Protecting Our Natural Treasures
A black wolf wanders the Lamar Valley in Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming.
Wolves are a controversial subject no matter which way you look at it. I can’t even mention "wolf" on my Facebook page without seeing comments erupting into the comment feed about how much they’re destroying the planet, causing global warming, and will be the future cause of the Sun going supernova. The subject reached an escalated tension once wolves were removed from the Endangered Species List, which then opened them up to legal (and illegal) hunting.
Perhaps wolves should not be on the Endangered Species List though, nor even grizzly bears. Instead, such animals would be much more suited to be on a Revered Species List, ensuring protection of them in the same manner that a national park protects the peaks and surrounding areas of the Teton Mountains and the Yosemite Valley. An accurate understanding of wildlife was … Continue reading
Warm Spell of Winter Video Compilation
A video compilation featuring winter footage from Grand Teton and Yellowstone National Parks and beyond.
Winter appears to winding down here in Jackson Hole, Wyoming significantly early. I suppose Mother Nature felt bad for giving us such a short summer last year, so if weather stays consistent, we’ll have an extra month this year!
For the most part, winter wasn’t incredibly eventful. The title comes from winter being unusually warm much of the time. There were certainly plenty of cold days as well as a pretty respectable amount of snow, but it never really "felt" like a Jackson Hole winter. As a result, much of the wildlife didn’t follow their usual rounds and so sightings weren’t quite as frequent or predictable. Luckily though, there’s still always wildlife to be found and sometimes even gives you a little surprise.
One such occasion was when a black wolf and a mule deer … Continue reading
The Backward Truth About Wolves and Grizzlies
A gray wolf walks along a ridge in the Lamar Valley of Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming.
Most people nowadays are well aware that wolves and grizzly bears are controversial species. Regular readers of this blog know that I am passionate about the well-being of these predatory animals. Most people think that all the controversy stems from them potentially eating ranchers’ cattle stock. The truth is, that’s just a scapegoat. The real motive is money that goes beyond ranching.
While wolves may in fact get into ranchers’ stocks and feed on a cow or calf every now and then, the claims are widely overblown thanks to fear and hatred perpetuated by corrupted politicians holding office in Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho, three states who rely heavily on hunting for valuable revenue. The simple fact is hunting brings in money to the states that they feel is much more important than the well-being … Continue reading
Let Nature Live Its Own Life
A fresh wolf print lies in the snow in Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming.
Everybody here in Jackson Hole, Wyoming loves the scenery. They love much of the wildlife as well. As long as it’s simply eating grass from a field, they can’t get enough of it. On many occasions, these people even feed many of the more docile wildlife that wander around town: moose; deer; elk; even foxes. Why? Maybe the general population thinks it’s cute to feed a deer. Maybe they feel sorry for it in the winter. It’s even government policy to artificially feed the elk in the National Elk Refuge every winter. Whatever the case, people are overjoyed at having non-aggressive mammals show up to their house, as if they’ve adopted a wild pet. Yet their actions have a consequence that they apparently haven’t bridged a connection to yet. With a growing population of deer and other … Continue reading
Regression in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem
Black wolf in Yellowstone National Park
The conservation movement essentially started with John Muir’s pen roughly 150 years ago. From there, it blossomed into an entire National Park Service that’s preserved small chunks of land scattered around the country, as well as worldwide presently. The movement itself has been gaining significant ground in recent decades, but still has a long way to go in overcoming what one would think would be the simplest of obstacles.
When the National Park Service was introduced, the borders for the national parks were set without taking wildlife into consideration. They were just meant to preserve pretty places for Americans to escape to. As more scientists and biologists began studying the wildlife around these new parks, they saw that more protection was needed. In Grand Teton National Park, predators were nonexistent at the time of its expansion, having been wiped out in prior generations, so … Continue reading
Has the Grand Teton National Park Elk Hunt Run Its Course?
Elk graze in Yellowstone National Park.
Grand Teton National Park has always been the subject of controversy. From its present-day inception to conserve a large, open valley in 1950, to the reintroduction of wolves and the expanding growth of grizzly bears, and even to present day where a growing population is seeking an end to the annual elk hunt within park boundaries.
The park came into formation back in 1950. Back then, wolves had been exterminated, and grizzly bears were closely following that route thanks to the mindset that predators weren’t welcome in nature. As a result, the elk population exploded causing a plethora of overpopulation side effects to the species, as well as aspen trees. Thus, the annual elk reduction hunt was initiated to keep the population at bay. Yet many are wondering if present day circumstances still require the hunt.
I personally am not a hunter, nor do … Continue reading
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