Eastbound bear: Grizzly seen in Missouri Breaks, most east one has gone in century

In late October, what appears to be an adult male grizzly bear was captured on a game camera in the Missouri Breaks.

Although tracks of grizzlies have been found farther east, in the Winifred area, this was the first photographic evidence of a grizzly so far from the Northern Continental Divide Ecosystem.

The photo is both surprising, in that a bear made it so far without getting into trouble with humans, and not surprising, because grizzlies have been pushing east for more than a decade.

What may help this bear survive is that it has reached a large swath of public land, including the Upper Missouri River Breaks National Monument and the Charles M. Russell National Wildlife Refuge.

Here to talk about his reporting on the subject is Billings Gazette outdoor editor Brett French.

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Montana Untamed, hosted by Thom Bridge, covers the state's rugged landscape from hook and bullet to policy and science.