Would it be possible to reintroduce grizzly bears to Mexico and California, and would it be a good idea

This memo, that has been going around, pretty well sums up the subject of bringing grizzlies back to California.

The National Park Rangers are advising hikers in Glacier National Park and other Rocky Mountain parks to be alert for bears, and to take extra precautions. They advise park visitors to wear little bells on their clothes so they make noise when hiking. The bell noise allows bears to hear them coming from a distance and not be accidentally startled by a hiker. Visitors should also carry pepper spray, just in case a bear is encountered.

It is also a good idea to keep an eye out for fresh bear scat so you have an idea if bears are in the area. People should be able to recognize the difference between black bear and grizzly bear scat. Black bear droppings are smaller and often contain berries, leaves, and possibly bits of fur. Grizzly bear droppings tend to contain little bells, and smell of pepper.

[1}

To quote Jeff Goldblum’s character in Jurassic Park: [2]

“Your scientists were so preoccupied with whether or not they could, they didn’t stop to think if they should.”

As far as California, the group leading this proposition is The Center for Biological Diversity. This group has performed miracles in their defense, protection, and reintroduction of many wild animals. But on this subject, I will have to part ways with them. This is one of the largest predators on planet Earth, and they want to plop them into the most populated state in the nation. Granted, they also support the efforts to reintroduce jaguars to the southwestern United States, which is something I strongly support. But there are some differences here. First, the Jaguar Project is not an actual “reintroduction”, but rather a self-re-population. The project supports keeping the travel corridors of jaguars from northern Mexico open, so that they can continue to make their own way back to the US, of their own accord; and to legislatively protect the desolate wild areas where the jaguars are wandering into. Second… these areas are truly desolate and unpopulated, along the US-Mexico border, as opposed to the Sierras in California which, although remote, have their fair share of visitors. And finally… jaguars are tremendously secretive loners. They absolutely avoid human interaction, at all costs. This is opposed to the grizzly bear, which is king of its domain, and insists that you stay out of its way. In fact, visitors to the Sierra Mountains would need to entirely change the way they behave in these areas. All the precautions that need be taken with black bears, such as putting food up in trees, away from campsites, would need to be followed… with much more urgency. A jaguar would never enter a camp, to follow the scent of human food.

So, this idea would undoubtedly pit man against grizzly. And there would be unfortunate “incidences”. Ranchers also have a valid concern, because a Californian population of grizzlies would spread relatively quickly. Grizzly bears roam across vast distances. This wouldn’t be a small project of dropping 6 or 8 bears into the woods. Close to 200 bears would be needed to establish a viable breeding and sustainable population. You have to have enough bears, that they could find each other. Much less than that, and it would just be a novelty project that needed to be resupplied every few decades. Additionally… and quite importantly… the proposed area of the Sierra Nevadas is not even the original range of grizzlies. That has always been black bear territory. There were few, if any, grizzlies there. Grizzlies lived in the now human-populated valley and coastal areas, west of the proposed territory. So right from the start, this is artificial. [3]

We already have them in Yellowstone and in the Montana area. These regions never lost their populations, and “the way of things” is already adapted to having grizzlies there. A reintroduction, on the other hand, would require that people learn new ways and to adapt. We, as a race, are not particularly good at adapting, to acquiesce wildlife. In fact, we suck at it.

[4]

The famous California Bear Flag was constructed in 1846, at a time when this extremely powerful carnivore thrived in the valleys and the coastal slopes of California. Unfortunately, grizzlies and civilization did not mix well and it is estimated that by the early 1920′s all of the California grizzly bears had either moved out of the state or been tracked down and shot. It's reported that the last grizzly bear in California was shot by a Fresno County rancher in 1922. Ironically, it was made the official State Animal in 1953, even though they had long been extinct from the state. So there is some sentimental reasoning for wanting to bring back this majestic beast, but again… just because we can, doesn’t mean we should.

There are about 80–90 fatal grizzly bear attacks on record, in North America. Most of these victims were dragged from tents in the various parks, or attacked while hiking, fishing or hunting. [5]

And that only lists fatal attacks. Non-fatal attacks immensely increase that number. [6]

The photo above should give you an appreciation of the size of a grizzly paw. That is the damage from one swipe of a paw. That’s monstrous, in size! New grizzlies in California could only add to that number. It’s tremendously tragic that these incredible animals have been killed off in California, but the cause of that extermination was obviously human/grizzly interaction. And there are certainly more people in California now, than there were when they first disappeared. This idea is misplaced.

There would also be an effect on the local populations of deer. Although deer are prolific in many part of the country, that’s not the case in California. It’s in a steep, if not alarming state of decline. In fact, deer populations are at an all-time low in the state. The population has been cut in half in only the last 17 years, and no other state in the union has experienced such a rapid population drop. The remaining deer would suddenly have a monster they’ve never known, chasing them down and reducing them, further. They are already hunted by wolves and cougars. But the biggest reason for the decline has to do with the timber industry, and its effect on the habitat. Grizzly bears certainly would not help that situation.

As far as reintroduction to the country of Mexico… that would actually be impossible. The Mexican Grizzlies were a separate sub-species, Ursus arctos nelsoni. By 1960 only 30 of them were left. Despite their protected status, the hunting continued, and by 1964 the Mexican grizzly bear was regarded as extinct. So any introduction to Mexico would require the northern versions of grizzly to be brought down. This would be a mis-match, and would serve no purpose, as it wouldn’t be a return of the actual and original animal that was made extinct.

There are times when man should get involved to reverse the damage we have done to our wildlife. I can’t say that this is one of those times. The US Fish & Wildlife Service is opposed to this idea for all the right reasons, but still, the Center for Biological Diversity continues to push the issue. I wish they would back off, and attend to a more reasonable and wise use of their influence and resources. It’s not good for us and it’s not good for the bears.

Would it be possible to reintroduce grizzly bears to Mexico and California?

No, in Mexico. Yes, in California.

Would it be a good idea?

No. Just, no.

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IMAGE CITATIONS:

[1] Universal Studios 1993 Jurassic Park

[2] Universal Studios 1993 Jurassic Park

[3] Center for Biological Diversity (Teodros Hailye/KQED) Map

[4] Håkan Dahlström/Flickr 2009 San Francisco

[5] Composite photo by BonnySaintAndrew. About Michio Hoshino

[6] Bob Eder 2012 Bob Eder