The Grizzlies’ Return
Out on the prairie, Seth and Jennie Becker look out over the windswept landscape and point out three grizzly bear dens along the rim of a canyon. The couple, who own Stick Leg Ranch, estimate there eight grizzly bear dens nearby. After one of their kids nearly came face-to-face with a grizzly bear in their backyard, they decided they needed to find a solution.
Over the last two decades, grizzly bears have been steadily moving east onto the prairie in Montana. In October 2023, a grizzly was captured on game camera along the Missouri River. This marked the furthest east a grizzly bear had been seen in a century.
This unexpected expansion for one of North America’s most iconic endangered species is fascinating, but it raises unique challenges for rural landowners, livestock producers, and wildlife managers. Little is known about these “prairie grizzlies”: there is no population estimate, they exist in a kind of geographic loophole, and they’ve received very little scientific attention.
Jojo Becker, 5, explores the rim of a coulee with grizzly bear dens in the background outside of Valier, Montana, on Wednesday, May 14, 2025. The Becker family estimate there are eight grizzly bear dens nearby. They adopted two livestock guardian dogs for deterring bears after a near miss with one of their kids in 2022.
Grizzly bear tracks briefly follow a road near Joe Kipp’s home on the Blackfeet Nation on Wednesday, August 27, 2025. The Blackfeet have coexisted with grizzly bears, which they call Pa'ksíkoyi or greasy mouth, on the northern plains for thousands of years.
Chad White, grizzly bear specialist, checks in with landowner Link Nowlin about a solution for his grain bins outside of Choteau, Montana on Thursday, October 3, 2024. Although grizzly specialists like Chad are the boots on the ground for grizzly management, they primarily navigate people.
Jim Hodgkiss holds a shotgun he sleeps with for protection in his bedroom outside of Choteau, Montana on Thursday, October 3, 2024. A grizzly bear attempted to come through the front porch screen door while Jim's wife was home alone on the ranch. "A bear is a beautiful animal, but just not in my yard," Hodgkiss said.
A fence along Highway 89 decorated with stuffed bears as a joke by local ranchers near Dupuyer, Montana on Friday, October 4, 2024.
Grizzly bear specialist, Chad White, pulls DNA samples from the frozen remains of a grizzly bear carcass near Choteau, Montana on Friday, October 4, 2024. This grizzly was killed by hunters on the edge of the prairie after it was mistaken for a black bear. Humans are the primary cause of death for bears worldwide.
A grizzly bear walks and feeds on berries in the fall along the shore of Lake Sherburne in Glacier National Park on Tuesday, September 30, 2025. Glacier National Park is home to one of two core populations of grizzlies in the Lower 48 states. A good berry crop is one of the most critical indicators for human-grizzly conflict.
Katy Beattie, manager for Cameras for Conservation at American Prairie, sets up a game camera in the hopes of catching a grizzly bear image near Geraldine, Montana, on Friday, October 25, 2024. In October 2023, a grizzly bear was caught on game camera on APR property, hundreds of miles from the Yellowstone and Glacier ecosystems. It was the furthest east a grizzly had been seen in 100 years.
Cows return to the Bradley family ranch during spring calving season near Dupuyer, Montana, on Monday, March 18, 2024. Grizzly bears primarily travel at dawn and dusk along riparian corridors, like this one along Birch Creek, but also bump into people.
Mike Leys shares a moment with his 100+ pound livestock guardian dog named Patton outside of Choteau, Montana on Tuesday, May 13, 2025. As grizzly bears move onto the prairie, farmers in Montana are repurposing an ancient solution for deterring bears from their homes: livestock guardian dogs.
After a busy day of calving, Jaxson lays on the trampoline on the Bradley's Ranch near Dupuyer, Montana, on Monday, March 18, 2024. The Bradleys will check-in on their cows at 10 p.m., 1:30 a.m. and 6 a.m. every night during the weeks-long calving season. Trina Jo Bradley created a non-profit called Rocky Mountain Ranchlands to advocate for livestock producers in grizzly bear country.
Judy Theodorson listens for a heartbeat on a dead calf found during spring calving season at the Cobb Charlois Ranch near Augusta, Montana, on March 20, 2024. Ranching, which is an important part of the lifestyle in Montana, creates an intimate relationship between producers and their livestock.
Chase Dellwo ties his son’s shoelace near Choteau, Montana on Friday, October 4, 2024. Almost nine years ago to the day, Chase was attacked by a grizzly bear while bow hunting. Chase stopped the attack by shoving his arm down the grizzly's throat.
Two women practice how to use bear spray at a grizzly bear education event hosted by Montana, Fish, Wildlife and Parks in Cascade, Montana, on Tuesday, April 16, 2024. As grizzly bears move onto the prairie, they're starting to show up in places people do not expect.
Carson Gilmour sits beneath a grizzly bear statue at Grizzly Bear Encounters wildlife sanctuary outside of Bozeman, Montana, on Friday, July 11, 2025. Grizzlies, or Ursus arctos horribilis, have been a source for stories and consumed the human imagination since time immemorial.
A grizzly bear sculpture stands in the middle of a gas station parking lot outside of Great Falls, Montana, on Sunday, October 26, 2024. Lewis and Clark encountered the highest concentration of grizzly bears during their expedition along the Missouri River near present day Great Falls.
