Do wildebeest smell bad? Inquires from a curious middle schooler
A curious middle school student poses some challenging questions to Tom Morrison about wildebeest. Click HERE to read the student’s letter.
New paper – “Stopover ecology of a migratory ungulate”
Our paper takes the concept of stopover ecology from avian literature and illustrates how it can be used to improve our understanding of ungulate migration.
What’s the difference? – Biologists study Clarks Fork elk to learn why some fare better than others
Two Wyoming researchers studying the divergent paths taken by two elk herds that share a winter range near Cody made that point perfectly clear in Hamilton this week.
Yellowstone elk study points to effects of a hotter, longer summer
A new article in the online publication New West focuses on the habitat component of Absaroka Elk Ecology Project’s findings. For more discussion of the role of calf predation by bears and wolves, you can visit the Absaroka Elk Ecology Project page on this site.
Hunting for Answers
A few years back about 1,200 elk showed up on the Heart Mountain Ranch. Prior to that, Brian Peters, manager of the Nature-Conservancy-owned ranch, had only seen about 100 head. Now, they were eating him out of house and home. ‘It’s been pretty devastating for us,’ Peters says.
Herd Mentality
Wildlife researcher Aly Courtemanch boards the Jackson Hole Tram not to ski but to study two Teton Range species: bighorn sheep and powder hounds….
How stress shapes ecosystems
You are tense and wary, alert to every rustle and snapped twig. A predator is near, you can sense it. Your heart races; you sweat. Quietly, you reach for a doughnut.
Wolf re-introduction fails to stop elk eating aspen
Writing in the journal Ecology, a team of scientists found that wolves in Yellowstone Park were not deterring elk from eating young trees.
It had been assumed that the presence of wolves would create a “landscape of fear” and no-go areas for elk.
Climate change may favor couch-potato elk
A study of elk in Yellowstone National Park suggests that dwindling food resources may be one reason why females that migrate have fewer calves than those that stay put…
Requiem for a ewe
Across Jackson Lake from the Lizard Creek Campground, we stash our canoes in the willows at the mouth of Webb Canyon and slog through a marsh, periodically shouting “hey bear” to avert surprise encounters with any ursine inhabitants.