"We have mountains of data that show that grizzlies are recovered under the guidelines set forth by the USFWS and that populations are not at risk," said Frank van Manen,
IGBST team leader.
The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) recommended that non-agency scientists should conduct most of the
IGBST's research.
John Craighead, who now directs the Wildlife-Wildlands Institute in Missoula, Montana, said at a grizzly bear conference this spring in Boulder, Colorado, that
IGBST is overly optimistic.
Frank van Manen, team leader of the
IGBST, says there is really no way to know if the bear was actually following the hunters.