicts can be re- duced with the help of careful husbandry practices, electric fence around calving areas, and the use of livestock guardian dogs. In the end, our choices will determine whether grizzlies can "adapt" to climate change. FOR THE FORESEEABLE FUTURE CAN GRIZZLY BEAR MANAGEMENT BEST SUCCEED ON THE FEDERAL OR STATE LEVEL? e federal government and the states play critical and comple- mentary roles. e National Park Service and the US Forest Service manage most of the remaining grizzly bear habitat on be- half of all Americans. Under the ESA, the US Fish and Wildlife CONTINUED

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