BY ROGER HAYDEN 02/05/16 The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has indicated it plans to remove the iconic Yellowstone grizzly bear from protection under the Endan-gered Species Act early this year. The federal agency's plan is irresponsible and premature because grizzlies are struggling to adjust to declining food sources, even as they face an uncertain future caused by … [Read more...]
Tracking Wildlife with Jim Halfpenny
Veteran Tracker Reads the Signs Nature Leaves Behind 02/10/15 BY LISA BARIL A writer friend once told me stories are everywhere if you know how to look for them. He was referring to the human story, but as a biologist I am pulled toward the stories nature writes. A dozen ravens swirling above the remains of a cow elk killed by wolves the day before. A pair of bald eagles … [Read more...]
The Risk to Hunters in Grizzly Bear Country
It Does Not Always End Well 01-09-15 BY LISA BARIL Thirty years ago, so few grizzly bears roamed southwestern Montana that their image barely registered in the minds of hunters during their annual autumn quest to fill their freezers or tag the bull of a lifetime. They didn't worry much about surprising a sow with cubs or accidentally luring a bruin with elk bugles or cow … [Read more...]
When a Grizzly Charges, Should Hunters Use Bear Spray, or Shoot?
BY DAVE SMITH You're a big game hunter in the wilds of Wyoming, Montana or Idaho, and a grizzly is headed right for you, just like a freight train. Do you reach for bear spray, or use your rifle? For more than a decade, state and federal agencies have said hunters should use a firearm only if bear spray is unavailable. In 2011, Idaho's Fish and Game Department advised … [Read more...]
More Fangs in the Forest
Montana’s Big Carnivores Match 1800s Levels BY TOM DICKSON 11-05-14 If Montanans ever decide on a new motto, they might consider something like Terra Multi Fera (Land of Abundant Wild Animals). Owing to Montana’s intact, healthy habitats and science-based conservation practices, the state has long been known as a place teeming with wildlife such as elk, bighorn … [Read more...]