Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, Oregon.

Sunflower © Ken Cole

Memorial Day Weekend Trip in Photos

My wife and I went to Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in Southeastern Oregon for Memorial Day weekend to do some bird watching and a little fishing.  I had intended to post this shortly afterwards but other stories and a trip to Massachusetts and Maine got in the way.

We took a day trip through the Catlow Basin and through part of the Alvord Basin to Coyote Lake Basin as well. While there I did a little fishing for the Willow/Whitehorse Creek Cutthroat which is a minor subspecies of Lahontan Cutthroat. I caught and photographed two of these fish.

Phlox © Ken Cole

Blooming Desert © Ken Cole

Fish and Game finally kills sick bighorn wandering along Salmon River for weeks

If tests find he had pneumonia others may be killed as well.

The bighorn which interacted with domestic sheep on private property near Riggins, Idaho has been killed. During the last 3 1/2 weeks it is know to have had contact with 11 other bighorn rams which may be killed as well if tests determine that the ram killed had pneumonia.

Fish and Game finally kills sick bighorn wandering along Salmon River for weeks
Rocky Barker, Idaho Statesman

Idaho Conservation League Drops out of Bighorn Sheep/Domestic Sheep Advisory Group.

Cites political interference from the Idaho Legislature.

The Idaho Conservation League has become the second group to resign from the BHS/DS Advisory Group. The first was the Nez Perce Tribe who cited the same reasons for resigning.  Currently the Group is suspended while the Idaho Fish and Game and the sheep permitees develop “best management practices” as mandated by the Legislature in S1232.  These BMP’s will likely have no effect on the situation as you can see from the story I just put up.

Here is the statement made to the participants of the group. Their letter to the Governor is linked to below.

Hiker with pistol and spray survives encounter with grizzly sow with cubs

Boise, Idaho man said attack happened too fast to use either when he surprised the bears-

Fortunately he was able to walk 4 miles to the trailhead.

Update: the original story has been replaced by a much more detailed one below.

Boise man in hospital following griz attack. By Karin Ronnow. Bozeman Chronicle Staff Writer

. . . and there have been more recent encounters.

Two Alberta men recovering from grizzly attack. Edmunton Journal. They were searching for elk antlers. A lot of grizzly bear attacks have happened to those looking too intently for elk antlers while in grizzly country.

Glacier National Park jogger survives grizzly attack. Missoulian. By Jim Mann in the Daily InterLake. The jogger forgot his pepper spray. At any rate, jogging on trails in dense grizzly country like Glacier National Park is not a good idea.