Idaho Nature Notes

Spring Dance

2012-02-14T09:37:00.017-08:00

They appear like ghosts before light: small groups of plump, puffy birds standing amongst the sagebrush.Sage grouse.At first, I count ten, then a few more appear. Soon fifty male grouse begin their daily dance, strutting and puffing and popping the air sacs on their breasts.The annual sage grouse strut is one of the West’s most memorable wildlife spectacles. Each year, the male grouse return to

Private Landowners Team Up to Protect Wildlife Habitat

2012-02-13T13:36:00.001-08:00

Private working forests offer tremendous benefits to both wildlife and people. North Idaho's forests are home to many animals that are "wide roamers"--they have huge home ranges and move about from one forest to the next. Private working forests keep this area as one connected whole, giving wildlife room to roam.These forests also provide valuable timber to keep local mills in operation.The

Nature Conservancy, Purdy Family Announce Partnership to Restore Kilpatrick Pond

2012-02-06T12:45:00.000-08:00

The Nature Conservancy and the Purdy family have signed an agreement to restore Kilpatrick Pond on Silver Creek, an impounded area that has trapped sediments for decades.The agreement focuses on restoring the stream to a more natural path, creating wetlands and lowering water temperatures.The Kilpatrick Pond project will be the largest restoration effort ever undertaken on Silver Creek. The

Toni Hardesty named Nature Conservancy's Idaho State Director

2012-02-03T10:31:00.000-08:00

Toni Hardesty, director of the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality, has been named the new director of The Nature Conservancy in Idaho, the non-profit global conservation organization reported today.Hardesty will oversee The Nature Conservancy’s work around the state, focusing on collaborative projects that protect land and water for nature and people.Hardesty has served as director of

Lose the Memory, Lose the Fish

2012-01-30T09:26:00.001-08:00

The sound of migrating salmon splashing was so loud it kept people awake at night.Imagine that luxury: of lying in bed as salmon after salmon after salmon surged by.Where did this happen? Alaska? The Russian Far East?No. This happened in Boise, Idaho.No need to grab your fishing rod. Those splashing salmon have disappeared.I live near the Boise River. I fish it regularly. I run and walk along

Good Fences

2012-01-23T13:27:00.000-08:00

Don't fence me in: so goes the popular 1940's cowboy song. It could also accurately be considered a tenet of conservation today.Conservationists often view fences as the antithesis of wildness, particularly when it comes to high fences. These fences have come to typify a strategy of national park management in some parts of the world--put a fence around a piece of land, keep people and nature

Snowy Owls Invade Idaho

2012-01-17T11:30:00.001-08:00

My friend Beth Rasgorshek speaks eloquently and often about the importance of protecting farmland. She grew up on a Canyon County farm and returned here to start her own.Her Canyon Bounty Farm produces organic seeds, heirloom vegetable starts for area gardeners and organic wheat flour used in several local bakeries and restaurants. She believes in growing good food, and that Canyon County is a

Winter Range: The Importance of Sagebrush

2012-01-09T13:34:00.001-08:00

Settlers along the Oregon Trail learned to hate sagebrush. As if passing through hundreds of miles of it wasn’t enough, their livestock would not touch the plant. They pronounced sagebrush inedible and worthless as forage, and their folk wisdom has been passed down through the generations.They were right about cattle, but it would be difficult to overestimate the importance of sagebrush as

Backyard Deer

2012-01-05T13:08:00.000-08:00

Flying over Boise yesterday--returning home after nearly two weeks of holiday travel--I looked in vain for signs of winter. Everything looked brown, including the ski resort. Leaving the airport I found balmy 50-degree weather.Last night, though, I saw the first inkling of winter: Deer in the backyard.I flicked on the backyard light to look for any critters. Immediately two forms appeared,

2011 Idaho Annual Report

2011-12-28T09:01:00.000-08:00