University of Alberta grizzly bear research and mitigation project

在北美，大型食肉动物的保护难题集中体现在标志性灰熊的逐渐灭绝。 曾经是一个遍布大陆西半部的草原物种，现在它的范围仅限于美国和加拿大北方一些偏远山区的几个小口袋。 在过去的200年里，几十个逐渐消退的亚种群在与相邻种群隔离后消失了。 这种模式可能发生在班夫和Yoho国家公园，那里的灰熊在北美表现出最低的人口密度，体重和繁殖率。 尽管受到狩猎和道路死亡的保护，但该地区的熊受到栖息地生产力低下的挑战，最近，加拿大太平洋铁路（CPR）维护的火车轨道上的死亡率很高。 2011年，该研究地区有4只灰熊被杀，这是该地区经历的单次铁路和公路杀戮最高的一年，2012年又有2只被杀。 熊的急剧上升和持续死亡的原因尚不清楚，但不可避免地涉及许多相互作用的生物，地理和社会因素。 我们提出了一个全面的，为期4年的研究项目，将解决由CPR灰熊保护倡议主办的相关倡议的主要目标：（1）确定CPR轨道上熊死亡的根本原因，（2）确定有效的方法，以防止未来的死亡。 我们将通过创新方法实现这些目标，量化各种环境因素和熊行为的详细方面，然后整合这些措施，以确定和测试最有效的缓解技术。 此外，我们将支持CPR和加拿大公园管理局（PCA）的沟通努力，通过科学和公共渠道积极吸引全球公众参与以解决方案为导向的保护行动。

In North America, the conservation conundrum of large carnivores is epitomized by the gradual extirpation of the iconic grizzly bear. Once a prairie species that spread over much of the western half of the continent, its range is now restricted to a few small pockets in remote, mountainous areas of a few northern US and Canada. In the past 200 years, dozens of receding sub-populations have winked out of existence after being isolated from adjacent populations. This pattern could occur in Banff and Yoho National Parks where grizzly bears exhibit some of the lowest population densities, body masses, and reproductive rates in North America. Despite protection from hunting and road mortality, bears in this area are challenged by low habitat productivity and, recently, high mortality on the train tracks maintained by the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR). Four grizzly bears were killed in the study area in 2011, the highest single rail and road-kill year the area has experienced, and two more were killed in 2012. The reasons for the sharp rise and continuing mortality of bears are not yet understood, but inevitably involve numerous and interacting biological, geographical, and societal factors. We propose a comprehensive, 4-year research project that will address the primary goals of an associated initiative hosted by the CPR Grizzly Bear Conservation Initiative to: (1) determine the root causes of bear mortality on the CPR tracks, and (2) identify effective methods to prevent future mortalities. We will achieve these objectives with innovative methods to quantify diverse environmental factors and detailed aspects of bear behaviour and then integrate these measures to identify and test the most effective mitigation techniques. In addition, we will support communication efforts by both CPR and the Parks Canada Agency (PCA) to proactively engage a global public in solution-oriented conservation action via scientific and public outlets.