Grizzly bears to remain on Endangered Species Act list

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will keep grizzly bears on the Endangered Species Act list and is proposing to create a "Distinct Population Segment" for the bear.

Wednesday's announcement goes against petitions from the Idaho, Wyoming and Montana governors to delist the bears.

According to their news release, USFWS would establish a single distinct population segment to include the entire state of Washington and large portions of Idaho, Montana and Wyoming. The area would retain the threatened status under the ESA, it said. ESA protection would be removed outside of proposed area.

"Grizzly bear populations are now geographically closer to each other than ever, and the Service has documented grizzly bear movement between some populations, indicating recovery zones are no longer discrete." the news release said. "This increased movement of grizzly bears illustrates the success of conservation and management efforts to date while highlighting the importance of establishing and maintaining conservation measures and management practices that foster continued movement of bears."

The release said maintaining all recovery zones together in one DPS will speed up recovery in remaining ecosystems and increase the overall viability of grizzly bears. Addressing the species' recovery needs as a whole will also increase the likelihood of successfully delisting the entire DPS.

The Service is also proposing to revise the 4(d) rule to give management agencies and landowners more flexibility in research and conflict management.

Wyoming Governor Mark Gordon said in a news release, "It has always been clear the Biden administration had no intention of delisting the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem grizzly bear. This latest move to keep a fully-recovered population on the Endangered Species List and eliminate the DPS confirms this decision is driven by politics and not biology. The GYE grizzly bear has been delisted twice. Population determinations should not be made whimsically; lower-48 management approach is not scientifically based. I remain committed to working on delisting grizzly bears in Wyoming and will consider multiple avenues to do so."

"Our state wildlife managers are foremost experts on this bruin – they should be at the helm of decision making that impacts the daily lives of people in Wyoming who live and work in grizzly bear country. The authority to fully manage wildlife is within the state’s purview," Gov. Gordon said.

The Greater Yellowstone Coalition responded to the announcement in a news release. It said the coalition remains committed to ensuring grizzlies have sturdy supports in place to thrive long into the future.

“Grizzly bears on the brink of extinction were one of the main drivers behind Greater Yellowstone Coalition’s founding over 40 years ago. Thankfully, grizzlies are no longer on the brink, but the decision to maintain protections for bears demonstrates more work remains,” said GYC Executive Director Scott Christensen. “Our goal is to ensure that any future transition to state management maintains and builds upon this conservation success long into the future.”

The Service has scheduled public meetings about the proposed rule changes:

• January 28, 2025: Missoula, MT at the Hilton Garden Inn, 3720 N Reserve St., Information meeting 3pm-5pm, public hearing 6pm-8pm (Mountain Time)

• January 29: Coeur d’Alene, ID at the Kootenai County Fairgrounds, 4056 N. Government Way, Building 19, Information meeting 3pm-5pm, public hearing 6pm-8pm (Pacific Time)

• January 30: Virtual meeting, to be announced in coming days, 6pm-8pm (Mountain Time)
• February 10: Cody, WY at the Holiday Inn, 1701 Sheridan Ave., Information meeting 3pm-5pm, public hearing 6pm-8pm (Mountain Time) 

Click here for more information from the US Fish and Wildlife Service.