Montana grizzly bear research team shares shutdown fears

MISSOULA, Mont. — In Montana, understanding and coexisting with grizzly bears is a critical part of living in the region. For over 50 years, the Interagency Grizzly Bear Study Team led the charge in tracking and protecting the iconic animals. Now, that mission may be in jeopardy.

The IGBST, based in Bozeman, is facing potential funding cuts and structural changes as the Department of Government Efficiency reportedly considers trimming its operations.

In response, the team filed a Freedom of Information Act request, hoping to uncover what changes may be on the horizon.

Kristine Akland, Northern Rockies director at the Center for Biological Diversity, discussed what’s at stake.

“I think the Trump Administration is trying to completely eliminate this team,” she said. “That’s what it looks like from the selling off of the building and what we’re hearing from the internal team there.”

FOIA laws require a federal agency to respond within 20 business days with a possible 10 day extension, but in recent years, delays have become common. That delay is exactly what concerns conservationists, who fear decisions could be made before any information is released.

“Our team, the Center for Biological Diversity as a whole, has been recently committed to litigating important FOIAs,” Akland said. “If they don’t comply within 30 days, we will sue and litigate to make sure we get the information on a timely basis These cuts and these sales have been happening very quickly, so it could be that they sell it before we get any information.”

The IGBST was established in 1973 following controversy over the closure of open-pit garbage dumps in Yellowstone National Park. The dumps had become unnatural feeding grounds for bears, creating dangerous dependencies. In response, the Department of the Interior created the study team to help transition the ecosystem and understand how bears could adapt without human-provided food sources.

Since then, the IGBST has become a model of interagency cooperation. It brings together scientists from the U.S. Geological Survey, National Park Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Forest Service, Eastern Shoshone and Northern Arapaho Tribal Fish and Game Department, and the states of Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming.

Together, they focus on monitoring population trends in grizzly bears, understanding how land use impacts grizzly habitats, documenting bear mortality — especially cases caused by human activity.

One of the team’s most critical tasks is keeping track of grizzly bear deaths. According to data collected in 2022, around 85% of known bear mortalities are human-caused. By identifying the causes and locations of these deaths, researchers can help wildlife agencies adjust strategies to reduce future conflicts.

The mortality data is updated throughout the year and considered preliminary until a full review is completed. That information, though technical, plays a major role in shaping state and federal wildlife policy.

“The USGS-led study team has built the foundation of science that has allowed us to bring Yellowstone grizzlies back from the brink of extinction. Without the study team, grizzly bear recovery and delisting will fail, and the Yellowstone grizzlies will begin to spiral downward again,” said Christopher Servheen, Ph.D., who led the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s grizzly bear recovery program for 35 years before retiring in 2016. “Destroying the USGS study team is a disastrous move done by people have no idea what they are destroying or why.”

Conservation groups worry that targeting the IGBST is part of a larger effort to weaken the Endangered Species Act, potentially clearing the way for more mining and logging in grizzly habitats. Some suggest that the Trump-aligned leadership at DOGE may be pushing an agenda that prioritizes resource extraction over wildlife conservation.

For now, the team’s FOIA request is pending. The longer it takes to get a response, the greater the concern that decisions affecting the region’s wildlife — and the science behind protecting it — are already being made behind closed doors.