BILLINGS – State and federal wildlife officials from the greater Yellowstone region will meet in Jackson, Wyo. next week to discuss the future of grizzly bear conservation efforts.
An estimated 600 bears in and around Yellowstone National Park were returned to the threatened species list last month under a federal court order. Most of those bears live in Wyoming.
At the meetings on Oct. 28 and 29, the Yellowstone Grizzly Coordinating Committee plans to map out how to move forward with bear conservation efforts in light of the ruling from U.S. District Judge Donald Molloy.
Yellowstone grizzlies were removed from the threatened list and declared recovered in 2007, but Molloy said climate change, bear shootings and lax regulations to protect the animals remains concerns.