Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
As a result of these actions, a dramatic reduction of bear-human confrontations en-
sued. In recent years, there have been very few injuries, and very few bears have had to be
relocated or killed.
So the answer to: “Where are all the bears?” is that they're still here and fending for
themselves very nicely. You're less likely to see grizzlies than black bears near the roads in
the summertime, since they often find their favorite foods at higher altitudes away from
human populations. They're most likely to be living in roadless parts of the Hayden, upper
Lamar, and Pelican Valleys. You'll see black bears somewhat more often, especially with-
in a few miles of Tower-Roosevelt Junction, but also west to Mammoth Hot Springs and
sometimes around Old Faithful and Madison.
II. THE VALLEYS OF THE LOWER YELLOWSTONE, LAMAR, AND
GARDNER RIVERS
The northern valleys average a little lower and drier than the central plateaus overall, and the
high desert ecology along the 5 miles of road between Gardiner and Mammoth is unique in
the park, for precipitation there is sometimes as low as 11 inches (28 cm) in a year. In contrast,
the Lamar Valley is a little higher and has about 30 inches (76 cm) of precipitation a year.
The ecology of these river valleys is also heavily influenced by glacial scouring, which has
brought down volcanic and sedimentary soils from surrounding mountains. The soil holds
water well and is high in plant nutrients. These are places where bison and elk thrive.
Valley Trees
Douglas fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii) is the evergreen you'll often see growing singly in the lee
of big boulders (picture, page 211 ) along the road between Mammoth Hot Springs and the
Northeast Entrance. Its scientific name means false hemlock, and it is not really a fir (genus
Abies) at all. The needles grow around the branch, and the hanging female cones have little
tridents between their scales. Old Douglas fir have very thick, deeply fissured bark that pro-
tects them from fires.
he limber pine (Pinus flexilis) has young branches so flexible they can be tied in knots
without breaking. This pine grows at high altitudes, and its needles grow in bundles of five. Its
cones are up to 8 inches (20 cm) long and green. The limber pine is common and very long-
lived near Mammoth Hot Springs.
In the park, the shrub Rocky Mountain juniper (Juniperus scopulorum) grows only
around Mammoth (pictured, page 274 ) . Its scaly leaves look much like a cedar's, and its seed
cones look like blue berries. Some junipers are lollipop-shaped, with bare trunks and bushy
 
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