Bison (Bison bison) graze near Midway Geyser Basin in Yellowstone National Park. Although successful stewardship of these and other animals continue, drastic climate and habitat changes are having noticeable impacts. (Credit: Jim Peaco, National Park Service)
Yellowstone Faces ‘Unprecedented’ Changes to Climate, Habitat
(MinnPost)
A fascinating look at one of America’s premier natural places — and the management changes of keeping it that way — popped up in a fresh assessment of “vital signs” at Yellowstone National Park. America’s first place set aside as a national park “is now faced with an unprecedented rate of change in climate and habitat conditions,” says the report from the park’s Yellowstone Center for Resources. More
NEWS FROM NORTH AMERICA
Western Governors Show Wildlife Maps at Vegas Meeting
(The Associated Press via Reno Gazette-Journal)
Governors in 16 states are unveiling a high-tech wildlife habitat mapping project they hope will encourage economic development across the West while protecting the region’s environmental treasures from Puget Sound to the Rocky Mountains. The Western Governors’ Association wants to make it easier to chart paths across large landscapes where developers can expect the least regulatory resistance and threat of litigation as they draft building plans. More
Grizzly Panel Says Yellowstone Bears Recovered
(The Associated Press via U-T San Diego)
Wildlife officials in the northern Rockies say it’s time to lift Endangered Species Act protections for hundreds of grizzly bears in and around Yellowstone National Park, a move some environmental groups opposed as premature. An initial decision from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is expected next month. An oversight panel has recommended that the agency advance plans to take the animals off the threatened-species list. More
Brown Pelicans Found with Pouches Slashed in Florida Keys
(NBC Miami)
Authorities are investigating after several brown pelicans have been found with cuts on their pouches in the Florida Keys. As many as nine pelicans have been spotted with intentional cuts to their pouches between Cudjoe Key and Summerland Key in just the past two weeks, Florida Keys Wildlife Rescue President Maya Totman said. “They’re really very sad. They are slashed all the way from top to bottom. You can see their breathing holes,” Totman said. More
Snowy Owl Shootings Cease
(Audubon Magazine)
The influx of snowy owls winging from the Arctic Circle to New York City regional airports this winter will have a warmer welcome from now on, thanks to a change in policy by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. Instead of meeting their end at the barrel of a gun, the rare visitors will be trapped and moved to a place where they are less likely to collide with planes. More
Colorado Parks and Wildlife to Collar Elk, Mule Deer, Bighorn Sheep and Moose
(The Denver Channel)
Colorado Parks and wildlife officials are going hunting for big game this winter — not to kill the animals, but to collar them. Workers will be in low-flying helicopters and airplanes from early December through March to do an inventory of thousands of animals. They will also captured and radio-collar 75 elk, 90 moose, 20 desert bighorn sheep, 25 Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep and 1,300 mule deer. More
Fight Against Everglades Invaders Gets Boost
(Sun-Sentinel)
A growing arsenal of chemicals and insects is taking aim at invading weeds threatening to overwhelm the northern reaches of the Everglades. About $18 million a year is already spent combating exotic plants that if left unchecked would smother South Florida natural areas that provide wildlife habitat. The South Florida Water Management District has approved boosting that spending by as much as $3 million a year. More
Illinois Plans for Return of Wildlife Like Cougars
(Chicago Tribune)
Is there a future for mountain lions, wolves and black bears in Illinois? The recent arrival of a mountain lion — also known as a cougar — near Morrison in Whiteside County generated much public discussion about the future of this species in Illinois and the possible return of other apex predators such as the gray wolf and the American black bear. If the term “apex predator” is unfamiliar, these are animals at the top of their food chains. More
Wild Plains Bison Remain a Species-at-Risk
(Rocky Mountain Outlook)
Despite the fact that Canada is home to more than 250,000 plains bison living on ranches and farms, their wild cousins are still staring down the barrel of extinction. Plains bison were re-listed as a threatened species in Canada following the Nov. 24-29 meeting of the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada in Ottawa. More
Protection for Baitfish Sought by Environmental Groups
(The Tampa Tribune)
When the Asian market developed an insatiable taste for Florida’s freshwater turtles, commercial harvesters swept across the state, shipping tons of the native reptiles across the ocean. State officials in 2009 began scrambling to implement protections before global demand could wipe out the creatures. Audubon Florida and the Pew Charitable Trusts want to head off a similar potential problem with small forage fish. More
WILDLIFE HEALTH AND DISEASE NEWS
Dead Dolphins in Ga. Killed by Measles-Like Virus
(The Associated Press via Sacramento Bee)
A disease that has killed hundreds of bottlenose dolphins in the mid-Atlantic and southeastern United States has been confirmed in Georgia, state wildlife officials said. Four dolphins found dead at Wassaw and Jekyll Islands in November have tested positive for dolphin morbillivirus, Department of Natural Resources officials said. The virus is similar to measles and affects the lungs, brain and immune system of marine mammals. More
INTERNATIONAL NEWS
China Bans Serving of Wild Animal Meat at Official Dinners
(Deccan Chronicle)
China has banned serving of rare delicacies made from shark fins, bird nests and wild animal products at official reception dinners as part of wildlife conservation efforts. A document outlining new regulations, jointly issued by the general offices of the Communist Party of China and the Central Cabinet is to regulate the use of public funding on receptions by local authorities to receive visiting party or governmental officials. More
Predator Insurance: When Livestock Becomes Prey, Conservationists Pay
(National Geographic)
A set of amazing images went viral in November when four Kenyan villagers chased down and captured — live — two cheetahs that had been feasting on their goats. The story may have had a much different ending, with the endangered animals shot like so many others around the world that pose a threat to people’s livelihoods. But this lucky pair ended up in the care of the Kenya Wildlife Service because the villagers wanted to be paid for the damage caused by the cats. More
Can We Avert the End of Elephants?
(Scientific American)
Within the next 10 years, Africa could lose 100,000 elephants — a fifth of the population — to poachers if the slaughter for their ivory tusks continues at current rates, according to a new analysis. Some 22,000 elephants were killed in 2012. And large-scale seizures of illegal ivory (those that involve at least 500 kilograms in a single transaction) are at record highs. More