How Do You Count Grizzly Bears? by Linda Zajac

Author:Linda Zajac
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Highlights for Children, Inc.
Published: 2016-01-15T00:00:00+00:00

A bear rolls in the stinky scent. Each bear must go through the fence to investigate the smell, and the fence catches a few hairs as the bear passes through.

Every living thing has DNA. This group of molecules is a complete set of instructions for growing that individual—such as a germ, a tree, or a bear. By studying the DNA, researchers can tell if the hair came from a black bear or a grizzly bear. They can also tell if the bear was male or female.

In fact, every single grizzly bear has different DNA. So the DNA is also like a name tag. Researchers won’t count the same bear twice because they will know if they have two hair samples from the same bear.

By keeping careful records, researchers will know how many different bears visited the scent stations. The study area is huge. Scientists know that some bears may never enter the stations. But their count of individual bears identified by their DNA from hair samples will help them estimate the total number of bears that live in the area.

To protect the grizzly bear, researchers need more information. By collecting hairs, they expect to gather a population estimate for the northwest corner of Montana. They are only hairs away from an answer.

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