JACKSON, Wyo. — On Tuesday, Feb. 18, the JH Bird & Nature Club Program is hosting “The Success and Challenges of Grizzly Bear Conservation in the GYE” with Dr. Frank T. van Manen, team leader of the Interagency Grizzly Bear Study Team (IGBST).

U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) team collaring a grizzly bear. Photo: Courtesy of USGS

The event is free and open to the public, and will take place at 6 p.m. only on Zoom. Join the meeting here or on a phone for audio only here. If prompted, the passcode is 666.

According to a press release, indiscriminate killing of grizzly bears in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem (GYE) in the 1800s and into the mid-1900s resulted in severe population declines and range contraction. The “controversial” path to recovery of the Yellowstone population started 50 years ago, and efforts reversed the declining population trends of the late 1970s. 

Based on long-term data collected by the Interagency IGBST, van Manen will explore the history, current status and future of grizzly bears in the GYE.

“Few animals symbolize the wildness of the American West more than the grizzly bear,” the press release reads.

River Stingray is a news reporter with a passion for wildlife, history and local lenses. She holds a Master's degree in environmental archaeology from the University of Cambridge and is also a published poet, dog mom and outdoor enthusiast.