WYOMING – The US Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) announced today that grizzly bears in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem (GYE) have sufficiently recovered and will be returned to state management. Governor Matt Mead was one of the first to hail the decision.
“Grizzly bears have met or exceeded recovery objectives since 2003 and have long warranted delisting. In 2013, I asked Secretary Salazar to delist the grizzly bears and much work toward this end has been done. I appreciate that the FWS is proceeding now with the delisting,” Mead said. “The Interagency Grizzly Bear Study Team, which includes the FWS and Wyoming Game and Fish, must be commended for its years of great work. Thanks to the team effort, grizzlies will be managed appropriately by our experts at Game and Fish. I thank all involved in the delisting effort.”
There are approximately 700 bears in the GYE which includes Wyoming, Montana and Idaho. In 2007, the FWS delisted grizzly bears in the GYE. A federal judge reinstated protections in 2009 after finding that the FWS did not adequately consider the impacts of the decline of whitebark pine nuts—a key food source component for the griz.
In 2013, the Interagency Grizzly Bear Study Team determined that the reduction in whitebark pine nuts did not significantly impact grizzly bears and again recommended delisting. In March 2016, the FWS published a draft rule to delist grizzly bears in the GYE. States gave additional assurance regarding long-term viability.
Ryan Zinke, the secretary of the interior, added: “This achievement stands as one of America’s great conservation successes; the culmination of decades of hard work and dedication on the part of state, tribal, federal and private partners.”
At the national level, Wyoming’s DC delegation also expressed support of the decision.
“I am pleased to see the administration recognizing the recovered status of the grizzly bear in the Yellowstone area,” Sen Mike Enzi said. “Grizzly bears in Yellowstone have been recovered for many years, so it is good to see management returned to state hands where it belongs. This is great news for Wyoming.”
John Barrasso added, “We already know the grizzly bear has fully recovered in Wyoming. After years of Washington moving the goal posts, Wyoming should be able to move forward with managing our wildlife. The grizzly bear’s recovery demonstrates just how capable Wyoming is in effectively recovering threatened and endangered species.”
Congressman Liz Cheney blamed the previous administration for the holdup in delisting the bear.
“For years the Obama Administration failed to acknowledge the successful hard work and dedication of the state, tribal, and federal partners which led to the healthy recovery of the grizzly bear population inside the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem,” Cheney said. “This welcome decision to delist the grizzly bear from the Endangered Species Act rightly returns management of the Yellowstone grizzly to where it should be, under the control of experts in Wyoming, not Washington.”
Wyoming has adopted a Grizzly Bear Management Plan outlining how management will occur after the bears are delisted. That document is available on the Game and Fish website.
Several national and regional conservation groups promised they will sue to stop delisting. They must wait a mandatory 60 days before they can propose legal action.
