A grizzly bear about to step on the electrified mat. In the video, the bear quickly runs away after getting shocked.
A grizzly bear turns away from a roadkill meal after getting a shock from the electric mat."
OVANDO - The grizzly bear followed his nose towards the scent of calving. It skirted the five-wire electric fence around the corral and headed for the open gateway into the barnyard. With its first step through the gate, it felt a zap! Barking in alarm, it wheeled and ran away.
This is the desired outcome of using electrified bear mats. In 1999 Tim Manley, retired Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks (FWP) Region 2 bear specialist, designed an "unwelcome mat" to deter a bear from freezer access in an outside shed. The unwelcome mat began as an electrified cattle panel laid over a rubber horse trailer mat. As the bear stepped on it, it received a shock.
In 2002 Jamie Jonkel, FWP Bear Specialist, began using the unwelcome mat to minimize bear conflicts. That is the concept that eventually led to the electrified bear mats being researched and developed today.
Starting in 2019, further research was done by US Fish and Wildlife Service Biologist Greg Neudeker, the Blackfoot Challenge and Jonkel to develop a drive-over mat that could complement the five-wire electric fencing being used around cattle calving areas and adjacent homesites on local ranches.
From their research, David Pitman, owner of Pitman Machining in Seeley Lake, began developing a mat electrified by a solar fence charger attached to a cattle panel on top of a rubber mat. The partners began testing the mat in remote areas using road-killed deer as bait. Bears were unable to reach the bait due to the electrified mat and the five-wire electric fence around it.
The motivation for the mats was easier access to calving areas and homesites for ranchers and land managers where electric fences were in use. The electric drive-over mat is designed to take the place of countless times of opening and closing electric gates that happens daily on a ranch. They are not a substitute for a cattle guard, as cattle cross them occasionally without reacting to the electricity.
"The mats are another tool to make it easier to use an electrified fence," said Seth Wilson, Executive Director of the Blackfoot Challenge.
Brady Stone of BS Fabrication in Ovando saw the mats in action and got an idea for a style of mat using a solid piece of metal rather than the panel style. In consultation with Blackfoot Challenge Wildlife Program Coordinator Eric Graham, Stone began developing that style. Both the Pitman and BS Fabrication mats are being used in the research and development phase going on now.
Initially, private groups and government agencies funded the research and development. Recent funding from the Conservation Innovation Grant (CIG) allowed for more testing and development of the mats after the initial design. The CIG is a two-year Natural Resource and Conservation Service (NRCS) program that began in October 2021.
Cost share funding for electric fencing and drive over mats is now provided through the NRCS Farm Bill Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP). EQIP is a competitive grant program used to accelerate approaches to pressing natural resource concerns for agriculture and non-industrial forest managers.
The Blackfoot Challenge, NRCS, US Fish & Wildlife Service and FWP are working in partnership to make the electric fence and mat program possible in the Blackfoot Watershed.
The current mats are between four feet to 24 feet long and four feet wide. They are made of steel plate or metal barred panels. Small ones are being tested for small gates and doorways while larger designs cover a typical ranch roadway. During the hibernation season, bear mats are stored to protect them from winter road conditions. Future plans are to develop an electric drive-over mat that can be used on asphalt, as well as a smaller model that can be placed by hand.
Bear mats are available commercially. However, FWP suggests having individual situations evaluated by them for the best approach. Graham emphasized that alerting the FWP of conflicts is important for help evaluating the situation and implementing solutions. Doing it right the first time leads to more success.
Graham continued, "We're very lucky in the Blackfoot that we have land managers and ranchers that are open-minded enough to help reduce grizzly bear conflicts."
For more information and to see how the mat works watch the instructional video available at https://blackfootchallenge.org/electric-fence/
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