‘A Cascading Effect’: Forest Service, Park Service Workers who Lost Jobs Amid Mass Layoffs Explain Rippling Fallout

February 20, 2025 // NEWS: Feature

by Joseph T. O'Connor and Amanda Eggert

In a lawsuit seeking to halt federal employee firings, the NFFE union said layoffs will threaten 500,000 federal employees

Five nationwide unions representing federal employees have gone to court in an attempt to stop workforce reductions.

Update: CWD Spreads to Wyoming Feedground

February 17, 2025 // NEWS: Dispatch

by Sophie Tsairis

Elk queue to make their way across the flats at the National Elk Refuge in Jackson Hole, Wyoming

Increase in chronic wasting disease numbers among elk at Dell Creek Feedground marks new territory for always-fatal disease.

Myth-Busting and the Great Gray Wolf

January 26, 2025 // NEWS: Feature

by Benjamin Alva Polley

A member of Yellowstone's 8-Mile Pack glances back before nightfall

As we look back on the 30 years since the wolf was reintroduced in Yellowstone, we examine what wolves are and what they aren’t.

Why ‘Yellowstone’ Became a Dirty Word to so Many Montanans

January 21, 2025 // OPINION: Essay

by Darby Minow Smith

The complexity of reality versus fiction

No one ever claimed the hit cowboy soap opera was aiming for realism. But for Montana locals, the show’s many day-to-day inaccuracies are hard to swallow.

Forest Service Authorizes Controversial Crazy Mountain Land Swap

January 20, 2025 // NEWS: Dispatch

by Amanda Eggert

For nearly a century, the Crazy Mountains have been the site of heated access debates

A handful of conservation easements and deed restrictions are incorporated in the Forest Service’s final iteration of the East Crazy Inspiration Divide Land Exchange.

Back to the Land

January 19, 2025 // NEWS: Dispatch

by Robert Chaney

BLM's Missouri Breaks National Backcountry Byway in North Central Montana

Tracy Stone-Manning turned in her BLM keys last week. As she exits civil service, she reflects on her career, the incoming administration, and the public’s love for public land.

Feeling Through Fire, Part 4: When the Fire Comes

January 15, 2025 // MoJo Special Series

by Bella Butler

The Bridger Foothills Fire of 2020 burned 8,000 acres and destroyed 68 structures north of Bozeman, Montana

In the conclusion to our four-part series, we look at the profound sense of loss wildfires can leave in their wake.

Legendary Yellowstone Wolf Dies After Fight with Rival Pack

January 13, 2025 // NEWS: Dispatch

by Sophie Tsairis

Wolf 907F, Queen of the Yellowstone wolves

Wildlife enthusiasts mourn the loss of iconic Yellowstone matriarch, Wolf 907F.

FWS: Grizzly Bears to Remain Protected Under Endangered Species Act

January 8, 2025 // NEWS: Dispatch

by Robert Chaney

Grizzlies have been protected under the Endangered Species Act since 1975. For now, they'll remain so.

The agency rejected state petitions for local management, creating a single recovery area for grizzlies in the Lower 48.

The Daunting Challenges Facing Canada Lynx

January 3, 2025 // NEWS: Dispatch

by Ted Williams

The elusive, nocturnal and threatened Canada lynx

As a warming climate grips North America, the lynx remains threatened in the Lower 48. It could get worse.

Thirty years ago this month, gray wolves were reintroduced to Yellowstone National Park and central Idaho. Today, the people who made it happen remember the mayhem and magic of one of the 20th century’s most controversial acts of ecosystem management.