The Trump Administration Removes Endangered Species Protection for Yellowstone Grizzly Bears

By Michael Brune, EcoWatch

23 June 17

he U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service removed grizzly bears in the Greater Yellowstone region on Thursday from the Endangered Species List. The decision comes despite serious concerns in the scientific community about a declining, isolated population with diminishing food resources and record-high mortalities, as well as strong opposition from an unprecedented number of Tribal Nations.

The Trump administration turned a deaf ear to repeated calls for consultation from dozens of Tribal Nations. States have already made it clear that without endangered species protections, immediate steps will be taken to reduce the number of bears in the area, including through trophy hunting—a move that will reverse grizzly bear recovery in the region.

This premature decision to remove endangered species protections could set grizzly recovery back by decades. It is an egregious affront to Tribal Nations that consider grizzly bears sacred, and it's bad news for the Yellowstone region's outdoor economy.

Without necessary Endangered Species protections, the survival of grizzly bears in Greater Yellowstone is put in jeopardy. Inadequate requirements for healthy bear populations, combined with hostile state management practices, threaten to reverse the progress made toward bear recovery. The end result will be fewer bears restricted to an even smaller area. Grizzly bears will be killed through trophy hunts on the doorstep of Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks instead of inspiring millions who come to the region just for a chance to see a live grizzly bear in the wild.

People and bears can coexist—and as grizzly recovery so far has demonstrated, can do so in a way that is highly beneficial to all. However, coexistence cannot work if misplaced political hostility continues to impede the ability of sound science to keep bears from sliding back towards extinction.