Human Black Bear Interactions in Grand Teton National Park

Authors(s): D. O'Neill and J. Beecham

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Publication Date: 0000-00-00

Type: annual report

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Abstract: Objectives Primary Objectives 1. To document the history of human-black bear incidents in GTNP, including the type of incident, location, date, and time; 2. To describe black bear seasonal habitat use, activity patterns, and movements relative to human activities and behavioral patterns; 3. To develop predictive models to describe potential human-bear conflict zones in the Park, and determine the most effective measures for reducing the probability of conflict within each habitat component; and, 4. To develop specific management recommendations for GTNP designed to reduce human-bear conflicts and insure the long-term survival of wild black bear populations in the Park. Secondary Objectives 1. To describe the black bear population involved in human-bear conflict incidents in GTNP, and determine if there are demographic segments of the bear population that are more likely to be involved in conflict incidents; 2. To establish survey routes for monitoring plant phenology and the seasonal availability of natural foods for black bears; 3. To determine if the availability of natural foods affects or correlates with the number and severity of bear-human conflict incidents in GTNP; 4. To develop and validate survey methods for monitoring black bear population trends in GTNP; and, 5. To coordinate black bear data collection with the current GTNP-USGS-BRD research project on grizzly bear-black bear interactions in an effort to provide comparative data on black bear population demographics in an area with minimal overlap between black bears and grizzly bears. Findings and Status Trapping effort in GTNP was conducted between 26 July and 25 October 2001. Five bears (1 adult female, 2 subadult females, 1 yearling female, and 1 adult male) were captured 9 times in 143 trap nights. All except for the yearling female were collared. One of the subadult females was relocated to the northern border of GTNP. She crossed into Idaho and was killed while eating dog food in a residential area. The remaining collared bears are denning in GTNP. The 4 collared bears were located 31 times using aerial telemetry. Ground telemetry results have not been analyzed as of yet. Thirty permanent telemetry stations have been established in the study area.

Keywords: animal, mammal, bear, Ursidae, black bear, Ursus americanus, human activity, Grand Teton National Park, habitat, management, population, mortality, food, forage, grizzly bear, Ursus arctos horribilis, radio collar, Idaho, suburban area