Within the US, grizzlies are currently found in the mountain regions of Wyoming, Montana, Idaho and Washington. They are found throughout Canada, Alaska, and much of the rest of the Northern Hemisphere. Grizzlies inhabit large forests with meadows, grasslands, plentiful cover, varying elevation, and large river valleys. The primary threat to grizzlies today is the destruction and degradation of habitat from activities related to timber harvesting and oil and mineral exploration and extraction.
Illegal killing is also a threat to the continued survival of grizzlies.
The grizzly bear once roamed the entire western half of North America. Now driven into the most remote wilderness areas left, it is still found in far western and northern Canada, Alaska, and a few remnant locations in Idaho, Washington, Montana, and Wyoming, where it is listed as threatened. The grizzly is a prime example of a species pushed to near extinction in the continental United States by acts of people driven by fear. Logging, recreational use of its wooded habitat, and illegal killing are continued threats. Grizzly bear populations recover slowly due to a very low reproductive rate, and efforts to reintroduce grizzlies to former habitat have stimulated controversies.