Quantifying Bear Populations and Bear-Human Conflicts Using Non-Invasive Genetic Sampling in the Kennicott Valley of Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve
Dates
Year
2003
Citation
Wilder, James M., 2003, Quantifying Bear Populations and Bear-Human Conflicts Using Non-Invasive Genetic Sampling in the Kennicott Valley of Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve: University of Idaho.
Summary
Alaska’s Wrangell-St. Elias National Park & Preserve (WRST) is expecting great increases in visitation in the near future. To help accommodate visitors, the National Park Service (NPS) is developing the Kennicott Valley as a tourist destination, and plans to build a campground there. While bear-human conflicts have been common-place in the Kennicott Valley over the years, no bear study had ever been conducted in the park. This study was initiated to quantify the nature of bear-human conflicts in the valley, describe the resident bear population, and generate management recommendations to reduce the occurrence of bear-human conflicts. We used non-invasive genetic sampling to obtain an estimate of the minimum number of black and brown [...]
Summary
Alaska’s Wrangell-St. Elias National Park & Preserve (WRST) is expecting great increases in visitation in the near future. To help accommodate visitors, the National Park Service (NPS) is developing the Kennicott Valley as a tourist destination, and plans to build a campground there. While bear-human conflicts have been common-place in the Kennicott Valley over the years, no bear study had ever been conducted in the park. This study was initiated to quantify the nature of bear-human conflicts in the valley, describe the resident bear population, and generate management recommendations to reduce the occurrence of bear-human conflicts. We used non-invasive genetic sampling to obtain an estimate of the minimum number of black and brown bears in the valley, their distribution, and sex ratios. We also used genetic analysis on shed hair to identify individual bears involved in bear-human conflicts. Questionnaires and interviews were used to quantify and describe the nature of the bear-human conflicts. A total of 92 bears were identified; 84 black (Ursus americanus) and 8 brown (U. arctos). Seventeen individual bears (18.5% of the total) were genetically identified as being involved in bear-human conflicts. Overall sex ratios (% male:female) for the bear population and conflict bears were 60:40 and 75:25, respectively. Local residents were responsible for 80% of reported conflicts, which were primarily caused by the widespread availability of garbage and human food. The Kennicott valley may serve as a population sink for local bear populations, particularly brown bears, due to the high quality of its natural food resources (Shepherdia canadensis) and human-induced mortality of bears.
