IGBC Committee 25th Anniversary

IGBC Committee 25th Anniversary

This year is the 25th Anniversary of the Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee (IGBC). A jovial celebration and presentation of awards on June 21 was held at the Blackfoot-Clearwater Wildlife Management Area in Seeley Lake, Montana, north of Missoula.

What is the IGBC, you say? It is a group formed of federal and state agency representatives, established in 1983, with the goal of leading grizzly bear recovery in the lower 48 states. The committee is in charge of implementing the Grizzly Bear Recovery Plan, and all management and research activities necessary to provide for recovery of the grizzly bear. They make joint recommendations to Federal agency heads and Governors. Each recovery ecosystem has its own subcommittee that reports to this executive committee.


After 2 days of business meetings there was celebration, and socializing. The 25th Anniversary Celebration was outdoors at Rich Ranch, plopped in the middle of grizzly bear territory. In fact, a short walk from the lunch tent, were grizzly bear tracks. Speakers included Gail Kimbell, Chief of the US Forest Service; Bob Barbee, Superintendent of Yellowstone National Park; and Chris Servheen, the Grizzly Bear Recovery Coordinator for the IGBC. But everybody was wow-ed by the keynote speaker Stan Tixier, 2nd IGBC Chairman, Retired US Forest Service and Cowboy Poet Extraordinaire. He is a long, tall cowboy and as classy as they come.

Among the award recipients was our own Chris Morgan, for achievement in communications and education. Congratulations, Chris.


GBOP was represented by Chris Morgan, Wendy Gardner and myself. We were asked to give a presentation at the business meeting and provide a booth at the celebration, which was also attended by the public. GBOP was brightly received, with lots of positive feedback, much interest and many congratulations for the good work we are doing in the North Cascades of Washington.

Julie L. (Hayes) Hopkins
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The Grizzly Bear - a cowboy poem

The Grizzly Bear - a cowboy poem
Consider now the Grizzly Bear, there�s information I could share
About this noble, fearsome beast, of which we used to know the least
Of any mammal of its, size, carnivorous or otherwise.

Let�s classify the Grizzly Bear, because you know we really care,
Its Latin name is sure to thrill us, Ursus arctos horribilis,
It isn�t every day you see the Grizzly Bear�s taxonomy.

The western US, most of that, was its historic habitat,
Look at a map and you can see the Grizzly Bear�s geography,
Today the range in which it mates is limited to just four States.

That doesn�t count Alaska though, or Canada, just States below,
Montana has the most, you know, but Washington and Idaho,
Also Wyoming have a few, besides the San Diego Zoo.

One hundred thousand used to roam and call the western US home,
Now only one percent or less live in the lower west US,
And they�re no longer everywhere that used to host the Grizzly Bear.

The problem all across the nation is encroached civilization,
Now people play and houses go on spaces the Grizzly used to know,
The bear must now get by with less, in forests, parks and wilderness.

You ask, �What does the Grizzly eat?� Just anything, let me repeat,
The Grizzly�s never known to fuss �bout food �cause he�s omnivorous,
There�s grass and berries, grubs a treat, and carrion, all kinds of meat.

Another Grizzly food is fish; it�s just about his favorite dish,
There�s ants and pine nuts, roots and bark, a ground squirrel and a meadowlark,
And if it has a putrid smell, the Bear enjoys it very well.

That�s why when garbage is around, or dug up from beneath the ground,
The Grizzly gets an easy meal, which constitutes a crummy deal,
For we should not, a Bear so great, with human food, habituate.

Sometimes a band of wooly sheep will tempt a Grizzly Bear to leap
Upon a lamb, perhaps a ewe, and thus enjoy a feast or two,
Sheep ranchers then may have to change to country out of Grizzly range.

When walking in the woods, take care, you may not see the Grizzly Bear,
So, whistle, sing or ring a bell; make lots of noise so they can tell
There�s people that they might avoid, but crowd their space, they�ll be annoyed.

They may attack if you�re too near, or bluff a charge to make you fear,
So stand your ground or maybe fall and roll yourself into a ball,
But one thing that you must beware: �You can�t outrun a Grizzly Bear!�

And when you camp where Grizzlies live, take extra care that you don�t give
Them easy access to your food; you�ll find the Bear extremely rude
And most aggressive to procure whatever that you don�t secure.

So hang your food away up high, but never pitch your tent nearby,
Don�t go to bed in clothes you wear to cook, because the Grizzly Bear
May sniff you out, because his nose detects the smell of food on clothes.

Grizzlies eat all summer season huge amounts and here�s the reason:
They must build up thick fat store, because for five long months or more,
Though it is hard to contemplate, they neither eat nor defecate.

As winter comes, the Bear will crave to dig a small and cozy cave,
Grizzlies practice hibernation; sows complete their odd gestation,
So cubs or born inside the dens, and bare and blind, their lives begin.

This tiny runt without much hair, you�d scarce believe a Grizzly Bear,
But they find mama�s warmth and milk, until their coats are smooth as silk,
They venture out one fine spring day, with mama showing them the way.

In fact, she teaches them it all, from early spring until late fall,
And then they dig another den, and sleep all winter long again,
The season when the cubs are two, their time with mama is all through.

And she hunts up a handsome boar, or he finds her, I�m not quite sure,
In any case, they mate in spring, and then takes place the strangest thing,
Just like suspended animation, it�s called, �delayed implantation.�

Which means, although the sow�s gestation takes two months, a strange gyration,
The tiny embryos don�t grow, until her den is under snow,
So, while in spring the two Bears mate, the pregnancy is five months late.

Grizzly Bears are solitary, all alone and always wary
Of people, even other bears, and so he rarely ever shares
His food and/or his favorite places, doesn�t care to see new faces.

It was in nineteen seventy-three, that Congress, though not all agree,
Produced a most important pact, call the Endangered Species Act,
And Grizzlies, to complete the story, are in a �threatened� category.

And so, recovery is the goal, and many actors play a role,
Their fate is up to you and me, with guidance from the IGBC,
Let�s show the world we really care, and let�s conserve the Grizzly Bear!

Provided with kind permission from Stan Tixier, cowboy poet and second chairman of the Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee ,IGBC, (1985-1987).
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Polar bears at the Burke

Polar bears at the Burke
Hi Seattle polar bears fans,

I thought you'd be interested in this polar bear event at the Burke museum in Seattle this coming weekend featuring Steve Kazlowski's images and a talk by my polar bear research colleague Dr Steve Amstrup.

This event "The Last Polar Bear" features stunning photography by wildlife photographer Steven Kazlowski , who has dedicated over eight years of work to bring to life the immediate reality of this most pressing environmental crisis � the devastation of the Arctic ecosystem through global warming.

The Burke offers a full day of talks and activities with something for the whole family. Join us for displays of arctic research and arctic mammals, as well as talks by leading experts on polar bears and the fight to save them.

WALKS AND TALKS

10:30 am ~ Gallery Tour
The Last Polar Bear author and photographer Steven Kazlowski leads a 30 minute tour of the exhibit.

11:30 am ~ Burke Room Lecture
Polar Bears; How Their Lifestyles Make Them Vulnerable to Climate Change. Dr. Steven Amstrup, Research Wildlife Biologist for United States Geological Survey's Alaska Science Center, will talk about polar bear population dynamics, social structure, foraging practices, habitat preferences, and how reduced sea ice is likely to affect them.

12:30 pm ~ Gallery Tour
The Last Polar Bear author and photographer Steven Kazlowski leads a 30 minute tour of the exhibit.

1:30 pm ~ Burke Room Lecture
The whole Polar Bear truth... and nothing but the truth.

Executive Director of the Alaska Wilderness League, Cindy Shogan, will discuss her vehement opposition to oil drilling on the North Slope of Alaska. Learn the latest polar bear politics from a self described D.C. political addict, and hear what you can do to help protect this critical species.

Hope to see you there.
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