Bear Sightings at Yellowstone Comes With a Price — and It’s a Huge Source of Income for the Park

Economists recently analyzed the price of bear sightings at Yellowstone National Park, and it's pretty huge. Walking on a park trail and spotting a bear at a distance becomes an amazing hike story to tell. That's probably why these sightings come with a hefty price, at least in Yellowstone. In a recent study, two economists discovered that an individual grizzly bear sighting is approximately worth $16. The aggregate sighting of black and grizzly bears can generate about $6.9 million to $9.7 million per year in sighting value. The annual sighting value of an individual grizzly bear is noted to be about $46,000, and that of an individual black bear is about $15,000 per year.

Researchers used a visitor survey to collect data for their study published in Taylor and Francis. The survey provided information about people's bear sighting trips at the national park, including the total number of trips and the cost. Other factors and information also contributed to the study like the amount of time people spend at the park on average, the bear population of the region, and seasonal park visitation. Aaron Enriquez, a research economist at USGS and one of the study’s authors, explained how he calculated the estimated cost of something priceless. “A big chunk of what I try to do in my job is quantify values for things that don’t have market prices, to create a fuller picture of the total value, both good and bad, generated by a natural resource,” he said in a USGS news release.

These values of bears are solely based on sightings. Enriquez believes that if ‘non-use’ values like existence value are also calculated, bears would be worth much more. " As more types of values get filled in over time, we’ll continue to have a better picture of how much society benefits from bears," he added. Another crucial factor is the restitution value, which refers to the monetary compensation one has to pay for hunting and killing a particular wildlife animal. In four states across the U.S., grizzly bears have a restitution value of $9000 per bear. Many states have restitution values for black bears that average around  $3,000 per black bear. Having a restitution value is a great way to prevent bear hunting, but the math doesn't add up here. The restitution value is quite low compared to the estimated per-bear sighting value that the economists derived.

This means that the restitution values of bears must be reconsidered, especially in national parks as its frequently visited by the public. Bears are clearly more valuable alive than dead. They deserved to be celebrated instead of being decorated like a trophy in a massive dining hall. Since these bears roam around with a hefty price tag on, their conservation will not just benefit nature but also help maintain the finances of the national parks. “In general, goods and services that don't have market prices tend to be under-valued, potentially even ignored altogether in things like benefit-cost analysis," the economists said. Yellowstone's wildlife tourism is a great source of income for the park, and grizzly bears are the most sought-after animal at these tours, alongside wolves and bison. The survival of these wild animals indirectly helps the park sustain its other businesses, like lodges and restaurants, and its employees.