Bear observatories and conservation challenges discussed in symposium

One of the central parts of the annual Bearfest celebration are the symposiums. Experts on bears and bear-related subjects are invited to come speak in Wrangell each year.

This year saw several such speakers, including Lance Craighead who spoke on federal and state regulations on bear conservation, Harry Reynolds on the endangered subspecies of Gobi Desert brown bears, and John Nary on bear observation challenges at the Mendenhall Glacier. A roundtable discussion was held on Thursday, July 25, where these guests and others were invited to sit and talk about some of Alaska's best locations for bear observation, and some of the shared challenges they face.

"The goal tonight is to introduce all of you, and all of us to different bear viewing areas around Alaska, and to look and see what the similarities are, what the differences are, what we may be able to learn from each other about things that can be improved and things that shouldn't be improved, things that can make a better total experience both for people and for bears, and maybe walk away from this with a better understanding of where we are," said Sylvia Ettefagh, who lead the roundtable

Dee Galla, with the Forest Service, spoke about Anan, the closest bear observatory to Wrangell.

The observatory is located south of Wrangell, on the mainland, at Anan Creek. The observatory has undergone several renovations recently, she said, and upgrades to the trail in the area are planned in the future. Access to Anan is limited, with permits for only about 60 people a day during the season. Besides bears, Galla said that people can also see all kinds of wildlife like eagles, seals, salmon, and the occasional otter or wolf.

Michael Saxton, also with the Forest Service, talked about the Katmai National Park. At 4.1 million acres on the Alaska Peninsula, Katmai is home to numerous bear observatories. The most popular of these, he said, was likely Brooks Camp. Unlike Anan, there are no visitation caps at Brooks Camp. With little infrastructure, limited Forest Service presence, visitors hiring private guides, and everyone undergoing a 20 minute safety briefing before being let loose, this camp gives people a very open-ended way of seeing Alaskan wildlife. Last year, Saxton said, Brooks Camp saw about 415 visitors a day during their peak season.

Neary, very recently retired from the Forest Service, talked about Pack Creek and Mendenhall. Located on Admiralty Island, Pack Creek saw about 1,200 to 1,500 visitors last year. This location generally keeps people and bears at a distance, he said. Mendenhall, meanwhile, is an extremely popular destination for tourists. Found near Juneau, Neary said that as many as 7,000 people a day visited last season.

Other bear observatories mentioned in the symposium included Hyder, Fish Creek, Herring Cove, and Traitors Cove.

After looking at these various observatories, Ettefagh asked the group several questions for them to discuss. One such question was whether they saw climate change affecting these observatories. Galla, Saxton, and Neary all agreed that they are seeing the climate, as well as other factors, altering the day-to-day activities of these areas. Saxton said that at Brooks Camp, recent hot weather made the salmon stay downriver longer and forced the bears in the area to stick around longer than they normally would. Neary added that these observatories all need strong salmon runs to survive. With fewer salmon coming upriver, he said, the bears will not stick around. Whether that is the climate, increased fishing, or other factors affecting the salmon run, he could not say.

Funding for site renovations was also discussed. Galla, Saxton, and Neary all agreed that it is always a fight to receive funding for observatory renovations, whether or not there is wide support for the project. Dick Shideler, a wildlife biologist with the Department of Fish and Game, said that there is a bit of a different problem further north. Up north, where polar bears live, he described the observatories as a bit more primitive. The main challenge is getting an increase in visitors, he said.

Another question the group was asked was whether or not they were feeling pressure to increase the amount of visitors to these areas. Again, this was met with some nuanced answers. Galla said that there was some pressure at Anan, but that they were well aware of their limits at that location. Neary said that there was not much pressure to increase tourism at Pack Creek, for example, but that the numbers were rising anyway by themselves. Craighead added that rangers are having to come up with more and more different ways to keep people and bears safe down south in places like Yellowstone.

"From my perspective the most important thing is bear conservation and maintaining populations, at least in the proportions that they are today," added Reynolds. "I think that viewing opportunities is crucial to that. People need to have the opportunity to see it."

Other topics covered included future renovations to sites, the impact of visitors on these sites, and the growing expenses that come with an increase in visitors.