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Are Western Mountain Towns Ready For The Coming Flames?

March 21, 2023

Can't happen here? The Bridger Foothills Fire was Bozeman's WUI wake-up call
Rural sprawl is expanding the "wildland-urban interface." It is elevating the costs and perils of dealing with wildfire, and taxpayers are footing the bill. Part 2 in our ongoing series


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The Usual Suspects: In Colorado, Wolves Blamed For Losses They Didn't Cause

March 13, 2023

Experts say wolves have a rap sheet they don't deserve
Story Warren, in this personal essay for Writers on the Range, notes how an investigation shows 40 recent cattle deaths can't be pinned on lobos 
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Wolverines: Barometers For Pondering Impacts Of The Anthropocene

March 12, 2023

Plight of wolverines a test of human willingness to give them protected space
Changes in habitat and rising human pressures leave many wondering how long just 300 or so wolverines can persist in the West
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In Jackson Hole, Good News About CWD—For Now

March 5, 2023

Thousands of elk bunched up over artificial feed at the National Elk Refuge
Senior biologist with National Elk Refuge says Chronic Wasting Disease hasn't shown up there yet. But any sense of solace is probably short lived
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Checkerboard: Do Laws In Greater Yellowstone Favor Private Rights Over Public Interest?

March 3, 2023

The Hoback River flows toward the Gros Ventre Range
Award-winning writer and longtime Forest Service veteran Susan Marsh writes a parable for our time that underscores how we must take action to save our fragile ecosystem
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Mayor Ghosts Nature In Bozeman's Annual State Of The City Address

March 1, 2023

Elk find solitude on an undeveloped hillside in the Gallatin Valley outside Bozeman
It's strange how so few elected officials in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem are willing to speak out for our world-class wildlife. And that does not bode well
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Montana, In The Wake Of 'Yellowstone' and 'A River Runs Through It'

February 27, 2023

Is all the attention destroying last, best places?
Thirty years after Norman Maclean's novella was brought to big screen, many are lamenting how it, and the TV melodrama 'Yellowstone' have fueled an inundation of western Montana
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Kissing The 'Quieter Side' Of The Tetons Goodbye?

February 27, 2023

Sunset, amid moonrise, brings alpenglow to the west side of the Tetons above Teton Valley, Idaho
Will Grand Targhee Resort expansion put Teton Valley, Idaho on course to become a doppelgänger of Big Sky? A county commissioner voices her concerns
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How Did They Do It? Zooming in on the First Geological Map of Yellowstone

February 21, 2023

Swans and geese in the Yellowstone River in Hayden Valley, named for 1871 expedition leader Ferdinand Vanderveer Hayden
In 1871, a federal expedition led by Ferdinand Vandeveer Hayden conducted a detailed geological survey of the Yellowstone area leading to the first geological map and convincing Congress to establish Yellowstone as America's first national park.
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It's Now Do Or Die For The Great Salt Lake

February 20, 2023

Will Utahns rise to save the Great Salt Lake?
Will Utahns take action to rescue their famous lake or will it be sacrificed to a false notion of prosperity?  Stephen Trimble weighs in for Writers on the Range
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The Big Picture: Pondering Greater Yellowstone's 'Elephants In The Room'

February 17, 2023

A coyote and griz in wild northwest Wyoming
Test your ability to detect subtle changes that often seem invisible. Then apply your newfound insight to thinking about Greater Yellowstone's rapid transformation
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A Rumination On Architecture: Don't Let Your Dream Home Leave Wildlife Homeless

February 16, 2023

Wildlife in Greater Yellowstone valleys: here today, gone tomorrow?
MoJo columnist Lori Ryker reminds how our "human footprint" is exacting huge consequences for wild denizens of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem 
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What Yellowstone Lake Water Levels Can Tell Us About The Supervolcano

February 9, 2023

Yellowstone Lake's water reflects more than sunset's glow
A relatively simple measurement—lake level—has yielded big dividends in Yellowstone
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When Humans Assert Their Oversized Egos On The Land

February 6, 2023

In St. George, Utah, homeowners play king of the mountain
As trophy homes invade beloved public viewsheds, Richard Knight says the West has become an exploiter's paradise
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