In Memoriam: Dr. David Mattson

Dr. David Mattson was a brilliant ecologist and tenacious advocate for carnivore conservation, especially grizzly bears. He was a long-time member of the Rewilding Institute’s Leadership Council. His comprehensive analysis of the suitability of Southwestern habitats to support the reintroduction of grizzlies will continue to provide valuable guidance to the Rewilding Institute’s Mogollon Wildway landscape conservation and rewilding initiative. David will be greatly missed by family, friends, and colleagues.

Below is an excerpt from the announcement of his passing that describes how his work lives on to protect grizzlies, written by Louisa Willcox, David’s wife and co-founder of Grizzly Times:

David John Mattson, Ph.D.
Co-Founder, Grizzly Times
June 11, 1954 – February 2, 2025

Forty years ago, few could imagine that grizzlies would have to do the heavy lifting for protecting wildlands and wildlife in the Northern Rockies. Among others, David and I hoped that this would not be necessary, and that common sense and the converging science on the needs of elk, trout, and ecosystems would prompt managers to exercise more restraint and Congress to act.

Since this did not happen, the burden has fallen heavily on the backs of bears and their advocates. For decades, David helped lawyers make sense of complex science, and the often tortuous and wrong-headed arguments of government officials, to craft winning cases that saved hundreds of thousands of acres of habitat.

He would be pleased to know that a few weeks after he passed, the imperiled Cabinet Yaak ecosystem was spared the disastrous impacts of a massive roading and logging project by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. The ruling focused on the grizzly bear, and relied significantly on David’s insights and evidence.

Much more needs to be done to allow bears to flourish in a rapidly changing world. Although David did not live to see the final product, he advised the advocates who assembled this report: “A New Vision for Grizzly Bear Recovery in the Northern Rockies.”

As readers of Grizzly Times, which features his scientific research, you know how grizzlies are threatened by climate change, habitat destruction, excessive killing, and anti-carnivore policies. Making matters worse, now both the administration and Congress are pushing to kill more bears, strip protection for grizzlies in Yellowstone and other ecosystems, and shrink populations to dangerously low levels.

Now, more than ever, we must stand together to defend grizzlies, wild places, and civil society. To be better informed about current scientific and related management problems that will play out in the upcoming months and years, please read David’s comprehensive report, Flawed Science: Report by Dr. David Mattson. (Source: Grizzly Times)

Read David’s full obituary on the Grizzly Times website here.

If you have any reflections of David or his work to share, please do so in the comments below and/or email them to in**@**********es.org.