Living with grizzlies on the grasslands

Hundreds of years ago, grizzly bears claimed a much larger area of Canada, their habitat stretched from eastern Manitoba all the way west across the grasslands. With the arrival of European settlers, that all changed.

As the grassland ecosystem was plowed and agricultural crops were planted, the bears were pushed from the open plains of the prairies to the mountains, where we find them today.

But just south of the border, grizzlies are making a return. In Grasslands: A Hidden Wilderness, we watch as a mother grizzly and her cubs emerge from their den, possibly the first to be born on the prairies in 150 years.

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But they have to live on a different prairie than their species once knew. Their reclaimed home is inhabited by families like Trina Bradley’s who are showing us how to live peacefully with bears. Watch video above to see their story.

Watch the full documentary Grasslands: A Hidden Wilderness on The Nature of Things.