It’s still open!!

I thought this money-wasting imaginary benefit to a few Cody businesses died when Dick Cheney went away.

Sylvan Pass opens for winter travel. Billings Gazette.

Old Faithful is a very faithful showcase of the Lord's great power within creation.

Old Faithful is one of the most well known natural wonders at Yellowstone. It is not the only thing there however. Check out the entire Yellowstone Gallery at my Fine Art America Store by clicking here. 74 images from this great natural wonder are waiting for you! Check them out today!

The feel at the Paint Pots in Yellowstone is quite mystical!

The Upper Terrace Drive at Mammoth Hot Springs is a neat drive! This is just one view from there.

Mr E. H. Chapman posed for this cabinet card photograph at the studio of J. S. Wooley in Ballston, New York.  He inscribed the back of this card indicating that he turned 67 years old on September 17th, 1895. He gave the card to an unidentified person, to mark the occassion.  Mr Chapman’s eyes show a certain wisdom that only comes with age. His pipe and straw hat add much character to the image of this older gentleman.  Ballston, NY is in Saratoga County, and north of Schenectady. Research reveals that Edw H Chapman was President of the Ballston town board in 1856 and was involved in the manufacture of woolen goods and in 1867 had a business manufacturing bricks. Research also reveals that the photographer of this cabinet card is Jesse Sumner Wooley (1867-1943). At age 13 he worked for a photographer in Saratoga and in 1887 he opened his own photographic studio in Ballston Spa. He became a noted photographer as a result of his taking expeditions and chronicling them in the form of lantern slide/stereoptic lectures. In 1893 he and noted landscape photographer Seneca Ray Stoddard took a photographic expedition exploring the Adirondacks and they prepared a photographic lecture about this trip. Wooley also took similar expeditions to Florida (preparing a photographic historical presentation), the Chicago Exposition (Worlds Fair), New York City (100th anniversary of George Washington’s inaugaration), and to California (Yellowstone National Park). The Florida stereoptic lecture is one of the few professional lantern slide/stereoptic lectures that survive today.

YNP Park wolves are down another 6 % this year, but there was a 12% increase outside the Park in ‘09-

Story in the Jackson Hole News and Guide. By Cory Hatch.

There are 4 full-time packs in Jackson Hole and one part-time pack.

The year’s population results appear to be a small increase in wolves in Wyoming. Everyone should recognize that those 20% increase years in any of the 3 states are gone. There will probably be about 375 305 wolves as the official figure for Wyoming at the end of this year.

It’s good to see a recognition that well established packs are less of a threat to livestock than new packs.  One should note that this is some evidence that hunting wolves at random may be counterproductive in terms of livestock losses. Of course, livestock losses to wolves are so small in the big scheme of things it probably doesn’t matter.

Although it is old news here, it is good to see these facts being widely disseminated-

Wolves decline in Yellowstone. By Janice Lloyd.  USA Today

As predicted, the remaining elk in the Park are tough critters that can beat up on the wolves.

I took this shot in Montana on the road between Gallatin Gateway (where Michael’s Aunt Jackie lives) and the entrance to Yellowstone National Park. We were spending Christmas at Jackie’s, along with two of Michael’s sisters and their families, in 1995. This trip included my first try at snowshoes (awkward, as expected), hiking up a mountain to find a Christmas tree Jackie had picked out (ask me about that adventure sometime), the snowmobile-on-frozen-lake-ice-fishing excursion (no luck for anyone), a fun (but very bumpy) snow coach ride with everyone through Yellowstone the day after Christmas (a gift from Aunt Jackie), me suddenly sinking waist deep in snow (along with Michael’s brother-in-law, Pete) while we were trying to get that perfect landscape shot (but we saved the cameras!), a sightseeing/shopping trip to Bozeman, and more cold and snow than you could possibly imagine. I probably shot this image with my N90s. I also brought along my Fuji G617 panoramic camera—I’ll have to find those really wide transparencies and get them scanned some day. 35mm slide scanned by ScanCafe.com

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Once the holidays are over, many of us will start to plan for our 2010 vacations.  To help with planning and give you trip ideas, we’re starting the Family Road Trip Series.  Our first destination is Yellowstone National Park.  Post your tips and ideas here.  Have a great pit stop between your town and Yellowstone?  Tell us!  Tips about what to pack?  Post them here!  You can also send me a tweet on Twitter.

A detailed northern range wolf update-

At a time when the wolf population in Yellowstone is declining and interest from the news media down, Kathie Lynch has put together a most detailed report on the activities of the Park’s northern range wolves.

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Thanksgiving 2009 wolf update. By © Kathie Lynch

Thanksgiving in Yellowstone included being thankful that I was able to see wolves on three out of four days. With the deaths of many wolves and poor pup survival, population numbers are down, and packs are more difficult to find and observe.

The visit did yield several unexpected surprises, however. Mollie’s pack wolf 586M journeyed from the south to pay a visit to Lamar Valley. We were so surprised to discover this gorgeous, dark gray wolf one morning north of the Druid’s traditional rendezvous site.

He was absolutely beautiful, with an excellent hair coat and no sign whatsoever of the terrible mange that he and the rest of the Mollie’s had endured last winter and spring. The sight of 586M looking so magnificent offered hope that the wolves, at least those with strong immune systems, can overcome the scourge of mange.

Although 586M was probably looking for one of the many available Druid Peak pack females, instead he found three burly brothers, the Hoo Doos. These two-year-old blacks dispersed from the Hurricane Mesa pack in Wyoming, outside of the Park. They include Wyoming 697M, Wyoming 682M, and an uncollared male.

The three Hoo Doos have dropped in to the Lamar Valley several times in recent months, perhaps also looking for Druid females for the upcoming breeding season. On the day I saw them, they had probably chased Mollie’s 586M. But, none of them had found the Druid females because that pack was far away to the west, way up Hellroaring Creek, at the time.

The 10 remaining Druids have not spent much time in Lamar Valley lately. Things have changed this fall since the death of alpha female 569F, the disappearance of three other pack members (“Bright Bar,” 645F, and the male gray yearling), and the eventual loss of all of the pack’s pups.

Five sixty-nine was born in 2004 in the last litter sired by legendary Druid alpha 21M. She, along with her sister, 529F, and the two Leopold pack interlopers, 480M and 302M, resurrected the Druid Peak pack after 21M died. She died, killed by other wolves, way up the Lamar River sometime in September or October.

Of the perhaps nine Druid pups born this year to two mothers, 569F and “Dull Bar,” none survived. Only four, all with severe mange, returned to the Lamar rendezvous site in late August, and eventually all four just disappeared.

The loss of 569F leaves the Druids in a dicey situation. Alpha male 480M is probably related to (as the father or uncle) all seven of the pack’s adult females (571F, 691F, “White Line,” “Dull Bar,” “Thin Female,” 690F, and the “Black Female Yearling”).

Those females will be looking for an unrelated male for the upcoming breeding season in February. They have already attracted at least two serious suitors, including a limping gray male and a black male, both of whom have mingled with various Druid females. The limping gray’s strategy has been to simply hang around the outskirts. However, the bold black seems to have his eye on the alpha position, and 480M has kept busy running him off.

The upshot for 480M may be that he must leave the Druids in order to find breeding opportunities for himself. The only other Druid males are the yearlings “Black Bar” and “Triangle Blaze,” both of whom are coming of age and may also have to disperse in search of unrelated females.

All of the Druids are still suffering greatly from mange. Many have pencil tails and bald areas of hair loss from scratching at the mite. With the recent double-digit below zero temperatures, the mangy wolves are so cold, they can’t even lie down on the snow to rest. They often just stand in one place and appear to even try to sleep standing up.

The one ray of hope as far as the mange goes is that, if they don’t die of hypothermia or infection first, wolves with strong immune systems do appear to eventually recover. The now spectacularly beautiful and healthy Mollie’s and Blacktail pack wolves suffered mightily with mange last winter and spring and did fully recover.

The Blacktail pack now stands at nine wolves, after this fall’s death of probably the most famous (and infamous!) wolf in the world, nine-year-old alpha 302M (killed by other wolves), the disappearance of two of his six pups, and the death of the two-year old black male, “Small Blaze” (hit by a vehicle in Little America).

Known to many as “Casanova,” 302M leaves a tremendous and enduring legacy. Born to Leopold pack founders 2M and 7F in 2000, 302 spent his youth being chased away from the Druid girls by their father, 21M. Although his younger brother, 480M, eventually became the new Druid alpha, 302M did his share to resurrect the Druids, while also making sure that he kept in touch with his legion of other female admirers.

Just one year before his death, he lit out with five Druid male yearlings and hooked up with three Agate Creek pack females to found the Blacktail pack. At last an alpha in his own right, he made their home in his old Leopold territory and sired six strapping pups this year.

In August, on my last morning in the Park, I had the very great thrill and privilege of watching 302 in one of his finest hours. While beta female 642F frantically searched for the six mischievous pups who had wandered far away to the west, 302 sprang into action and ran to find them. (Yes, he actually hurried, for once!) I will never forget the sight of those rascal pups bounding joyfully to greet dear old dad and then 302 proudly leading the rollicking procession back home!

“Big Brown,” a two-year-old Druid nephew of 302M, has stepped up to be the new alpha to 693F. Other pack members include beta 642F, 692F (“The Old Lady”), the male “Medium Gray,” and 302’s four pups (three black and one gray). They range far and wide over the Blacktail Plateau, south toward Prospect Mountain and east to Hellroaring. Their huge territory makes them more difficult than ever to locate and see.

Other wolf watching opportunities are limited. The Agates only number three (alpha 472F, alpha “Big Blaze,” and 715F; the Druid male “High Side” has disappeared). They have not been very visible, but occasionally appear briefly on or near Specimen Ridge.

Agate disperser 471F and her alpha, Montana 147M, seem to be around the Wraith Falls area, but are almost never seen.

The Canyon pack may only have three wolves now (the gray alpha female, the black alpha male 712M, and a gray former Mollie’s male). Unfortunately, two other pack members (587M and the black male pup) have not been seen for quite a while. However, it is hard to get information on sightings now that the roads to the interior have closed. Perhaps we will have a nice surprise if all five Canyons show up around Mammoth this winter.

Not much is known about which Cottonwood pack wolves may have survived the Montana wolf-hunting season. Alpha 527F, her daughter 716F, and at least two other Cottonwoods were killed then. However, three unidentified gray adults and a black pup with a white tip tail were seen at Slough Creek in November, so perhaps some others did survive.

The fledgling Grayling Pack (“Tripod’s Group”) recently lost their alpha female 632F, “Tripod,” the three-legged wolf. She was killed by other wolves.

The Everts pack also recently lost its alpha female, who was also killed by other wolves. That leaves alpha 685M, 470F, 684M and two female yearlings. The Everts had five pups, but none survived.

And, yet another pack, Gibbon Meadows, lost its alpha female (537F) due to intraspecific strife this fall. The Gibbons had six gray pups, but I don’t know how many have survived.

One other noteworthy wolf, Oxbow 536F, recently died of natural causes. Born a Leopold, she founded the ill-fated Oxbow Creek pack in the Hellroaring territory. She was the last known Oxbow survivor after the attack by the Agates in September 2008. She managed to survive on her own for another year, suffering from severe mange, and even hooked up with Everts 684M in her final days. At least she died a peaceful death and was found in a sleeping position, with her head on her paws.

The Quadrant pack has had a very successful year. Their territory is in the Swan Lake Flats/Quadrant Mountain area, south of Mammoth. Led by founder former Leopold 469F and 695M, the pack also includes all three of their gray pups and perhaps other adults.

Surprisingly, a few of the former Slough Creek wolves occasionally appear. In October, reigning alphas “Hook” and former Agate 383M were seen at Slough Creek. One or two other black female Sloughs have also been seen, so you can never count the Sloughs out. After all that the Sloughs have endured (the loss of all 2006 pups in the siege by the “Unknown Group” and the loss of all 2008 pups to disease), it is a joy to witness such resilience.

With the deaths of six alphas (Blacktail 302M, Druid 569F, Cottonwood 527F, Grayling 632F, Gibbon 537F, and the Everts female) this fall and only seven pups (four Blacktails and three Quadrants) surviving on the Northern Range, the official count of YNP wolves at the end of December will surely be down.

We can only hope that the Druids beat the mange and that the genes passed down by those gritty and memorable alphas provide the spark and fuel to reignite their packs and reinvigorate the Park’s wolf population.

Some publicity regarding my photography, albeit six months old. This summer I was featured in the Concordia E-Newsletter concerning one of my photographs which was published in Photographer’s Forum Magazine 29th Annual College Photography Contest. Hey, I guess going back to school isn’t so bad after all! Below is the photograph, it was taken in Yellowstone National Park, August, 2008. Photographer’s Forum Magazine also holds a contest which is open to all photographers. In January another one of my photographs will be published as a result of entering that contest!

A collaborative show with mixed media artist, Jamila: http://www.jamilaproductions.com/art

Thornton Room
150 W 25th ST
New York, NY 10001
www.thorntonstudio.com/gallery

DECEMBER 10-20, 2009

INTRODUCTION

Our relationship with the physical world has challenged the efforts of great thinkers: Plato, Plotinus, Newton, Descartes, Spinoza, and many others; and despite demonstrations of modern science mapping the inner workings of the brain, body and its external environment, we continue to grapple with abstract complexities of the self—one seemingly material and real, yet fleeting and elusive.

Meditations in Entropy channels this web of thought through image, texture, scent, and sound. Rather than speculating on nature, Béland and Jamila work within it, observing the forms that surround them to capture, edit, bend and shape their creations. The inherent entropy of the subjects—residual elements of the natural world—inspire transformations with photography, digital web ASCII conversions, and traditional mixed media applications.

ARTIST STATEMENT

Reduced to just two-percent of their original five-million-acre sprawl, the Coastal Redwoods of Northern California are the world’s oldest living structures whose origins trace some five thousand years. Filtering the atmosphere, it’s feasible that organic residue from these giants have spread to all covers of the planet over the course of their lifetimes. Taking a digital photograph of the Redwood Landscape, each pixel was dissected and assigned a CSS color code to reorganize the image as a living Web body. Expanding to subjects across America: from the Coast of Maine, Yellowstone, Olympic Peninsula, and the urban landscape of New York City, each scene captures an organic process in transition; whether molecular (transpiration), alive (Holometabola), or in decay (senescence), remnants from America’s living museums digitally transform to carry the inevitability of entropy into mankind’s living creation: The Internet.

Mikeal Béland is a photographer and mixed media artist from the Rocky Mountain milieu of Yellowstone Country in Southern Montana. His early life was shaped by a love of the natural world, influenced by the cattle ranching and outdoorsman culture of his family. An Eagle Scout, classically trained pianist, and 4-H Equestrian, his early photography, visual arts, mixed media, and musical performance achieved multiple accolades at local and state competitions.

While at the University of Washington in Seattle for Visual Arts & Comparative History, he embarked on Landscape Intrusions in 2008, a 3-volume expedition documenting wildfires, deforestation, habitat destruction, and human influence on America’s World Heritage Sites: Yellowstone National Park, Redwood National Park, and Washington’s Olympic Peninsula. After traveling to New York in September, he worked under fashion photographer Andrea Blanch, contributed to Thornton Studio Photographers, and debuted as one of GLAAD’s top 100 Artists at the OUTAuction NYC in 2008 and 2009. He divides his time between the East Coast, Rocky Mountains and West Coast working on fine art photography, documentaries, editorials & portraiture, and digital media projects.

For full work information, please visit: http://mbeland.viewbook.com/fine_art_meditations_in_entropy

To inquire for purchase, please contact: mbeland@lotuseffectdesign.com

There haven’t been cattle on it for 8 years, but now it is officially closed to grazing-

Despite the absence of cattle on the butte, its official status as a grazing allotment allows Montana Department of Livestock and the Montana Stockgrowers Assn. to bleat about the dangers of brucellosis from the bison that migrate out of Yellowstone every winter (and especially spring) onto the butte. Now their propaganda is even more just thin vapor.

Horse Butte is used by all kinds of rare species the Forest Service says in addition to bison. Much of the Butte is also private and owned by a family that supports free roaming bison.

The difficulty closing this area officially to grazing underscores how hard it is to get livestock off any public lands regardless of the other more important values of a place.

National Forest closes Horse Butte grazing. By Daniel Person. Bozeman Chronicle Staff Writer.

The south side of Horse Butte in April. The snow melts earlier here than anywhere else. Photo copyright Ralph Maughan

Added. Here is the actual Forest Service Horse Butte-suitability analysis

And now for something quite different, we were in stunning Montana at the beginning of September for my first Dude Ranch Vacation experience. Located in remove Gallatin Gateway, the Covered Wagon Ranch was a very unique experience that involved everything Western.

Memories on horseback

The ranch has been open to guests since 1925, and many of the lodgings are traditional log cabins built in the 1920’s and have lovely fireplaces and rustic furniture. There is a hot tub and a large warm lodge where everyone gathers after the days’ worth of guest ranch activities, which is focused around horseback riding. That is not where it ends; there is great fly fishing and a lot of canoeing, kayaking, whitewater rafting, hiking and mountain biking going on. We were surrounded by some of the best fly fishing waters in the world, including over 120 miles of water in the Gallatin Canyon alone, plus all the legendary waters of Yellowstone National Park. Obviously, this was more than just a horseback riding vacation! They also offer overnight pack trips. We are tempted to go back and give one of those a shot.

I loved the horseback riding, and the horses were tame and well-behaved. The scenery out there was really stunning, and I was so happy to be able to move into the wild on horseback and take in all the wild space that Montana still has.

Scientists confirm 500-mile finger of molten rock under Yellowstone-

Park’s giant magma plume eating up mountains. By Cory Hatch. Jackson Hole Daily.

Actually the hot spot is probably stationary. The apparent surface movement is due to the North American plate drifting to the southwest over the spot. The new information (at least to me) that is interesting is that the top of the plume is deformed like the wind blows smoke from a fire. So while the internal origin of the actual hotspot may still be under what is now SE Oregon, the magma rises at an angle. It rises toward the northeast.

I was also interested to learn that the source of the hot spot is very deep in the Earth. It is at least 500 miles deep. It might go all the way to the core.

The fact that the plume rises at an angle might well explain geologically recent volcanic activity well to the southwest of Yellowstone Park, e.g., the Craters of the Moon lava flows and cinder cones and the lesser known Willow Creek cinder cones and lava flows to the north of Soda Springs, Idaho. It might take a long time for the continental plate to pass completely over the magma plume.

My photos of the Willow Creek Lava Field.

http://www.panoramio.com/photo/4245367
http://www.panoramio.com/photo/12549114

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Yellowstone a petri dish for climate change ——————–

The national park’s virtually intact ecosystem, where the hand of man remains light, is a natural place for scientists to study the biological effects of global warming.

By Julie Car, LA Times

December 6 2009

Reporting from Yellowstone National Park — Roy Renkin is a biologist by training but a detective by inclination, and something about the willows was nagging him. The complete article can be viewed here.

My Take:

Yellowstone National Park is a natural wonder. It too is being affected by climate change. How long will we let this happen? Insect infestations are destroying the trees and forests. Generations of visitors have been able to see it at its best. Make sure you are not too late to experience its beauty!

Yellowstone a petri dish for climate change ——————–

The national park’s virtually intact ecosystem, where the hand of man remains light, is a natural place for scientists to study the biological effects of global warming.

By Julie Cart

December 6 2009

Reporting from Yellowstone National Park — Roy Renkin is a biologist by training but a detective by inclination, and something about the willows was nagging him. The complete article can be viewed at:
http://www.latimes.com/news/nation-and-world/la-na-yellowstone6-2009dec06,0,6081255.story Visit latimes.com at http://www.latimes.com

MY TAKE:

Mother Earth needs to be protected at all costs! We all need to take action no matter how small or large. The planet is in trouble and it will not get better without our help. America has beautiful natural resources like the Yellowstone National Park. For many of us we go to these places to take in the wonders of our world and come away more peaceful. Yes, even parks contribute to our well being,… so shouldn’t we try our best to keep them healthy as well?

It’s time to get our legislators to listen to us. Take action and make your voices heard. Some states, like my own in California, are restricting access to local state parks because of budget cuts. We need the National and State park systems to be preserved for those generations that follow.

Ted Turner gets OK for Yellowstone bison on ranch. By Matthew Brown. Associated Press Writer.

Earlier Robert Hoskins had criticized this. Illegal plan just makes Turner richer

Below is this week’s Buffalo Field Campaign Update from the Field. I’ve been holding my tongue about “Buffalo Battle” which is a pilot episode for a possible new series about the bison issue and the Buffalo Field Campaign. The episode will air on December 5th on Planet Green.

I’ve seen two early cuts of the episode and I think it does a great job of explaining the issue and showing how the Buffalo Field Campaign conducts its field operations. It was filmed this past spring during the big hazing operations which moved the buffalo off of Horse Butte back into Yellowstone National Park.

Buffalo Battle is directed by Matt Testa who produced The Buffalo War, another documentary about the buffalo issue and the Buffalo Field Campaign, in 2000.

We are excited and hoping that this will become a series so that the light of day will shine on this issue and the plight of the buffalo. I hope you can watch.

Ken Cole,
BFC Board Member

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Buffalo Field Campaign

Yellowstone Bison
Update from the Field
November 19, 2009

BFC Klean Kanteen Water Bottles Make Perfect Gifts. Order Yours Today While They Last!

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In this issue:
* Update from the Field
* TAKE ACTION: Help the Buffalo with Your Comments to APHIS
* Buffalo Battle: BFC Will Be on TV’s Planet Green!
* Do You Like to Cook? BFC Needs You!
* Buffalo Field Campaign Wish List
* Last Words
* Kill Tally
* Important Links

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* Update from the Field

The first five days of Montana’s buffalo hunt have so far been uneventful. We expect it will remain so until buffalo actually begin migrating into Montana.

The state and federal government agencies responsible for the Interagency Bison Management Plan (IBMP) met this week in Livingston, Montana. For the first time ever, Native American representatives were allowed a seat at the decision-making table. Nez Perce and Confederated Salish and Kootenai tribal members as well as representatives from the Inter Tribal Bison Cooperative were finally able to engage in the decision-making process. This is precedent-setting and extremely good news for both the buffalo and the tribes and we hope the tribes will become deeply engaged in educating the agencies and helping the buffalo realize a better future.

If you were receiving last year’s Updates, you might remember that the agencies promised, in their Adaptive Management Plan (AMP), to have greater tolerance for certain bison on certain lands outside of Yellowstone at certain times of the year. Despite the fact that these less than certain promises were never fully lived up to, the Department of Livestock (DOL) this week asked the other agencies to amend the AMP and prohibit any bison from occupying lands on the south side of the Madison River. In the words of the DOL, the changes agreed upon last year were “too lenient” on the bison and showed “too much tolerance.” Revealing their ignorance of bison ecology, DOL representatives claimed there was “no habitat” on the south side of the Madison, an area with expansive meadows that BFC has observed to be a favorite of the bison during periods of each our our thirteen years in the field.

The DOL also complained that buffalo were “breaching” man-made zones and “threatening” cattle operations. But when asked for specifics on these cattle operations, livestock inspectors and even the Montana State Veterinarian were unable to specify more than one, and simply stated with a wave of the arm, “oh, there’s a lot of them.” The DOL’s main complaint was that buffalo were too difficult to haze in the thick woods, and they simply don’t want them on the landscape anyway.

In a surprising and heartening turn of events, Yellowstone Superintendent Suzanne Lewis and Gallatin National Forest Supervisor Mary Erickson expressed open disagreement with the livestock agency, and openly spoke against the DOL’s requested changes. Lewis and Erickson pointed out that one year of data was insufficient to base such a drastic digression upon. They also reminded the DOL that there was no real risk of brucellosis transmission and that the buffalo need habitat outside the park.

After hours of circular sparring, the DOL’s changes were rejected and the agencies will continue to allow a mere 30 buffalo to occupy Gallatin National Forest lands along the south side. Agency representatives also announced that bull bison would be allowed north of Duck Creek, where previously they have not been allowed. Last June three bull bison were captured and shipped to slaughter for grazing in this area, even though bulls pose no risk of brucellosis transmission. Perhaps angry at being rebuffed, the DOL insisted that if the buffalo inhabiting the south side “breached” more than twice, they would haze, capture, or slaughter them.

Regardless of the decisions made at this IBMP meeting, until the Plan is replaced with one more meaningful and respectful, the ultimate authority will rest with Montana’s State Veterinarian and America’s last wild bison will be at the mercy of the livestock industry. For now the DOL and partner agencies remain entrenched in the IBMP, and the DOL will make every attempt to keep Montana free of wild bison. Buffalo Field Campaign, with your support, will be here to defend the buffalo and their right to roam every step of the way.

ROAM FREE!
~Stephany

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TAKE ACTION: Help the Buffalo with Your Comments to APHIS

More buffalo advocates have submitted comments to the Animal & Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) about their Bovine Brucellosis Program, which maintains the status quo of harming wild bison and elk in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. Comments are being accepted through December 4, 2009, so if you haven’t submitted yours yet please do so today. If you have, thank you, and please spread the word to save these herds! Click here to learn more and submit your comments today!

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Buffalo Battle: BFC Will Be on TV’s Planet Green!

Tune in on December 5, 2009 at 10pm EST to Discovery’s Planet Green for Buffalo Battle, a new documentary-style TV program about the work of Buffalo Field Campaign. The one-hour program is expected to air in the United States and Europe. We will bring you more details as we learn them, but for now you can learn a little bit by visiting Planet Green.

While the link calls the program “Buffalo Warriors” look for “Buffalo Battle” on Planet Green December 5th!

Many thanks to Buffalo Battle’s Executive Producer Matt Testa and his amazing crew at Authentic TV for being in the field with us, learning from all sides of the issue, and helping BFC tell the world about the last wild buffalo!

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* Do You Like to Cook? BFC Needs You!

Buffalo Field Campaign is looking for cooks to prepare meals for volunteers during this campaign season. We’re looking for people who can commit to at least two weeks, though a month would be preferred. BFC caters to all dietary needs, and meat is locally harvested. Please contact our kitchen coordinator, Brandy, for a more detailed description of the job at kitchen@buffalofieldcampaign.org.

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* Buffalo Field Campaign Wish List

There are lots of ways for you to make a difference for wild buffalo. BFC’s Wish List is one way to visualize the breadth of Buffalo Field Campaign’s reach and capacity to support wild buffalo year-round. It’s also a great way to match your interests with our day-to-day needs, prayers and wishes. Two things that we are in particular need of right now are tools our mechanic can use to maintain and repair our fleet of aging vehicles and frequent flier miles we can use to travel between Montana and Washington, DC.

Field Patrols form the backbone of BFC’s efforts, allowing us to actively protect the bison on their native habitat, document every action taken against them, and share their compelling story with the world. Unfortunately, we are dependent upon vehicles to carry patrols to and from the field. We are incredibly blessed this season to have Dennis, a professional mechanic, as our mechanic coordinator. But in order for him to work at full capacity and keep our cars in working order, he needs some essential tools.

As important as field patrols are, they alone will not bring about the protection the bison need and deserve. The underlying policy must change. To this end, we are planning a series of trips to Washington, DC to educate and inform members of Congress and the Obama Administration on the importance of America’s only continuously wild population of bison and the dire situation they face every time they attempt to follow their instinctual migration to winter and spring habitat. If you have frequent flier miles on any of the following airlines, we will put them to effective and immediate use to protect the buffalo: Delta/Northwest, United, US Airways, and Continental.

Please click here to view these and other items on our wish list.

Thank you for supporting a wish and for helping us to meet a need in the field!

Donations can be mailed to:

Buffalo Field Campaign
PO Box 957, West Yellowstone, MT 59758

Thank you!

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* Last Words

“If you talk to the animals they will talk to you and you will know each other. If you do not talk to them, you will not know them. And what you do not know you will fear. What one fears one destroys.”

–Chief Dan George

Many thanks to Andrea for sending this beautiful quote along for inclusion! Do you have submissions for Last Words? Send them to bfc-media@wildrockies.org. Thank you all for the poems, songs and stories you have been sending; you’ll see them here!

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* Kill Tally

AMERICAN BISON ELIMINATED from the last wild population in the U.S.
2009-2010: 0

2008-2009 Total: 22
2008-2009 Slaughter: 3
2008-2009 Hunt: 1
2008-2009 Quarantine: 0
2008-2009 Shot by Agents: 2
2008-2009 Highway Mortality: 16

2007-2008 Total: 1,631

Total Since 2000: 3,702*
*includes lethal government action, quarantine, hunts, highway mortalities
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Media & Outreach
Buffalo Field Campaign
P.O. Box 957
West Yellowstone, MT 59758
406-646-0070
bfc-media@wildrockies.org
http://www.buffalofieldcampaign.org

BFC is the only group working in the field every day
in defense of the last wild buffalo population in the U.S.

KEEP BFC ON THE FRONTLINES WITH A TAX DEDUCTIBLE CONTRIBUTION TODAY

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Physics physics physics… such a nightmare…

Anyway, this geology course I’m taking right now is supposed to be one that I’m not good at. In fact it turned out to be really really interesting and I’m doing quite well.

We all know about volcanoes, earthquakes, tsunamis and so forth. But in this class, I’m doing a lil more in depth of these natural disasters. Probably not so much in depth, then perhaps I would not do so great, but just enough so I could have some foundation knowledge about these disasters. Okay so I’m living in California now, and we’re studying about the earthquakes in the past (like the Great San Francisco earthquake,) how they happened and evacuation strategies when we see them coming. In addition, I used to live in Washington state, and we learned about the active and inactive volcanoes up there. My friends and I once drove up to Mt. Rainier for sightseeing, that mountain turned out to be an active volcano and there is a chance of eruption.

 
Space Needle and Mt. Rainier, the two great images of Seattle

We should probably all move away from the West Coast.

Funny thing is Vietnam, where I’m from, never has these sort of disasters. Except for some floods once in a while, Vietnam is a super safe place to live. FYI and a lil out of topic: Gunshots are rare in Vietnam. I might do another post talking about how peaceful Vietnam is.

So feds, live with it and start protecting the bear’s habitat better-

link fixed! Judge keeps Yellowstone grizzly on threatened list. AP