Using Grizzly Bear Habitat Evaluations to Locate Trails and Campsites in Kananaskis Provincial Park

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Kananaskis Provincial Park (504 km2) is part of a large outdoor recreation area, Kananaskis Country (approximately 5,200 km2), near the city of Calgary (population 600,000). Kananaskis Country is undergoing major development for outdoor recreation. Recently, approximately $225 million have been spent on roading, trails, and facility construction. The alpine ski events of the 1988 Winter Olympics will be held within the area. Grizzly bears (Ursus arctos) historically ranged throughout Kananaskis Country. Today they are found in about 75% of the area. To maintain grizzly bears and to provide for human safety, a transect method of rating grizzly bear habitat use and potential for use was developed and applied. Four examples are given where information collected in Kananaskis Provincial Park influenced locations of trails or campsites. The transect method is a rapid method of habitat evaluation but is subject to several limitations, which are discussed.