February 2023
-
Yellowstone bison are a globally unique animal. Harsh winters can drive bison out of the park where they are often killed. Photo George Wuerthner Yellowstone’s bison are unique, essentially influenced by natural evolutionary processes since the Park’s early days. Today the herd has grown to approximately 6,000 animals. Still, the ability of these bison…
-
Update: The aerial reduction was held. Only 19 feral cows were shot and killed. They were left where they fell so to return to the land they had been extracting nutrients from. As many as 150 feral cattle were said to live illegally in the Gila Wilderness. The Forest Service said all the cattle seen…
-
The wild beauty of the Little Missouri badlands within Theodore Roosevelt National Park, North Dakota. Photo George Wuerthner Theodore Roosevelt National Park (TRNP) has proposed eliminating feral horses and domestic livestock from the Park. Unlike the fiasco at Point Reyes National Seashore, where the NPS appears to support maintaining domestic livestock within the park unit,…
-
Pondoersa pine forests dominate the lower elevations of the Blue Mountain Ecoregion. Photo George Wuerthner The Blue Mountains Complex of Oregon stretches east to west from the Snake River to the Cascades. The Blue Mountain Complex is made up of sub-ranges, including the Wallowa, Elkhorns, Strawberries, Aldrich, and Ochoco. The Wallowa Mountains near Enterprise, Oregon.…
-
UPDATE: Since I wrote this piece, the number of bison killed near Gardiner and elsewhere from all sources has exceeded 1150 animals. You can read the report here. Yellowstone bison are used to being photographed not shot. Photo Bonnie Lynn As I write this essay, sources I trust estimate that at least 700 of…