Where’s the Bears? Montana FWP’s New Relocation Dashboard Maps

We're not suggesting you're going to wake up in the morning and find a new bear in your yard.

But, Montana's bear populations are increasing, with more of them in places they shouldn't be. Or, at least in places where Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks thinks they should be. And whether you're concerned or just curious, we have a dashboard for you.

In an effort to provide more insight into bear management and to keep local landowners and communities aware when black bears or grizzly bears are relocated, Montana FWP has released a new online Bear Relocation Dashboard. This new dashboard displays general relocations on an interactive map.

FWP relocates bears for a variety of reasons and the interactive features allow users to click to see information about the relocation including the species of bear, general reason and the date of latest relocation.

For years, FWP has posted relocation information on its website. That will continue, and the Bear Relocation Dashboard will simply be another resource for the public. This is FWP’s third dashboard related to bear management.

RELOCATION PLUS MORTALITY AND CONFLICT

Along with the Bear Relocation Dashboard, FWP developed the Grizzly Mortality Dashboard last year and the Grizzly Bear Conflict Dashboard earlier this summer. Officials say these tools are useful for the public to understand what’s happening with bears around the state. The expansion of grizzly bears both in numbers and in distribution has a real impact on the lives of Montanans across bear country. Keeping people informed about what FWP is doing with bears continues to be a top priority.

Not only do these new dashboards help keep the public informed, they provide insight into the reason that bear conflict occurs and tools that FWP uses to help landowners and communities reduce conflicts. And, frankly, they are just very interesting even if you are not concerned about bears in the area in which you live.

Here's where you will find the Bear Relocation Dashboard, the Grizzly Bear Mortality Dashboard and the Grizzly Bear Conflict Dashboard.