Bitterroot Valley: 3-way easement makes Upper Miller Creek ranch an elk haven
Critical elk migration route protected by easement- 3-way easement makes Upper Miller Creek ranch an elk haven. By Rob Cheney.  Missoulian

Wildlife Services blasts away Basin Butte Wolf Pack at Stanley
Is there an explanation for this in the middle of the scheduled wolf hunt? Right in the middle of the wolf hunt and in the zone where there is the highest quota, Wildlife Services took to the air this week in their gunships and blasted away the long-standing Basin Butte Pack at Stanley, Idaho. This is one of 26 wolf packs Wildlife Service has labeled as a “chronic depredating” pack, which seems to mean a pack that at one or more times killed some domestic livestock. It doesn’t mean killed recently, however. All the livestock left the area for the winter in October. This pack has lived around Stanley, mostly in St

WildEarth Guardians Seeks End of Aerial Gunning, Poisoning of Wildlife on Public Lands
Obama asked for executive order- This is clearly something the President could do quickly to rehabilitate his tarnished image on wildlife. Ironically, it was President Richard Nixon who in 1972 issued Executive Order 11643 banning the use of poisons to control predators on Federal land. Reagan later weakened this. In addition, there is plenty of poison available. Much of it is left over from the 1970s. While in the Senate, now Interior Secretary Salazar was one of those who opposed efforts to ban the use of compound 1080, an extremely poisonous, colorless, tasteless, odorless, substance that creates an agonizing death, and which would be an ide

The Urban Deerslayer
NYT says more urban folks learning to hunt for safe, low carbon-impact meat- The Urban Deerslayer. By Sean Patrick Farrell. New York Times. Fewer and fewer people have been learning to hunt, to the dismay of many. Hunting is generaly taught as part of a family tradition or with young friends while growing up. The article writes of what might be an unexpected source of new hunters — urban adults who want a more honest connection to their food and/or worry about the hormones, fat, and other contaminants of factory farmed beef and pork.

Thanksgiving. 3-million visits to this blog.
On Thanksgiving Day, this blog should record its 3-millionth visitor. Thanks for reading and participating. Ralph Maughan