Citizen science can help restore grizzly bear populations in Alberta
Citizen science could help restore Alberta's grizzly bear population, but critics warn that without government action to conserve habitat and raise awareness, the predator will remain an endangered species, a study says.
research (A new window) (in English), published in February in the scientific journal Facetsexamines the development of GrizzTracker (A new window)an app created to collect data on bear movements northwest of their remaining range in Alberta.
Courtney HughesThe study's author and senior landscape ecologist at Alberta Forestry and Parks believes people living in bear country have a critical role to play in grizzly bear conservation.
This is a great example of how important it is to work together to get things done. People want to contribute.
People are excited about certain things, whether it's grizzly bears or butterflies
confirms Ms. Hughes, who co-created GrizzTracker.
However, critics of this approach believe that citizen science will not be enough to rebuild grizzly bear populations.
Brian Horejci, a wildlife specialist who has studied grizzly bears since the 1970s, wonders how collecting data using the app has contributed to conservation efforts on the ground.
I don't see a progressive impact on the conservation of bear habitats or populations
Mr. Al-Horjsi says.
He believes that if the province is serious about protecting grizzly bears, it needs to place restrictions on development and roads in the bears' habitat.
We already have a huge store of knowledge. We know what we need to know about bears to protect their habitat and populations, and we still don't.
A grizzly bear cub on Highway 40 in Peter Lougheed Provincial Park on June 15, 2021. This species has been endangered in Alberta for decades.
Photo: Radio-Canada/David Gray
Grizzly bears have been considered an endangered species in Alberta since 2010, when there were fewer than 800 of them in the province. Nationally, it is listed as a species of particular concern.
Once abundant, bears roam almost all of Alberta. But as human development, roads and rail lines have disrupted critical habitat, grizzly bears have disappeared from most of the landscape.
Its range in the county is now restricted to natural areas of the Rocky Mountains and foothills. According to the latest government census, there are at least 973 remaining.
Tracking test
The study began during the development and testing of the GrizzTracker application. Two of the study's four authors work at Mount Royal University, while… Courtney Hughes Another researcher works for the provincial government.
Developed by Alberta Environment, GrizzTracker is designed as a public education tool to simplify data collection, map bear movements and identify potential encounter hotspots between humans and bears.
The app became publicly available in 2017, and allows users to report sightings and catalog them with photos and data. Global Positioning System And observations of bear behavior.
We really needed to identify a standardized and automated way to make collecting these bear observations not only more efficient, but more rigorous as well.
he explains Courtney Hughes. But it was also about showing that Albertans can participate in scientific data collection.
Bear Management Area 1 served as a proving ground for the program. This area covers a vast area extending west from the Peace River to the British Columbia border and north beyond the boundaries of Noticoin Provincial Park.
According to mrs. HughesMuch research has been done in the mountain ranges of southern and central Alberta, but grizzly bears in Region 1 are much less well known.
Many people from the region, including farmers, wanted to help fill this research gap and participated in the testing phase of the app. The test group consisted of members Northwestern Bear TeamA working group was created in 2011 to study the needs of local administration.
GrizzTracker encourages users to report grizzly bear sightings by attaching sightings and photos.
Photo: Gray's Tracker
: “Hey, I saw a bear»,”text”:People were seeing bears and wanted something better than a note on the windshield behind the wipers saying, “Hey, I saw a bear.”} }”>People saw bears and wanted something better than a note on the windshield behind the wipers saying, “Hey, I saw a bear.”
says the lady. Hughes.
They wanted to contribute and we needed better information. So this opportunity arose in this place because of all these circumstances.
According to mrs. HughesGrizzTracker is an example of success in citizen science. She would like to see it expand to bears' ranges in North America, but adds that the success of citizen science programs ultimately rests with the public.
She hopes this study will inspire other conservationists to seek help from non-scientists. She recalls that many researchers have already done this to facilitate data collection on topics as diverse as birds, whales, forests, or asteroids.
There is certainly a growing dynamism and formalization in this area
she adds. I think it's always been there. And now we're just taking advantage of it.
A common approach
Dario Fernandez Belon, Alberta grizzly bear monitoring project leader (A new window) (in English), believes more government resources should be allocated to grizzly bear research.
He said the size and health of the current population is not being closely monitored. It is believed that residents are not sufficiently aware of how to avoid bad encounters with bears.
However, Fernandez-Billon recognizes the value of citizen science when it comes to protecting grizzly bears. His research team recently participated in a waste collection project that used volunteers to collect samples.
He points out that grizzly bears are elusive and few in number on the landscape, and it would be helpful to have more monitors on the ground. He says the real value of citizen science programs lies in the public awareness they generate.
Research that is conducted solely for the sake of being read by scientists overlooks the fact that it is ultimately conducted for society.
We must bridge the gap between research and the general public
He remembers.
With information from Wallis Snowdon
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