Bear 047, nicknamed "Garmin," is just one of 51 grizzlies that Alaskan Department of Fish and Game (ADFG) habitat biologists Dick Shideler and John Hechtel have managed to radio-collar. Because GPS technology has revolutionized wildlife field research in general, and the Oilfield Grizzly Project in specific--and because Garmin employee Michael Deponte accompanied the team--the name for the newly-collared bear seemed fitting.

Shideler's group has been working since 1991 to learn more about the relationship between the bears and the humans they come in contact with in this area. Their project is funded by British Petroleum-Alaska, ARCO-Alaska, and the North Slope Borough. The project's objective is to understand how grizzlies interact with oilfield development in the Prudhoe Bay area, and to predict how they'll be affected by new oilfields.

"We captured and radio-collared bears within a large study area, roughly the size of Connecticut, around the oilfields to see which bears come into the oilfields and what their interactions with people and facilities are," said Shideler. "Specifically, we compare the reproductive success, body condition, and movements of the bears in this farthest north portion of the U.S."

GPS technology has enabled the researchers to accurately map the animals' locations, especially dens like the one "Garmin" is hibernating in, and then navigate accurately to the location at a later date to conduct an on-ground inspection. Pinpointing these den locations helps seismic exploration companies operating over the tundra in winter to avoid known den locations and, thus, not disturb the bears during their long hibernation.

Right from the start of the bears' inclusion into the test group, GPS technology makes a difference. A spotter in a fixed-wing aircraft makes the first sighting of a grizzly and marks that position with his GPS receiver. Shideler's group stands by with a helicopter to take up the chase. Once the bear is tranquilized, the team is able to work safely for about an hour. In that time, they weigh, measure, and tag the bear, and then fit it with the radio-collar tracking device.

"When the bears start to den up in the fall, said Shideler, "we try to obtain accurate locations from both the radio signal and, if possible, a visual confirmation."

GPS then marks their resting place, which is advantageous because in Arctic tundra conditions, blowing snow can obscure the den in a matter of hours.

"This is where GPS really shines," said Shideler. "Previously we had to use LORAN, which was notoriously inaccurate and tended to 'go down' during wet weather just when we needed it most."

In the spring, after the bears leave their individual dens, Shideler's team visits the dens to measure them and take soil samples.

"In the future, we hope to use all this information to predict where bears will den so that disturbance due to construction activities can be minimized," said Shideler.

All this hard work is already paying safety dividends for the bears and oilfield operators.

"The oil industry's management of human activity in the field is strict, and bears have the right of way," said Shideler. "There have been no human injuries and only one bear fatality, a vehicle collision, in the oilfields despite the bears being present virtually all summer for the past 7 years."

As for "Garmin," he spent much of the past summer in the study area within 50 miles of Prudhoe, mostly foraging and, at least until early July, engaged in courtship and breeding.

"When he comes out this spring, probably sometime in early April, he'll start looking for food and receptive females," said Shideler.

And thanks to his namesake, we'll be able to follow "Garmin" as he wakes up and begins his new year.

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