The Upper Hoback of the Wyoming Range is part of a vital wildlife corridor for many species, including the imperiled Canada lynx.

It’s been almost a year since we heard about the U.S. Forest Service’s plan to allow oil and gas drilling in the Upper Hobackregion of the Wyoming Range, but the wait was well worth it. We learned on Friday that PXP, the oil company proposing to drill 136 new wells in a critical wildlife corridor, agreed to sell their leases and forego the project entirely!

This is a major victory for the broad coalition known as The Citizens for the Wyoming Range, which has been battling the environmentally damaging proposal for more than a year and a half. With the help of the Trust for Public Land, the coalition negotiated a buyout of all of PXP’s existing drilling leases throughout the entire Bridger-Teton National Forest, and the leases will be retired forever. That means the myriad species that use the forest–deer, elk, moose, bears, bobcats, pronghorn antelope, lynx and more–can finally breathe a sigh of relief.

Defenders played an important role in raising awareness of the disastrous drilling proposal. By sending out alerts to our members, we were able to help generate more than 60,000 comments in opposition to the proposal. Further, Defenders expert David Gaillard led an independent effort to document wildlife that travel through the Upper Hoback region. He set up remote cameras to photograph all the species that would be at risk of losing vital habitat if drilling was allowed to occur. See a photo slideshow of his trip to setup the cameras, as well as the video below summarizing what he found:

Tragically, Dave died at the end of last year in a ski accident, so it only feels right to dedicate this incredible win for wildlife to all his hard work. And thanks to all Defenders supporters for helping to make this a lasting part of Dave’s legacy!

Read more about Defenders efforts to protect wildlife in our national forests.

Fifty years ago today, a small book was published that awakened us all to the plight of our planet and arguably changed the course of history. I know it changed mine.

Rachel Carson (1907-1964), author of Silent Spring, pictured here in 1940 as a biologist with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Silent Spring was the book, and its author Rachel Carson was one of the early pioneer women scientists to work for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service during the 1930s. Decades later, I would follow in her footsteps, both literally and figuratively. As a biologist working for the same agency during the ‘90s, I had the great fortune to occupy her old office in the Department of the Interior building for part of my tenure. Then, when I was appointed director of the Fish and Wildlife Service in 1997, I stood on her shoulders as I led the federal government’s efforts to protect America’s natural heritage.

I remember reading Silent Spring for the first time when I was in high school. By then, DDT had already been banned nationwide, but America’s wildlife was still reeling from its devastating effects. Carson’s prescient writings compelled me to recognize the damage being done to the planet, especially the majestic birds that I had grown to love as a child. Through her eyes, I also began to see that it was within our power to stop the poisoning of our environment and save the growing number of species teetering on the brink of extinction.

During college I became more hopeful as I oversaw the release of captive-bred endangered peregrine falcons back into the wild. Falcon populations had plummeted after decades of using DDT, which made eggshells too thin and caused them to break. But thanks to dedicated conservation efforts and tougher pesticide restrictions, falcons, bald eagles and many other birds of prey were finally starting to recover. I felt very fortunate to play a direct role in righting a wrong, undoing decades of uncontrolled pesticide use and poor management of our most vulnerable species.

Peregrine falcons are one of many species that suffered greatly from decades of DDT poisoning. They have made a strong recovery as a result of conservation efforts and tougher pesticide restrictions brought on–at least in part–by the publication of Silent Spring.

I’ve often reflected back on Rachel Carson’s incredible courage and leadership as she challenged agricultural scientists and the government to change how the natural word was viewed and protected.  I’ve done my best throughout my career to highlight the importance of science, stewardship, and ethical responsibility and to emulate her courageous leadership as well.

Now, as president of Defenders of Wildlife (of which Carson was briefly a board member), I’m privileged to carry on that legacy. Each day presents a new opportunity to raise awareness of the threats facing our wildlife and the habitats they need to survive. Fueled by the passion of our members and supporters and grounded in sound science, we aim to make positive changes that ultimately benefit all Americans. In that respect, the message of Silent Spring is as relevant today as it was in 1962.

After 50 years, I wish I could say that all our problems have been solved. Instead, we’ve replaced DDT with other dangerous pesticides, we continue to lose more wildlife habitat each year at an alarming rate, the number of species on the brink of extinction continues to climb, and global warming threatens to throw many ecosystems out of balance. Yet, I’m still hopeful. And I firmly believe we can achieve lasting solutions to the environmental challenges we face today.

People everywhere are waking up to the reality of pollution and climate change and the loss of biodiversity, and they’re realizing it’s up to all of us to make a difference. Thankfully, like those of us who grew up reading Silent Spring decades ago, a new generation has recognized that nothing is more important than protecting the planet that sustains us all. With our collective efforts to create a cleaner, greener future, Rachel Carson’s spirit and call to action lives on.

Defenders’ President & CEO Jamie Rappaport Clark

Kalon Baughan is a man on a mission. In partnership with Defenders and the research and education organization Wild Things Unlimited, he’s been working hard as a citizen scientist to document wildlife activity in Montana, and the work has really paid off. Using 10 motion-activated cameras, he has helped us document 500 photos of 53 separate wolverine events in just one year!

While we cannot tell for sure, we are darn certain we have documented up to nine different wolverines based on the unique color patterns of fur on their face, throat, and chest. Best of all, three of those wolverines were young wolverines, called kits! We’ve had our first documentation of a wolverine traveling with two kits; earlier this summer we had images of a different adult traveling with one kit.

On the prowl

Cyclops mugging for the camera

Cyclops plus two

What are you lookin at?

One wolverine that I endearingly call Cyclops is a fascinating individual (see pictures). Cyclops appears to have heavily damaged or lost his/her eye (boy, what I’d give to know how!)…yet s/he seems to be doing well and has two kits in tow.  While wolverines have a reputation for being hostile loners, they can actually be quite the social characters. Father wolverines don’t abandon their families – they visit the dens of their kits, and for up to two years juvenile wolverines may remain in their parents’ territories sometimes traveling with their mother, sometimes with their father, and sometimes alone.  Thus we cannot know whether Cyclops is a male or female for certain without visual or genetic evidence.  Either way, we’ll keep an eye out (sorry!) for further evidence of Cyclops’ adventures.

Beyond the cool pictures, we’re gaining valuable insights into wolverine activities with this work. Interestingly, the wolverine activity we’ve captured on camera occurs at low-elevation, non-alpine habitat where wolverines are not typically known to spend a lot of time in Montana, especially during summer. Additionally, this high density of wolverines in one small region is quite uncommon. Our guess is that this may be related to the fact that wolverines are no longer trapped in this part of Montana, which is likely to have subsequently reduced human-related mortality in the area.

Wolverines elsewhere in the state aren’t so lucky. Up to five wolverines may be trapped statewide in Montana within designated trapping districts, according to current regulations.  While five may seem like a small number, it may still be too many when you consider there are only an estimated 250-300 individual wolverines in the entire lower-48!  Additionally, with wolf trapping now recently legalized in Montana and Idaho (despite efforts from Defenders, our members and other wolf supporters), concern has risen for increased potential of incidental trapping of wolverines, lynx, and other wildlife.

That’s why the efforts of Kalon and Wild Things Unlimited to document wildlife in Montana are so important. We need to learn as much as we can about wolverines and other rare carnivores to add to the understanding of how and where they are vulnerable, and what we can do to protect them. We’re thrilled to be able to support citizen science that ultimately helps conserve imperiled species. Keep up the great work, Kalon and Wild Things!

Read more about what Defenders is doing to protect wolverines

Learn more about wolverine characteristics and behavior

The first time was in March, when 61 bison came storming off half a dozen trailers into a two-acre temporary surveillance corral. Since then, 21 calves were born to this small herd of pioneers – the first bison of Yellowstone descent to be born on the Great Plains, the heart of their historic range. Many of these bison had never tasted freedom, as they had lived in a quarantine facility on the edge of Yellowstone for up to five years prior to this move to eradicate a disease called brucellosis.

On Saturday, all 82 bison stampeded out of the corral into a 2,100-acre pasture that will be part of their new home. See my photos below:

Leaving the corral

Two acres isn't much room for 61 bison and their 21 calves, but keeping them in this temporary surveillance corral helped the animals adjust to their new surroundings at Fort Peck Indian Reservation in northeastern Montana.

Looking on

Robert Magnan with Fort Peck Fish & Game and several community members watch as the bison exit the corral and head into the 2,100-acre pasture.

First steps

This calf takes its first steps ever outside of the two-acre corral where it was born.

Big Sky country

Three adult bison spread out on a hillside in their native habitat.

Herding up

Bison herds, once a familiar sight all across the Great Plains, are making a triumphant return at Fort Peck Indian Reservation.

Powwow

Tribal members at Fort Belknap Indian Reservation celebrate during a summer powwow.

The bison now have free reign of this area. Once they’re settled, an additional 5,000 acres will be added to their home this fall, giving them more than 7,000 acres of grassland to graze and grow their numbers. Additional expansions are very likely, as we look to help the tribes acquire enough land to support at least 1,000 bison—the number scientists estimate is necessary to maintain genetic diversity.

Though it may be a long time before bison are truly “free roaming”, our hope is that these bison will be “wide ranging” enough to once again fulfill their essential ecological role in the Great Plains, while also helping to restore the culture of the people of the region. Tribal elder Iris Greybull was on hand to witness the event and said:

“We have always been known as buffalo people because we followed them, they fed us, they gave us clothes, they gave us our homes, they took care of us… Now the buffalo nations are coming back.”

At Defenders, our hope is that the people of Fort Peck Reservation are just the first of many landowners to offer bison a large home on the plains. The people of Fort Belknap Indian Reservation are also planning to start a new conservation herd of Yellowstone bison, and they have plenty of land to do it.

I attended a powwow at Fort Belknap on Sunday with Mark Azure, the tribes’ bison manager, and – along with two friends from World Wildlife Fund – helped him map the condition of the existing fence around their 22,000-acre area that will one day be home to wild Yellowstone bison. Defenders is assisting with a plan to upgrade the fence where necessary prior to the arrival of the Yellowstone bison, as required by the state of Montana prior to the bison’s return.

Beyond tribal lands, both Montana and federal agencies are looking to restore bison on some of our public lands as well. We look forward to partnering with them to make these plans a reality and see that more wild bison are returned to the Great Plains.

To learn more visit www.defenders.org/bisonhome.

Now, those 82 bison are about to get even more room to roam. On Saturday, all of them will be released from their temporary surveillance corral into a 2,100-acre pasture. Then in fall, the bison will be given access to another 5,120-acre pasture, which will provide a total of more than 7,000 acres of their native habitat! While they still won’t be “free-roaming,” technically speaking (“wide-ranging” may be a more accurate term), these animals now have room to grow. Future expansion of the bison area is also very likely.

It’s been a long road for the bison and the tribes at Fort Peck, so the release on Saturday is really an incredible milestone. Watch part 2 of “The Return of the Bison” from High Plains Films to relive that day in March when the bison finally arrived after waiting so many years. (If you missed our post earlier in the week, click here to watch part 1 first. )

Stay tuned for a report from the field next week as the bison move on to greener pastures.

Learn more about Defenders efforts to restore bison.

That’s why, when we had a chance to be a part of historic efforts to restore bison to Montana tribal lands, we hired Emmy Award-winning filmmakers High Plains Films to help us tell our own part of the story. We wanted to share this tremendous accomplishment with wildlife supporters worldwide and show that it is possible to bring back a mighty creature to its rightful place.

So in March, several of us headed out to Montana to join our film crew in documenting the relocation of 61 genetically pure bison from a quarantine facility outside Yellowstone National Park to the Fort Peck Indian Reservation in eastern Montana.

Part 1 of “The Return of the Bison” chronicles the history of plains bison and the role that Defenders has played in helping the tribes at Fort Peck bring the bison back to their reservation.

Click here to watch Part 2.

Learn more about Defenders efforts to restore bison.