Grizzly Bear in Yellowstone National Park.Photo:KAREN BLEIER/AFP/GettyImages
KAREN BLEIER/AFP/GettyImages
Yellowstone National Parkwill soon be closing off select areas to monitor grizzly bears.
Earlier this week, the U.S. Geological Survey, in conjunction with the National Park Service (NPS), announced in anews releasethat biologists will begin a grizzly bear research survey from Aug. 28 to Oct. 31.
The survey will monitor the bear population within the park as part of the Endangered Species Act, according to the NPS.
Biologists with the Interagency Grizzly Bear Study Team (IGBST) will capture the animals with bait, including “natural food sources such as fresh road-killed deer and elk,” the NPS said, before culvert traps, or foot snares, will be used to capture the mammals.
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Yellowstone National Park.Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images
Yellowstone is home to both black bears and grizzly bears, with just over 1,000 of the latter in the greater Yellowstone area, according to theNPS.
In its release, the organization noted that the upcoming survey is “vital to [the] ongoing recovery” of the animals, and warned those visiting Yellowstone during the time period to be cautious.
The NPS said the areas around the sites where they are conducting the survey will have bright warning signs that will be posted along the major access points.
“It is important that the public heed these signs and do not venture into an area that has been posted,” the NPS said.
A grizzly bear wandering the forest.Oscar Benavides/Getty
Oscar Benavides/Getty
Steve Searles, a self-taught bear expert and the subject of Animal Planet’s reality showThe Bear Whisperer, recentlytold PEOPLEthat “there are countless, tens of thousands [of bear] encounters every day without it going bad, without an incident.”
Plus, bear attacks are extremely rare, and fatal attacks are even more rare,The New York Timesrecently reported.
Anyone looking for more information regarding grizzly bear capture efforts can call the IGBST hotline at 406-994-6675. Information about the grizzly bear research and monitoring is also available on theIGBST website.
source: people.com
