November 2, 2009, 3:07 pm
The spectacular Many Glacier Valley has long been
understood as one of the nation's most biologically important
crossroads, the place where mountain slope meets prairie meadow,
where three great drainages converge and several vegetation zones
overlap.
It is home to a remarkable assemblage of wildlife, and also to
hundreds of thousands of Glacier National Park visitors who each
summer clog the roadways while craning their necks for views of
Rocky Mountain critters. Vehicles idle bumper to bumper, traffic
stalled in "bear jams" and "sheep jams," even mundane "coyote
jams."
And therein lies the rub.
"Keeping visitors and wildlife apart," said park superintendent
Chas Cartwright, "is vital to maintaining 'wild wildlife'
populations that are not overly familiar with humans."
This week, Cartwright asked the humans how they think park
officials should provide for safe wildlife viewing in Many Glacier.
Reseachers already have "asked" the wildlife, during decades of
monitoring and study that provided detailed insight into how
critters use the landscape.
The public scoping period for Many Glacier's nascent "wildlife
viewing plan" is intended to gauge people's overall sentiment - how
do visitors feel about new exhibits on wildlife viewing? Or larger
traffic pullouts, or more pullouts? Or removing pullouts from known
wildlife crossings, or from places that put people and critters in
close proximity? What about lowering speed limits? Constructing
special wildlife viewing platforms? Putting rangers with spotting
scopes at selected sites?
