Rob G. Green
Emerging Grizzly
Grizzly released into the wild, United States, 2023
Category - Change Makers: Reasons for Hope
A female grizzly bear (Ursus arctos) emerges from the culvert trap in which she was captured by a team of wildlife biologists. After getting into some poorly secured grain bins, drawn to the calories she desperately needs each autumn, she found herself on private property and a potential threat to its human inhabitants. Setting a trap with bait enabled the team to carefully sedate her and give her a thorough health screening. The bear was then tagged and released in a safer area. For all her power, she looks timid, recovering from the anaesthesia and trying to find her bearings in her new environment. With the number of people living in Montana increasing and bears moving ever closer to populated areas, coexistence with large wild animals is a major issue which needs to move beyond cultural stigma to guide policy and education in favour of new conservation paradigms.
16-35 mm f/2.8L Lens - 1/250 sec at f/5 ISO 640