Join the Grizzly Guardians or just come learn more about the the largest carnivore in the lower 48. Our MVG meeting at 7:30 pm on October 27 will feature a video about grizzly bears along with information on what it will take to keep the Yellowstone grizzly population healthy.

Please join us for a video on the state of grizzly bears and learn what it means to be a Grizzly Guardian. The Missouri Valley Group Sierra Club October program takes a look at the grizzlies of Yellowstone National Park.

From an estimated population of 50,000-100,000 in the West at the time of Lewis and Clark's expedition, they dropped to about 200 in the mid-1970s. Grizzlies have been listed as threatened for 30 years, and, due to the endangered species act and ongoing, passionate public involvement to protect these majestic animals, things are getting better, with a population in and around Yellowstone of about 500.

But there are still threats to the grizzlies of Yellowstone. Sprawling development, irresponsible exploration and exploitation of lumber, oil, natural gas and other natural resources have all pushed the grizzly bear to the brink of extinction in the lower 48. Those threats are still there, and getting worse in some cases.

Grizzlies are about 1 percent of their original population and, in several small "islands," occupy about 1 percent of their original habitat.
Much of grizzly's food source are threatened or declining. Their four primary foods are army cutworm moths, whitebark pinecone seeds, Yellowstone cutthroat trout and ungulates such as moose, elk, deer, and bison.
Grizzly bears are omnivores, so if one of those food sources disappears, there are other food sources, but they may not have the appeal or supply the calories or nutrients that their primary foods do.
Currently, the leading cause of grizzly deaths comes from close contact with humans. They are smart animals, so they tend to go after the easy meals, which often means trash cans and other food sources supplied - inadvertently or not - by humans. But the more human contact they have, the more likely they are to get killed, either accidently or as a means of control.

To ensure the grizzly's continued existence, it will take the efforts of everybody to keep the endangered species act intact and to minimize commercial threats to this animal and its habitat. Join us at 7:30 pm, Thursday, October 27, 1st United Methodist Church, 69th and Cass, in the education wing on the north side of the church.

This article originally appeared in the October 2005 issue of the Missouri Valley Sierran