Grizzly bear population recovery in the North Cascades - 2003
15 August 2003 Dear Minister Murray, Re: Grizzly bear population recovery in the North Cascades The International Association for Bear Research and Management (IBA) is the professional organization for wildlife biologists working to conserve and restore the world’s bears through research, science-based population and habitat management, and education. Our membership includes 800 bear specialists from 47 countries, most are biologists in federal or provincial/state natural resource agencies and universities. Our members conduct ecological research, monitor and manage bear populations, and work to prevent human-bear conflicts. We sponsor periodic international conferences and publish the peer-reviewed annual journal Ursus that is the foremost source of technical and scientific information about the world’s 8 bear species. We write to you today to endorse and encourage the implementation of the British Columbian government’s draft plan to augment the small population of grizzly bears in the North Cascades Mountains of southern British Columbia. We are aware that this population probably numbers less than 25 individuals, despite living where habitat conditions appear adequate to sustain a significantly larger population in the 9,807-km2 Canadian recovery area. This extremely small population is designated as “Threatened” in BC and is clearly among those at highest risk of extirpation in Canada. In recent decades the best scientific data indicate that this population has not changed from its high-risk status. There are so few bears there that the deaths of only 1-2 adult females could result in loss of the population. In 2001 the North Cascades Grizzly Bear Recovery Team, composed of Provincial agency personnel and others, completed a draft recovery plan to address the urgent needs of this population. This plan identifies a recovery target of approximately 150 grizzlies in the area by the year 2050. The plan calls for augmenting the population by translocating up to 5 bears/year, primarily sub adults and females, from more robust and genetically similar BC bear populations over a 5-year period. None of these bears would have a prior history of conflicts with people. The IBA strongly endorses this augmentation plan, as well as associated efforts to enhance survival of translocated and current resident bears. BC has an overall population of at least 13,800 grizzlies and can easily afford to move some from areas where they are abundant to areas where they have been depleted like the North Cascade. The IBA recommends that the province adopt additional habitat protection measures in the areas outside the "spine" or center of the recovery area as the population grows and expands into these habitats following population augmentation. We are aware that there has been discussion of changing the draft augmentation plan to a trial in which no more than 6 animals in total would be moved to the area over a 5-year period. In our best professional judgment, this modified trial would have a much lower chance of ensuring the survival of this population. If there are unforeseen conditions that must be corrected for the translocations to succeed, these will become apparent more quickly and convincingly with the translocation of 5 bears/year as originally proposed. A smaller sample of translocated bears will make it more difficult to make accurate and timely adjustments to the habitat situation or translocation protocol based on experience. A population this small and isolated could easily go extinct during this learning process if a more timid approach is adopted. However, we recommend that if there is high mortality of the 5 bears/year introduced in the first 1-2 years of the augmentation process, that further reintroductions should be delayed until the causes of these mortalities are addressed. The International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources adopted a position (Translocations of Living Organisms, adopted in Gland, Switzerland, 4 September 1987) in support of augmentation or “restocking” in cases like the North Cascades, where “… a population has dropped below critical levels and recovery by natural growth will be dangerously slow.” They define re-stocking as “the movement of numbers of plants or animals of a species with the intention of building up individuals of that species in an original habitat.” This condition certainly exists for grizzly bears in the North Cascades. We note that an augmentation efforts for an isolated group of wolves in central Idaho during 1995-96 has resulted in marked recovery of wolves in this area to the point where the US Fish and Wildlife Service has down listed them and proposes to soon delist them altogether. Because of slower reproductive rates, bears will take longer to recovery than wolves and this biological fact, argues as well for an aggressive approach toward augmenting the small grizzly population in the North Cascades. We believe that it is important for British Columbia to set a good example for grizzly bear recovery in a way that benefits both grizzlies and people. A successful program in British Columbia can serve as a model that could benefit recovery efforts in a far larger area than just the North Cascades. A successful program here will help reduce concerns over public safety and private property rights that are an impediment to recovery efforts south of the border in the State of Washington. Recovery of the grizzly bear population in Washington would, in turn, help provide significantly increased resiliency to the bear population in the North Cascades of BC. British Columbia is fortunate to have a number of excellent biologists working in and outside of the government. These biologists, working with First Nations and other stakeholders, have developed a draft plan for grizzly bear recovery in the North Cascades that includes augmentation of at least 5 bears annually. The draft plan also addresses important additional issues including education, sanitation, connectivity to other bear populations, and reduction of road density that must be addressed to increase the likelihood that this population will persist. The draft plan also correctly recognizes the need for public support and maintenance of the North Cascades ecosystem for a variety of public uses. In sum, we urge the speediest possible implementation of the draft North Cascades recovery plan. Ultimately, it is most important for both the bears and the people to preserve healthy ecosystems and biodiversity in British Columbia. Solutions can be found that benefit both grizzly bears and humans in this part of British Columbia. However, delay in implementing these solutions may make them moot if the bears disappear in the meantime. Thank you for consideration of these comments. If IBA can be of help in your deliberations, please do not hesitate to contact us. |