Collection of hair from bears goes well

GREAT FALLS — A federal grizzly bear study that has research teams plucking bear hair from barbed wire is advancing smoothly in its second year, the U.S. Geological Survey says.

The agency is coordinating the largest-ever study of the grizzly population in the Northern Continental Divide Ecosystem, Montana’s largest habitat for grizzlies. Research crews are spread across 7.3 million acres of public and private land, from Eureka to Missoula.

The hair they collect is part of a DNA project to determine how many bears roam the area. A single hair follicle is enough to provide information researchers need.

“The field work will be over this year,” said the USGS’s Kate Kendall, who started the hair project. “Next year will be the analysis.”

Wildlife officials say having better information about the grizzly population will make them better able to manage it. Potential discussions include whether it is time to consider ending grizzly bears’ federal protection.

Bear managers believe the population is increasing, but until that is supported by evidence, the bear remains on the federal threatened-species list.

Plans called for the collection of hair four times this summer. By August the crews are to have visited 2,640 snag stations and 5,000 rub trees.

Snag stations are lines of barbed wire stretched around trees to form a square about shoulder-high for a bear. Dead wood is piled in the middle of the station to absorb a liquid lure made from cow blood and rotten fish.

Bears investigating the smell rub against the wire, leaving hair that is collected and sent to a laboratory. Crews also gather hair from rub trees. The lure is not used there.

Kendall said the snag stations do not attract more bears, but simply stop those that would normally pass by. The stations, away from trails and developed areas, have signs warning backcountry visitors that bear activity in the area is likely.