wildlife

The U.S. Forest Service is proposing changes to sage grouse protections that would make it easier to develop — especially energy — on vast swaths of land where the chicken-like bird lives.

It's been a week since Wyoming lost management authority of the Yellowstone grizzly bear. This at a time when grizzly activity is increasing.

A recent study shows that BLM-managed lands produced $3 billion in revenue. The study called “Quantifying the Economic Contributions of Wildlife-Related Recreation on BLM Lands,” took into account twelve western states including Wyoming in 2016. Outdoor activities provide 27-hundred jobs that pay workers $88 million a year and retail sales produce even more: $331 million a year. 

On Wednesday, the U.S. House Committee on Natural Resources held a hearing on proposed changes to the Endangered Species Act (ESA). This comes right after a court ruling on Monday that returned federal protections back to the Yellowstone grizzly bear. Republicans have long been pushing for the modernization of the ESA, including Wyoming's U.S. Senator John Barrasso.

Bull elk keep their antlers for a significantly longer time than moose or deer, and new research shows that might be to help protect them from predators. 

Monday afternoon a federal district court judge placed the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem grizzly bear back under federal protection. This means Wyoming’s planned grizzly hunt will not happen and management will be returned to the federal government.  

A U.S. district court has decided to end a long-term permit for an elk feeding ground in the Bridger Teton National Forest in northwest Wyoming, saying the agency did not do enough to analyze the risk of chronic wasting disease to animals there.

The ground investigation of a grizzly attack in the Bridger Teton National Park that left one dead has ended. A female grizzly bear and her yearling — a larger cub — attacked and killed Wyoming hunting guide, Mark Uptain, last Friday, while injuring his client, a Florida resident.

A judge has decided that a grizzly bear hunt in Wyoming and Idaho must be delayed for another two weeks. Thursday, September 13 was the last day of a temporary restraining order filed by a conservation group two weeks ago. The grizzly bear hunt that was supposed to start on September 1 was stalled in hopes a federal district court judge would make a decision whether to restore federal protections to the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem grizzly bear.

At a legislative meeting in Laramie last week, ranchers called to abandon efforts to introduce the endangered black-footed ferret in Thunder Basin National Grasslands. The ferret’s need a healthy population of its primary food, the prairie dog, but ranchers say too many prairie dogs would compete with livestock for grasses. 

Over the weekend an adult grizzly bear was spotted in the city of Cody. The bear has not been caught yet but trapping operations are underway.

Mountain lion hunting season started September 1 but a new study by the wildlife conservation group, Panthera, shows that fewer mountain lion mothers and kittens would die if the hunting was moved back to December 1 instead. 

After being closed for most of August, the Moose Wilson Road in Grand Teton National Park has reopened. The road was closed due to increased bear activity in the area.

Aspen trees are making a comeback in Yellowstone National Park, and according to a new study out of Oregon State University, that’s thanks to wolves. 

The Wyoming Game and Fish Department is encouraging the public to educate themselves about what to do if they encounter a bear. Bears are preparing for hibernation and many are active. 

U.S. District Judge Dana Christensen granted conservation groups and tribal representatives request for a temporary registration order Thursday evening. This stops Wyoming and Idaho’s planned grizzly hunt for 14 days that was set to start this Saturday. But Judge Christensen still hasn’t made a decision on whether the Yellowstone grizzly bears will be put back on the Threatened Species List.

After seven years on the back burner, a major oil and gas development near Pinedale has completed its final step and is weeks away from drilling. Jonah Energy's Normally Pressured Lance project obtained its Record of Decision from the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). The project aims to construct 3,500 wells over 10 years near Pinedale, 96 percent of the project is on public land.

A federal judge in Montana will make the decision Thursday whether to put the iconic Yellowstone grizzly bear back on the endangered species list. Depending on the outcome, Wyoming’s grizzly hunt may not happen.

A can of rental bear spray saved a boy’s life, and the parents thanked the rental company for the spray…and the training. 

A man who was arrested for harassing a bison among other charges has been sentenced to 130 days in jail.