So basic a concept it is---And yet it rarely happens in practice.............When State and Federal wildlife biologists re-wild a prey species like Elk into a community where they have been absent, they should simultaneously re-wild with the Carnivore that prey on that browser, so that a rough equilibrium settles into the habitat now re-acquainted with "historical family members"................Unfortunately, the re-wilding paradigm most often utilized in the field is-----"If you build it, they will come"............ "That's historically been a common approach to species recovery: Grow the prey population first and predators will quickly return"................. "As it turns out, that's not quite the case"............... "A new study has found that restoring predator and prey species simultaneously speeds the recovery about twice as fast as sequential recovery"................."Restoration takes longer when predators recover first, but when prey recover first the system is more prone to volatile population fluctuations(e.g. with Wolves being introduced post build up of Elk herds in Yellowstone Park)"...............So we have to get past the politics and the Special Interests who only want a particular species introduced(usually browsers due to hunter request).................."Natural systems are a community of species that all interact"........... As the great 20th century biologist Aldo Leopold(author of the LAND ETHIC) suggested---"You need all parts present and abundant to function well -- and synchronized recovery of species is the best way to do that effectively"

http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/sciencedaily/plants_animals/ecology/~3/YttddaMsN-g/170227134917.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email

Recovering predators and prey

Researchers show how simultaneously restoring predators, prey is much faster and more effective than doing so one at a time

Feb 27, 2017; U. of California-Santa Barbara

Published in the journal Nature Ecology and Evolution, the paper by a team of scientists that includes UC Santa Barbara researchers used models and case studies to examine the pace of species and ecosystem recovery efforts. They found that tandem recovery of predators and prey is almost always more efficient -- and on average about twice as fast -- as sequential recovery.

"Previous work has shown how high demand for resources has led to the overexploitation of species throughout the food chain in a number of ecosystems," said co-author Adrian Stier, an assistant professor in UCSB's Department of Ecology, Evolution and Marine Biology. "We show how synchronized restoration of these species is nearly always the more rapid and direct path to ecological recovery. Restoration takes longer when predators recover first, but when prey recover first the system is more prone to volatile population fluctuations."

Age old "dance partners Elk and Wolves should take up residence

simultaneously in a rewilding program

Co-author Benjamin Halpern, director of UCSB's National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis and a professor in the campus's Bren School of Environmental Science & Management, noted that the study's conclusion is important because it offers an improvement on traditional strategies. Historically, about half of species restoration efforts employ a sequential, one-species-at-time tactic, most often beginning with targeted restoration of prey species first.

"Our results suggest that we need to fundamentally rethink the way we approach species restoration and recovery efforts," said Halpern. "If you stop to think about it, our results make sense. Natural systems are a community of species that all interact; you need all parts present and abundant to function well -- and synchronized recovery of species is the best way to do that effectively."

Just as critical, synchronous restoration is also better for the humans who earn a living harvesting both predator and prey, say, for example, Pacific cod and Pacific herring.

"You might think the loss of income associated with reducing harvest on both species at the same time would be greater than reducing harvest on one species after another, but our work suggests that synchronous recovery is ultimately better for recovering the ecosystem -- and better from an economic perspective as well," said co-author Mark Novak of the Oregon State University College of Science.

Because of overharvest, declines of multiple animal populations are typical of many ecosystems. For example, population collapses seen in pairs of species -- lions and wildebeest, Steller sea lions and Pacific herring, and mink and muskrat -- are wholly or partially attributable to trophy hunting, industrial fisheries or the fur trade.

Mountain Lions and their cliff dwelling partners, Mountain Goats

In both terrestrial and marine resources management, population restoration and the setting of harvest quotas have long been single-species endeavors. Even in the pursuit of more holistic ecosystem-based rebuilding of food webs -- the interconnected chains of who eats whom -- the dominant strategy has been to allow prey species to initially rebound to where they readily sustain top predator levels.

However, this new research found that such single-species strategies are less efficient than allowing predator and prey to recover simultaneously. For example, predator-first strategies are particularly slow because they lead to increases in predator numbers while prey species remain depleted, limiting the availability of food that would encourage faster predator population growth.

The scientists' analyses included information from real-world examples, such as the recovery of aforementioned Pacific cod along the west coast of Vancouver Island, which proceeded slowly before the recovery of cod's preferred prey: the Pacific herring.

A database of marine fisheries shows that past recovery efforts have been nearly evenly divided between sequential recoveries -- those that prioritize predator or prey species -- and the type of synchronous recoveries that this new research determined to be faster and more efficient.

"This suggests that there is room for improvement in many restoration efforts by coordinating the recovery of predator and prey species," Stier said. "Our research emphasizes how existing marine policy, including marine protected areas and mixed stock management, offers opportunities to synchronize the restoration of multiple species."

"The order and timing of how you approach recovery does matter," said lead author Jameal Samhouri, a research fish biologist at National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Northwest Fisheries Science Center in Seattle. The scientists concluded that improving the efficiency of ecosystem recovery efforts by better coordinating the restoration of individual species has the potential to "play a critical role in shaping 21st-century solutions to environmental issues."

---

Story Source:

Materials provided by University of California - Santa Barbara. Original written by Julie Cohen. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.

I think a good omen that this weekends final theatrical film installment of the WOLVERINE superhero played by Hugh Jackman dovetails with the recent spotting of two Wolverines in the Bighorn Mountains and Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem ..............."In late 2016, Wyoming Game and Fish biologists and a team of volunteers placed trail cameras throughout the Bighorn Mountains and Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem to assist them in identifying the elusive and numerically slim Wolverine population............... "Trail cameras provide data on wolverine presence while wire brushes are designed to snag a few hairs from passing animals that can be used for DNA analysis"......................"Monitoring of wolverines has occurred the last two winters in Wyoming by the Game and Fish with significant support from the U.S. Forest Service and volunteers"............... "During the winter of 2015-2016, wolverines were detected in three of the 25 monitored cells"................. "Game and Fish is surveying an additional 26 cells during the winter of 2016-2017"

https://www.google.com/url?rct=j&sa=t&url=http://www.basinsradio.com/WGFD-Wolverines-Caught-on-Camera/23024952&ct=ga&cd=CAEYBCoUMTA3MDEyMjkzNjExNzMwMzM0MjYyGmI4ODE2MjNmMGFjMTM5MTQ6Y29tOmVuOlVT&usg=AFQjCNHqhLHP_FLY-

WGFD: WOLVERINES CAUGHT

 ON CAMERA

Press Release - A team of Wyoming Game and Fish Department researchers recently detected two wolverines on trail cameras in northwestern Wyoming. These rare sightings are a significant boost to the three-year monitoring initiative studying wolverine distribution in the Bighorn Mountains and Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem.

The wolverines’ images were captured earlier this year on trail cameras which are placed in remote locations and checked every month or two. Of the two wolverines spotted, one is well-known to researchers. The 11-year-old female was first collared as a juvenile in Montana. She was captured on a trail camera in Wyoming in 2014 and again, now in 2017. This female has very distinct markings which make her identifiable with good trail camera pictures. She has a white sock on her left arm with with a black dot on her left hand and a full white bib on her chest and belly. The other wolverine is an unknown adult.

“These latest images build on our knowledge of wolverines in Wyoming, and the observations fall within expected wolverine habitat,” said Zack Walker, the Wyoming Game and Fish Department’s non-game bird and mammal supervisor.

In late 2016, Game and Fish biologists and a team of volunteers placed trail cameras throughout the Bighorn Mountains and Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. Trail cameras provide data on wolverine presence while wire brushes are designed to snag a few hairs from passing animals that can be used for DNA analysis. Wolverines live in habitats with limited amounts of food so individual animals require hundreds of square miles to live and reproduce. This means the number of animals living in a given area is extremely low.

In Wyoming, wolverine habitat occurs at high elevations, often in designated wilderness areas. This rugged terrain can be challenging to access any time of the year, but particularly in winter.  
Monitoring of wolverines has occurred the last two winters in Wyoming by the Game and Fish with significant support from the U.S. Forest Service and volunteers. During the winter

 of 2015-2016, wolverines were detected in three of the 25 monitored cells. Game and Fish is surveying an 

additional 26 cells during the winter of 2016-2017.

Funding for this three-year project was provided by the Wyoming State Legislature with project support from the Wolverine Initiative and the Eastern Shoshone and Northern Arapaho tribes. More information about wolverines and the study team’s efforts in Wyoming can be found on the

Game and Fish website. 

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https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwjrqImqjrLSAhVM2oMKHRKUCGcQFggaMAA&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwgfd.wyo.gov%2FAbout-Us%2FWyoming-Wildlife%2FWolverines&usg=AFQjCNHVNPVl8qQsGPyQWip2JGW13jtRAQ&sig2=GPPEkEwO2uTChjq_gsTeRw

Winter research commences in search of wolverines

Wyoming Fish& Game

video of Wolverine Camera Study by Wyoming Fish & Game

click on link below to view

https://youtu.be/5EroCgineD0?list=PLJqWFxuSPC1c3xgfMpSlPHgL2pjMIsM-8

Consistently weighing in around 700 pounds, the Black Bears of New Foundland, Canada(some 10,000 of them) are the largest of their kind in North America............. "In general for all animal types, it pays to be bigger in the colder climates that exist at high latitudes and altitudes"............. "Heftier animals have a smaller surface area-to-volume ratio, which helps reduce heat loss — a pattern known as Bergmann's Rule. (In general, a more massive organism has a smaller surface area-to-volume)",,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,""The bigger you are, the more fat you can store to help you get through the winter".....................And the New Foundland Black Bears have shown to be Caribou and Moose eaters, much more so than their fellow Black Bears across the rest of the Continent, who will kill newborn hoofed browsers but not so much the adults

https://www.google.com/url?rct=j&sa=t&url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/bear-land-sea-biology-caribou-moose-wildlife-black-bear-1.3994002&ct=ga&cd=CAEYACoUMTI4MzIzOTEzMDQ0NTgyMjYxNTcyGjAzMWJmZmM1MjYxMzc1ZGE6Y29tOmVuOlVT&usg=AFQjCNGHNrmCLHUS1IDWDwFn6pb1ArK2ig

From Land & Sea's archive: The black bears of Newfoundland

Track Newfoundland's black bears with biologist Shane Mahoney and the Land & Sea crew

By Angela Antle, CBC News Posted: Feb 26, 2017 

When wildlife biologist Shane Mahoney was studying the effects of hydro-electric development on Caribou, he often saw very large Black Bears near the herds.

Traditionally, Newfoundland's black bears were thought to be scavengers, relying mostly on berries for survival.

Mahoney found they are much more predatory than originally thought, frequently hunting down caribou and moose and often weighing in at 700 pounds.

That makes them the largest bears on the continent

.

In this full episode of Land & Sea from 1986, you can track some of these massive creatures with Shane Mahoney and the crew.   

watch the full 25 minute video of the Land & Sea Crew tracking New Foundland Black Bears
https://youtu.be/P8PZjVB6MCo
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https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=2&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwjHzbvmsq_SAhVB4IMKHaUhAjkQFgggMAE&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.livescience.com%2F24916-animal-size-versus-climate.html&usg=AFQjCNFmntVQZqm4SQrcuMtlw12nOzYhJw

Why Are Animals Bigger in Colder Climates?

By Lindsey Konkel, Life's Little Mysteries Contributor | November 20, 2012

For most species of vertebrates, body mass increases the closer you get to the poles. The average weight of an adult male white-tailed deer in Florida, for instance, is about 125 pounds (57 kilograms), while a mature buck in Montana might weigh 250-275 pounds (114-125 kg).

For many types of animals, it pays to be bigger in the colder climates that exist at high latitudes and altitudes. Heftier animals have a smaller surface area-to-volume ratio, which helps reduce heat loss — a pattern known as Bergmann's Rule. (In general, a more massive organism has a smaller surface area-to-volume.)


New Foundland Black Bears are giants reaching 700 pounds

There are several factors that can affect an animal's body size and weight, said Kyle Ashton, a herpetologist at the California Academy of Sciences in Golden Gate State Park in San Francisco. An abundant food supply, sexual selection for bigger males and encounters with competitors may all lead to bigger bodies. 

While Bergmann's Rule explains how animals deal with issues of heat loss and heat regulation in the cold, there may be other reasons to pack more pounds in colder climates. "The bigger you are, the more fat you can store to help you get through the winter," said Ashton.

More nutritious foods may also fuel bigger body size closer to the poles, according to researchers from the University of Houston. Plants from higher latitudes tend to be softer and contain more nutrients than plants closer to the equator, they found.

While the pattern of bigger bodies in colder climates holds for most mammals, birds and some reptiles, such as turtles, lizards and snakes, seem to break the mold. "They reverse the rule and tend to be smaller in colder climates and bigger in warmer ones," said Ashton.

The verdict is still out on why some reptiles, which obtain their body heat from the external environment, follow the rule while others reverse it. Ashton suspects it may be advantageous for turtles, which may go several months without eating in colder climates, to carry extra fat stores. For lizards and snakes, some scientists think smaller bodies may warm faster in cold temperatures.

"The Great Gray Owl is the tallest American owl with the largest wingspan"................ "It preys on small mammals, especially rodents"............... "Both the Great Horned and Snowy owls weigh half again as much, and have larger feet and talons"......................."The Great Gray Olw nests in broken-topped dead trees or steals the nest of other bird species"................"Like many birds, new born hatchlings are born with eyes closed and covered in gray and white down"............."These Owls locate mice below snow by hearing, then plunges down through surface to capture them".................."While Great Gray Owl are negatively affected by logging and clearcutting, there is little information regarding their population trends"...... "Partners in Flight estimates a global breeding population of 190,000 birds with 43% living in Canada, and 7% in the U.S."............ "The species rates an 11 out of 20 on the Continental Concern Score, and is not on the 2016 State of the Birds Watch List"

http://adirondackexplorer.us5.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f2786fbb7862339a0b90113d7&id=37407848c1&e=46b8d98c61

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2017

Great Gray Owls in Northern New York

by Larry Master

In most winters great gray owls remain in their great north woods home in Canada, the mountains of the western U.S., northern Europe, and Siberia. But every four years or so, apparently motivated by a shortage of food (primarily voles), many of these owls will move southward in search of food.

In northeastern North America, the owls usually stay just north of the border, apparently finding suitable vole populations in southern Quebec and Ontario, but a handful of individuals will sometimes move further south into northern New York and New England. This is one such winter with a number of great gray owls being reported in southern Quebec, two reports from central Maine, and reports of several great gray owls in northern New York.


Habitat range of the

Great Gray Owl (Strix nebulosa)

Most recently, 2-3 great gray owls have taken up temporary residence along Robinson Bay Road in Robert Moses State Park near Massena. As is characteristic of great gray owls, they go about their business with no concern for people or automobiles. This can get them into trouble, but happily for them the road is lightly traveled.


Great Gray Owl weighs twice as much as the Great Horned and Snowy Owls(below)

Great Horned Owl

Snowy Owl

Apparently their lack of fear for people derives from not encountering people, at least folks who would do their harm, in their normal north woods habitat. Such tameness allows for wonderful viewing opportunities as the birds go about their hunting activities during daylight hours oblivious to bird and nature enthusiasts who have come from surrounding states and provinces to see these magnificent birds. They are most active in the first hours after dawn and the last hours before sunset.

Photo of Great Gray Owl by Larry Master.

Larry Master

Larry Master lives in Keene and has been photographing wildlife and natural history subjects for more than 60 years. After receiving a PhD at the University of Michigan, Larry spent 20 years with The Nature Conservancy and 6 years with NatureServe, most of that time as the organization’s Chief Zoologist. He oversaw the development of TNC’s and NatureServe’s central zoological databases, and also served on the EPA’s Science Advisory Board. Larry currently serves on the boards of NatureServe, the Ausable River Association, the Adirondack Explorer, the Northern Forest Atlas Foundation, Northern New York Audubon, and the Adirondack Council, as well as on science advisory groups for the Wildlife Conservation Society’s Adirondack Program, the Biodiversity Research Institute’s Adirondack Center for Loon Conservation, the Vermont Center for Ecostudies, and Living with Wolves

A quick "primer-reminder of the habits of Eastern Coyotes...................NY State has a good 20-30,000 Coyotes at the height of Summer(including surviving pups of the year)............................As the saying goes, "IF YOU CAN MAKE IT IN NY, YOU CAN MAKE IT ANYWHERE" and the Eastern Coyote has become a true"top dog" mid-trophic carnivore across forest, field, mountain, suburbs and urban locales(including NYC),,,,,,,,,,With up to 25% Eastern Wolf genes, adults range from 35 to 45 pounds, with larger males exceeding 50 pounds"............... "Some may get bigger, but that is uncommon".,,,,,,,,They easily co-exist with NY's other dominant carnivore, the Black Bear.........Without Eastern Wolves and Pumas in the state, Coyotes fill every niche and cranny, wherever a sliver of cover exists, they exploit it to the fullest..............As with all Coyotes, one litter annually arrives in April with 4 to 6 pups(up to 12 where Coyotes are hunted and persecuted)................."In the wilds of the Adirondack and Catskill Mountains,average territory for a family unit(not a pack) might be 15 to 20 square miles"................"In agricultural areas, the range is about 10 square miles, and in suburban/urban communities it is even smaller — generally 2 to 3 square miles".....................While coyotes have learned to be nocturnal so as to best coexist around us human animals, they can be active all during the daytime and often are especially during pup raising season in the Spring....................."Pups generally disperse from September to March but tend to stay with parents longer if there is a need to hunt deer"...................... "A dominant pair will occasionally allow a female pup from the previous year to help raise their next litter".................. "Dispersed juveniles often band together, which offers some security when crossing territories established by other coyotes".......................Dogs are competitors and as we know, Coyotes will look to kill those smaller than themselves................Domestic cats that wander can and do become a meal......................However, the opportunistic and generalist diet of the Coyotes most often revolves around rodents, small mammals, birds, eggs, newborn deer fawns, ..................In the Summer, Coyotes love to dine on berries, insects,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,Hard Winters that kill off deer and our auto collision killed deer are scavenged by Coyotes as well..................Like us human animals, they are a survivor, with multiple culinary tastes, able to live anywhere, resistant to persecution, smart as a whip.....................Any seasoned hunter/outdoorsman has the ultmate respect for our most adapatable mammal--both the Western and Eastern Coyote

https://www.google.com/url?rct=j&sa=t&url=http://www.thelcn.com/lcn03/woods-amp-waters-coyotes-are-plentiful-but-wary-wildlife-seldom-seen-20170218&ct=ga&cd=CAEYACoTNTIyNTg4Njc3NDE0MDAxNzc1NTIaMjk4ZGEwYjQzNzk3YWJmYjpjb206ZW46VVM&usg=AFQjCNH0N06za8Z6O5pGOocJUhSdW_O-mQ

Woods & Waters: Coyotes are plentiful, but wary wildlife seldom seen

By JOHN ADAMSKI
WOODS & WATERS

PUBLISHED: SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2017

A week ago Sunday, as I was working at the computer just after dark, I heard what sounded like a siren at first coming up the hill on the road where I live. It puzzled me because I live on an unpopulated gravel back road, and the stretch below my place is seasonal and not maintained during the winter. Then my dog, which had been curled up nearby, went bonkers — running from window to window barking up a storm.


NY Coyotes in various habitat including Queens, NYC

That’s when I realized that it wasn’t a siren at all. It was a pack of coyotes. And they were close. Very close.

My dog was anxiously barking and whimpering at the door so I let her out onto the gated deck where she continued to voice her displeasure with the howling wild canines. Her reprimand worked. It silenced the coyotes, and they slipped away in the darkness.

But she kept on barking for another half hour just to let them know whose territory this really was. Tracks in the snow showed that there were three of them and that they had come within 50 feet of the house.

The next morning, when I walked out to my roadside newspaper tube, I noticed that the woods were permeated with the skunk-like aroma of coyote urine. That’s when it occurred to me that February is coyote mating season. What we heard the night before was most likely a rivalry over a romantic interlude.

State’s top predator

Today the Eastern Coyote, or Canis latrans, is the Empire State’s top predator. If that’s not surprising, consider that coyotes didn’t exist in New York prior to the 1930s.

Most biologists believe that in the early 1900s, after timber wolves disappeared from eastern forests, western coyotes began an eastward migration to fill the void, which brought them around the wild Canadian shorelines of the Great Lakes. Along the way, they are thought to have interbred with Canadian wolves, creating a distinct subspecies that could explain why the Eastern Coyote is larger than its western cousin.

Lacking competition, the coyote gradually established itself at the top of New York’s predatory food chain.

Eastern Coyote characteristics

The Eastern Coyote resembles a medium-sized German Shepherd dog, but with a pointier snout and a long, thick, grayish-tan to reddish-blond coat, often streaked with black. Its trademark bushy tail, which it carries pointed downward, is what coined its nickname of “brush wolf.” Adults range from 35 to 45 pounds, with larger males exceeding 50 pounds. Some may get bigger, but that is uncommon.

When breeding takes place in February, territories are marked with the skunk-like aroma of coyote urine. Four to six pups — sometimes more — are born in early April. Dens are usually remodeled fox or woodchuck burrows. Bones and feathers scattered in front of a large tunnel are sure indications that it is a coyote den.

According to the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, a conservative statewide summertime coyote population estimate — including pups — ranges between 20,000 and 30,000 animals.

A coyote’s range depends on its habitat. An average territory in the Adirondacks might be 15 to 20 square miles. In agricultural areas, the range is about 10 square miles, and in suburban communities it is even smaller — generally 2 to 3 square miles.

Established coyote pairs are territorial. They do not form a true pack like wolves, but they will hunt in family groups. Pups generally disperse from September to March but tend to stay with parents longer if there is a need to hunt deer. A dominant pair will occasionally allow a female pup from the previous year to help raise their next litter. Dispersed juveniles often band together, which offers some security when crossing territories established by other coyotes.

Coyotes are opportunists and will eat whatever is easiest to find or catch, and their diets may change depending on the season. In the spring, they might eat small mammals or fledgling birds. Ground nesters like turkeys, pheasants and ruffed grouse are particularly vulnerable. So are newborn fawns. During the summer, coyotes feed on berries, insects and rodents. They rely on grasshoppers and small mammals in the fall. As winter becomes harder and small mammal populations decline, coyotes may even turn to whitetail deer. Road-killed deer are also an important food source.

Heard, not seen

If coyotes are so plentiful, how come we seldom see them?

Coyotes are among the wariest of all wild animals and have the ability to simply melt into the landscape. In addition, they are primarily crepuscular — active at dawn and dusk — although they will hunt all day and night when feeding pups. The more coyotes are pursued, the more nocturnal they become.

For most people, a coyote experience doesn’t involve seeing them at all — it’s hearing them — usually on frosty mornings, clear moonlit evenings or whenever the local fire whistle goes off.

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John Adamski of Dansville has been a professional nature photographer and outdoors writer for almost 40 years. His work has appeared in Life in the Finger Lakes magazine and Adirondack Life, among others. His earlier careers included fish and wildlife management in the Adirondacks and residential design/build. He has also been involved in the development of the Finger Lakes Museum and Aquarium in Keuka Park. His “Woods & Waters” column appears twice a month in The Livingston County News. Contact him at (585) 746-6247 or email at john@jbadamsgallery.com.

Celebrated outdoor writer Rick Bass has to be on pins and needles as the status of the remaining 40 or so Yaak Grizzlies is debated in Federal Court...............Bass who was a resident of the Yaak, USA'S most wildest terrain, has written passionately for two decades about northwestern Montana, the locale of the Yaak-Cabinet ecosystem..............This storied land is a lynchpin territory in the Crown of the Continent system that runs North into Canada...............Here in the Yaak, and running north into Canada, the Griz hangs on, Gray Wolves, Wolverines Pumas, and the entire array of fauna that greeted the first Europeans coming West still remains..........."The Cabinet-Yaak ecosystem is one of four grizzly bear recovery zones in and around Montana, and the smallest with an active bear population"............. "The Northern Continental Divide Ecosystem and Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem each contain more than 800 grizzlies, while the Bitterroot Ecosystem has no known bears although it’s historically prime grizzly habitat(President Bush the younger, stopped a planned rewilding of Griz into the Bitteroot)....So, will the Judge hearing the case for critical habitat designation for the Griz here rule in favor of such while the simultaneous discussion continues at the USFW Service as to whether to delist protections for the Greater Yellowstone and The Northern Continental Divide populations?.........Somehow, it is always one step forward and two steps back when it comes to carnivore rewilding and sustainability.................As I noted in yesterdays blog,,,,,,,,,,,,,not what the Creator had in mind when he told Noah to gather up all the animals, whether they posed a threat to us human animals or not

https://www.google.com/url?rct=j&sa=t&url=http://missoulian.com/news/local/cabinet-yaak-grizzly-bears-get-day-in-court/article_fcac42b6-3694-5f3d-86f8-370cbc0f5d11.html&ct=ga&cd=CAEYACoUMTI0OTc3NTU3NjgzNTA1NTI3NTAyGjU2ZDFlN2YxOWU4Zjk5OTE6Y29tOmVuOlVT&usg=AFQjCNH5_2Z4iAEhlL-dRyn2OiMNF5IGy

CABINET-YAAK ECOSYSTEM

Cabinet-Yaak grizzly bears get day in court

Rob Chaney, The Missoulian, Feb 16, 2017

Whether grizzly bear numbers in northwest Montana are stable, shrinking or growing, both sides of a lawsuit over their federal status agree there aren’t enough of them.

But lawyers for the Alliance for the Wild Rockies and the U.S. Government could not agree why the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service switched its recommendation from “warranted but precluded” for more protection under the federal Endangered Species Act to a designation indicating the bear population was close to recovery. The two sides argued before U.S. District Judge Dana Christensen in Missoula on Thursday.

Rebecca Smith of the Public Interest Defense Center represented AWR, and argued the federal agency was breaking a 20-year position – that the Cabinet-Yaak bears deserved more protection – by suddenly announcing it was lowering the bear’s status.

On Dec. 5, 2014, FWS “abruptly changed course and published a finding that the Cabinet-Yaak grizzly bear is ‘not warranted’ for listing as an endangered species,” Smith wrote in her brief to Christensen. “The agency’s conduct also indicates that the agency has no intention to recover or provide critical habitat for the Cabinet-Yaak grizzly bear, but instead intends to play administrative keep-away with the necessary protections for the Cabinet-Yaak grizzly bear for as long as possible, possibly until the population simply goes extinct.”

1. The Cabinet-Yaak ecosystem is one of four grizzly bear recovery zones in and around Montana, and the smallest with an active bear population. The Northern Continental Divide Ecosystem and Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem each contain more than 800 grizzlies, while the Bitterroot Ecosystem has no known bears although it’s historically prime grizzly habitat.

Smith argued that between 2007 and 2014, grizzlies in the Cabinet-Yaak dropped from 47 bears to 41 – a 13 percent decline. FWS’ minimum population necessary for recovery in the 2.4-million acre region is 100 bears.

Department of Justice attorney Ricky Turner represented the Department of Interior and its U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Turner agreed Cabinet-Yaak grizzlies haven’t reached recovery. But the population has moved from the brink of extinction to threatened status, and their numbers have been stable or growing in recent years.

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“I’m not impressed with the numbers here,” Christensen warned. “There’s been slight improvement, but we’re still talking about 44 to 48 bears. I’m not as enthusiastic about those numbers as you are. Maybe you can change my mind on that.”

Smith and Turner interpreted the same trend in opposite ways. Smith insisted that with fewer than 50 bears, the loss of one or two females could turn a stable population into a falling one. Turner maintained that the Fish and Wildlife Service was the agency in charge of the science, and if it said the trend was good, Smith hadn’t offered anything to prove it wasn’t.

Christensen added that both sides seemed to be avoiding “the elephant in the room” – the chance that changing the grizzly’s status might require a designation of critical habitat. Currently, the Cabinet-Yaak bears’ status doesn’t require FWS to make such a designation, which would require any other land manager to consider the bear’s needs before making any changes such as a timber sale, road construction or mine expansion.

Smith replied the critical habitat requirement would occur – if FWS got the funding to move the grizzly from its “warranted but precluded” status to actual “endangered” status. She said the whole crux of the case was the agency’s position for 20 years that the bear deserved more protection, before reversing course in 2014 and declaring it needed less.

“Even if what they say is true, they’re using the exact same facts for either conclusion,” Smith said. She called that the definition of “arbitrary and capricious.”

Turner countered that the grizzly’s original “threatened” status was made before the agency adopted a new policy mandating critical habitat designations, so that should not be an issue. He also argued that Smith was calling for a new interpretation of the science, which was the agency’s job.

Christensen did not rule on the matter after Thursday’s hearing.

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The Yaak Valley of northwestern Montana is one of the last great wild places in the United States, a land of black bears and grizzlies, wolves and coyotes, bald and golden eagles, and even a handful of humans. But its magic may not be enough to save it from the forces threatening it now. In The Book of Yaak Rick Bass captures the soul of the valley itself, and he shows how, if places like the Yaak are lost, so too will be the human riches of mystery and imagination

KIRKUS REVIEW

An urgent plea by a longtime resident to preserve one of the lower 48's remaining wilderness areas. Nestled where Idaho, Montana, and Alberta, Canada, meet, the Yaak Valley--the name means ``arrow'' in Kootenai--is a treasure vault of old-growth pine, spruce, and Douglas fir. It is also a prime target for the logging industry, which now seeks to open the Yaak to clearcut logging. 

Bass (The Lost Grizzlies, 1995, etc.) is scandalized by this possibility, especially inasmuch as the US Forest Service subsidizes such logging ``to the tune of one or two billion dollars per decade'' and ``timber companies working on public lands in the West continue to post record quarterly profits for their stockholders''--precisely because of the government's largess. 

This well-written, impatient, often polemical book urges that the Yaak, and other wild places, be set aside from economic development, and Bass's program is modest: ``I want,'' he writes, ``the last few roadless areas in this still-wild valley to remain that way.'' 

He also celebrates the power of wilderness to inspire the meditative, simple life: ``I practice going slow,'' he says, ``at a pace that can be sustained. I practice looking around at things.'' He also introduces us to neighbors who have found a special solace in the deep woods. Bass argues that most Montanans and Idahoans oppose any further destruction of their backyard wilderness and demonstrates how important old-growth forest is to the health of the entire ecosystem.

 Much of this will be familiar territory to readers who know Bass's work, for he has written about the Yaak before in books like Winter (1991) and The Ninemile Wolves (1992). Even so, this is a valuable document in the continuing battle over wilderness preservation.