FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

December 11, 2024

Media Contact:

Maggie Caldwell, 347-527-6397, mcaldwell@earthjustice.org

 

‘Grizzly Bears Not Recovered’ Says Leading Biologist, 15 Regional & National Groups Petition for New Recovery Vision 

Former U.S. Fish & Wildlife Grizzly Coordinator updates his own 30-year-old Recovery Plan 

Washington, D.C. – Today 15 national, regional and state environmental, tribal, and animal welfare groups petitioned the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to adopt a new approach to recovering grizzly bears in the U.S. Northern Rockies, pointing to a new science-based report by Dr. Christopher Servheen, the former USFWS Grizzly Bear Recovery Coordinator (1981-2016). The petition comes about a month ahead of the USFWS’ deadline to make a decision on delisting the bears. 

Earthjustice drafted the petition which asks the Service to update its Grizzly Bear Recovery Plan to incorporate the points raised in Dr. Servheen’s new report, which details site-specific management actions to aid in the bears’ recovery. Dr. Servheen led the team that wrote the existing recovery plan for grizzly bears in 1993, and is now calling for this work to be updated with the best available science and latest conservation practices. Dr. Servheen says the new management approach would give bears a chance at a durable recovery. 

“The grizzly bears in the Northern U.S. Rockies live in only 4% of their former range in the lower 48 states,” said Dr. Christopher Servheen. “Grizzly presence is part of what makes this part of America so special. We should choose a careful management approach that will assure the future for these magnificent animals because they are an important part of the heritage of the American West.” 

The petition and recovery plan updates come during a record-breaking deadly year for grizzlies. Seventy-three grizzly bears have been killed in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem alone. Throughout the U.S. Northern Rockies, at least 90 grizzly bears have died this year due to human causes. In his paper, Dr. Servheen highlights a number of mounting threats to grizzlies, including: 

• Increased human development and encroachment into grizzly territory;
• New state laws and policies that are lethal to grizzlies and other carnivores;
• The ongoing harms from climate change on grizzly bears and their habitats; 
• Other land uses that are bringing grizzlies into more contact with humans and livestock. 

Dr. Servheen’s proposed updates to the 1993 Recovery Plan include the following revisions:

• A switch from management of the Northern Rockies bears in five distinct and isolated populations to a single, interconnected metapopulation of grizzlies across the region;
• New protections for grizzlies against potentially lethal human activities;
• Protections for grizzly habitat and careful mortality management in connectivity areas between ecosystems;
• Policies that reduce human/bear conflicts through increasing resources and assistance for communities;
• Reliable commitments from state and federal agencies to maintain grizzly and habitat protections after delisting. 

Earthjustice led the petition effort, submitting it on behalf of the following 14 groups:

• Center for Biological Diversity
• Endangered Species Coalition
• Friends of the Bitterroot
• Friends of the Clearwater
• Great Bear Foundation
• Humane Society of the United States
• Humane Society Legislative Fund
• Nimiipuu Protecting the Environment
• Park County Environmental Council
• Sierra Club
• Western Watersheds Project
• WildEarth Guardians
• Wyoming Wildlife Advocates
• Yaak Valley Forest Council
  

“Grizzlies need a new vision for recovery that incorporates the latest science and conservation practices,” said Mary Cochenour, senior attorney in Earthjustice’s Northern Rockies office. “Grizzly bears have not achieved recovery under the old 1993 plan because it could not have anticipated the level of modern-day human encroachment in grizzly habitat, nor did the 1993 plan foresee the recent enactment of state and federal regulations and policy that continue to undermine recovery efforts.” 

Reporter Resource:

• Published report and petition available here: https://earthjustice.org/grizzly

Petitioners’ Statements

“The science clearly shows that the Fish and Wildlife Service’s management of grizzly bears in fragmented, isolated populations won’t lead to long-term and sustainable recovery, so we have to be bolder and do better. We need to protect grizzly habitat and connectivity corridors to bridge isolated populations and ensure that these bears survive for generations to come.” – Andrea Zaccardi, Carnivore Conservation Legal Director, Center for Biological Diversity. 

“Grizzlies are not just a symbol of our Western heritage; they are a keystone species that plays a critical role in maintaining the health of ecosystems. Now is the time for a new, science-based recovery plan that will connect isolated populations and support people coexisting with grizzlies.” – Susan Holmes, Executive Director, Endangered Species Coalition  

“After a few decades of implementing the old recovery plan, the Fish and Wildlife Service has accomplished practically nothing for the grizzly population in the Bitterroot Recovery Zone. Grizzly bears deserve a new plan, something that provides real habitat security so their population can sustain.” –Jeff Juel, Forest Policy Director, Friends of the Clearwater

“With advances in our understanding of grizzly bear population dynamics and how people and bears can coexist for the benefit of both species, the time is ripe to update the Grizzly Bear Recovery Plan to reflect the best available science. Grizzlies are a critical part of a healthy, connected landscape, and this petition gives the Lower 48 populations the best shot at recovering in a meaningful and sustainable way. Grizzly bears belong on this landscape—we want to make sure they continue to exist now and into the future.” – Shannon Donahue, Executive Director, Great Bear Foundation

“Grizzly bears, valuable symbols of wildness, must be conserved for future generations. We know that Americans overwhelmingly support safeguarding grizzly bears from cruelty, including by trophy hunters. Because extinction is forever, we must prioritize science over politics. It can take 10 years for one grizzly mother to replace herself in a population. It’s time for decision makers to heed the call to ensure these iconic animals thrive, not vanish.” – Wendy Keefover, Senior Strategist of Native Carnivore Protection, Humane Society of the United States

“For years, HSLF has fought for grizzly bears by pressing the federal government to uphold protections for this irreplaceable species. A more than 30-year-old recovery plan could not have accounted for the imminent threats facing grizzly bears today, including trophy hunting, human development and undue political pressures. It is long overdue that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service updates this outdated plan to protect grizzlies for decades to come.” – Brianna DelDuca, Regulatory Specialist, Humane Society Legislative Fund

“As a member of the Nez Perce Tribe and the coordinator of our Nez Perce Tribal member-run non-profit, I and our board believe that protections for grizzly bears should and need to continue. As our people (Nimiipuu) and grizzlies and other species have lived together in our Treaty area and beyond with little harm to either, we now see how the migration westward and introduction of cattle and development of habitat critical to grizzly bears has negatively impacted this critical species. As the grizzly is part of our history, culture and ceremonies we support the further protection of grizzlies.” – Julian Matthews, Board Member & Coordinator, Nimiipuu Protecting the Environment

“This petition recognizes that we need to have a real recovery of grizzly bears, not delisting that would open them up to large-scale killing and reverse decades of conservation work. The science is clear that we need a healthy population of grizzly bears throughout these public lands in the Northern Rockies to achieve a sustained recovery. Grizzly bears are so sensitive to mortality that delisting could very well be their demise. Now is the time to strengthen protections for this iconic species, not put a target on them.” – Ben Greuel, National Wildlife Campaign Manager, Sierra Club

“We must approach the grizzly bear with humility; afterall, being in their presence is a humbling experience. In Park County, situated in the northern Yellowstone ecosystem, we have an intimate relationship with grizzly bears. We have been able to witness their ongoing recovery firsthand. While we have much to celebrate in that regard, we believe there is still more work that needs to be done, like updating the 30-year old recovery plan with the latest scientific findings, and establishing a meta population in the northern Rockies that would truly constitute proof of the grizzly’s recovery.” – Max Hjortsberg, Managing Director, Park County Environmental Council

“Given that our knowledge of grizzly bears has expanded significantly, particularly regarding the importance of habitat connectivity, it is absolutely crucial that recovery planning reflects and incorporates what is now the best and most up-to-date science. With growing anti-predator hostility from states and an alarming uptick in human-caused grizzly deaths – due largely to conflict with livestock –  an update to the 30 year old plan is critical for long-term recovery.”  

– Patrick Kelly, Montana & Washington Director, Western Watersheds Project

“Grizzly bear recovery in the region will fail if they do not have secure habitats for safe passage as they disperse in search of food, dens and mates. Current rules already allow state governments in Montana, Wyoming and Idaho to kill grizzly bears, even as they face numerous other threats in the region. As we saw with the tragic vehicular death of bear #399 – arguably the most famous grizzly bear in the world, these bears need more protection, not less.” – Adam Rissien, ReWilding Manager, WildEarth Guardians. “

 

“Those who are blind to the threats that grizzly bears are facing will say that the goalposts for recovery keep moving. The truth is that science is not static, it’s dynamic. We know a lot more than we did 30 years ago. As conditions change and we collect additional data, our knowledge becomes greater. Conditions in 1993 were vastly different than they are now. Updating the recovery plan should be a priority for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service before any decisions about recovery are made.” – Kristin Combs, Executive Director, Wyoming Wildlife Advocates 

 

Additional organizational media contacts:

Andrea Zaccardi, 303-854-7748, azaccardi@biologicaldiversity.org 

Adam Rissien, 406-370-3147, arissien@wildearthguardians.org 

Kristin Combs, 307-413-4116, kristin@wyowild.org

Patrick Kelly, 208-576-4314, patrick@westernwatersheds.org 

Jeff Juel, 509-688-5956, jeffjuel@wildrockies.org