Grizzly and Wolf Discovery Center Grizzly & Wolf DC News

There doesn't seem to be a news thread for the center.. So I'll start off with a little bit of background.

The center is home to grizzly bears and wolves, two highly sought after animals to see in Yellowstone National Park. The center is located in West Yellowstone, MT and is open 365 days a year with varying seasonal hours.

Nine grizzly bears call the center home. All of the bears are either orphans or nuance bears that would have otherwise been euthanized. There is one main habitat for 1-3 bears to be out in, depending on what bears get along together. The center has been changing their pairing with some of the bears and the results have been pretty positive. Keepers or keeper-kids hide food for the bears before each group of bears comes out into the habitat. The bears also get to participate in testing out multiple bear proof containers. During the summer time their pond is filled with live fish that they can hunt.

Seven gray wolves live at the center in two separate packs. The High Country wolf pack is made up of four wolves, one female and three males. Their exhibit features hills and a pond that is stocked with fish in the summer and an open air viewing area. The River Valley wolf pack is made up of three wolves, one female and two males. Their exhibit can be viewed from the cabin area that is in the middle of the two packs and from the outside area. They have a stream that runs through their exhibit and is stocked with fish during the summer. During the winter months both packs get carcases to feed from (since the park bears are sleeping for the winter).

The center has also opened up a number of raptor aviaries in the past few years. Their exhibit birds include golden and bald eagles, a rough legged hawk and great horned owl. They also have a few other raptors that appear at special events and in the theater. The birds are off exhibit during the winter time.

And lastly, they are not exhibit animals but they are at the center year round are the multitudes of common ravens. They like to take advantage of a free meal in the bear and wolf exhibits...however some unlucky ravens have become wolf and bear snacks.

There is also a multitude of indoor exhibits featuring information and history on grizzly bears and wolves including interactive computer screens and specimens.

Future plans for the center includes finishing a 200 seat amphitheater that will feature their birds of prey program. Construction of a riparian habitat featuring otters, dippers and amphibians. The blue prints are finished and they're making a push to get funding for construction. And a further long term goal includes another bear habitat that will provide additional space for more bears.



And I'd hate to start a new thread with not so great news...

Joseph, omega male of the River Valley pack passed away in late December after sustaining critical injuries that he was not able to recover from.
DISCOVERY NEWSLETTER

 

I think they should add a mountain lion exhibit, as that is the one charismatic animal in Yellowstone that is virtually impossible to see.

 

Cougars and wolverines both. I don't think the wolverine population in US zoos is as high as cougars, so it may be hard to obtain one.
I may inquire if they'd ever consider adding other carnivores in the future. Although it may be FAR distant future since they have a handful of other projects. Also a question of how much land they have.

 

The center has reached a new milestone. A few weeks ago they had a grand total of five bears all mingling together in the bear habitat. Sow 101, Spirit, Coram, Grant and Roosevelt shared the exhibit space. The younger bears love the extra company. I'd imagine the older bear, Sow 101 has her paws full with soo many rambunctious bears.

Here's a link to their facebook page with some pictures.
Five Bears Together

 

March 17th will be the last day we put rib cages out in the wolf habitats. As we move into spring and summer, the wolves will return to their daily enrichment schedule.

The wild bears are starting to emerge from their dens and a few sightings have been seen around the area.

 

Do you work there then? Unfortunately we could only visit for a short time, I had to get on my way to GT to accidentally leave my camera gear beside Jenny Lake!

I have been following it on Facebook now.

 

Totally wish I did!
It's just the closest zoo to me, aside from Zoo Montana, but even then I think Grizzly & Wolf is a bit closer.

I also visit Tracy Aviary (in Utah) quite a bit

 

The center is starting up a new round of container testing for their bears. The bears will be given containers that are hopefully bear proof. They will get a seal of approval if the bears cannot open the container within the hour. If they do happen to open the container, the manufactures have to try again.
It's a really neat experience for visitors to experience, as well as providing valuable information about keeping bear proof containers to store your food in while camping etc.

 

I uploaded approximately 40 new photos into the gallery. I'm just letting folks know as sometimes with mass uploadings there are little zoos that get lost in the shuffle.

 

Nice!
It's been a very long time since I've visited the center.

There's big updates on their wolves.
They now have three packs and are starting to rotate them in exhibits. There is the High country, River valley and now the Granite pack (made up of Summit and Leopold). The center also has a few new birds, a turkey vulture and a rough-legged hawk (my favorite N.A hawk)

There is also a new bear safety exhibit as well as a new amphitheater.

 

Takoda, one of the High Country wolves has passed away. There was complications while he was in surgery to repair a torn eyelid. The center now has six wolves consisting of three packs.

Construction has also started on the Uinta ground squirrel exhibit that is set to open in Summer of 2015.

 

Here is a really nice ten minute video on the center:

 

In addition to groups of wolves and grizzly bears, the center is home to several raptors. Here is the current lineup (May 2018), taken from their website.
0.1 golden eagle
2.0 great horned owl
1.0 peregrine falcon
2.1 bald eagle
0.2 rough legged hawk
0.1 saw whet owl
1.0 turkey vulture

 

One of the center wolves has died.

Grizzly & Wolf Discovery Center

 

Also NatGeo Wild was there a while back.

Grizzly & Wolf Discovery Center


National Geographic

 

The new riparian exhibit is currently under construction (photos in gallery) and will open summer 2019. Inhabitants will be river otter, cutthroat trout, and unspecified birds, reptiles, amphibians, invertebrates.

 

The Grizzly and Wolf Discovery Center has added a new website.

The Den by Grizzly and Wolf Discovery Center

 

A new otter is being moved to the center from Brandywine Zoo

Brandywine Zoo

 

More details have been released for the riparian exhibit at the Grizzly and Wolf Discovery Center

https://www.wyellowstonestar.com/single-post/2018/12/27/The-otters-are-coming

 

Some new details have been released for the riparian exhibit and new upcoming projects at the center
Grizzly and Wolf Discovery Center to open new exhibit in spring