Open Thread

I was blessed with the opportunity to take a flight with LightHawk this morning.  Man, what a great group.  

It was a clear and smooth flight over central Idaho ranges with watersheds in full expression of spring.

North Fork Big Lost River Watershed © Brian Ertz, WWP (click to enlarge)

Time to open the forum up … I hope you’ll contribute.

Glacier National Parks rangers accidentally kill black bear with a cracker shell

How could this happen?

You don’t try to hit the bear/wolf, whatever. Did the shell not explode and the bear ate it? !

Bear killed after hazing effort. By the Associated Press

Nez Perce Tribe quits Idaho bighorn working group

New state law on bighorn undermines the working group process, tribe says-

This is good news about the sorry situation. Everyone should quit this group set up to make it appear that the Otter Administration gives a damn about bighorn.

Bad news!

And on top of this a bighorn mixed with domestic sheep (on private land), but adjacent to one of these troublesome BLM sheep allotments near Riggins the other day. Then the bighorn went back to its herd.

I understand that today they are deciding whether to kill the bighorn herd of ten bighorn rams because of this interaction likely to spread sheep disease back to the bighorn.

Story: Nez Perce Tribe pulling out of bighorn work group. AP

East Fork Salmon River Watershed wildflowers

A lot of neat wildflowers happening right now

Bitterroot (Lewisia rediviva) © Brian Ertz 2009	Pediocactus © Brian Ertz 2009
Paintbrush (Castilleja spp.) © Brian Ertz 2009	Lupine (Lupinus argenteus) © Brian Ertz 2009