tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-245501012024-03-07T01:06:20.476-08:00Idaho Nature NotesWelcome to The Nature Conservancy of Idaho's blog, your source for Idaho natural history, wildlife, conservation and outdoor recreation. The views represented here are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official views of The Nature Conservancy.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16736653885954831447noreply@blogger.comBlogger587125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24550101.post-73476678508120581212015-09-17T12:07:00.000-07:002015-10-06T07:33:16.732-07:00We've Moved!To provide the best experience possible, we are pleased to announce our blog has moved to nature.org/idahoblog. Follow us there for the latest on natural history, wildlife, and conservation stories from our staff and guest bloggers.
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16736653885954831447noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24550101.post-70137224984437076162015-08-17T13:34:00.000-07:002015-08-17T14:16:31.420-07:00As Fires Burn Up the Forest Service Budget, the Conservancy Calls for a Better Way to Fund Fire Suppressionby Will Whelan, director of government relations
As I write this post, Soda Fire in southwest Idaho is by far the largest wildfire in the nation, and Idahoans from Owyhee County to the Clearwater Valley are being advised to evacuate homes in the path of advancing flames. More than 60 large fires are active across the country, with nearly 20,000 firefighters on the lines. The entire Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17756546312011597419noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24550101.post-9114859011931242772015-08-14T13:46:00.002-07:002015-08-14T13:46:56.250-07:00Learning the Ropes
by Maria Rachal and Alex Jones, Flat Ranch Preserve summer interns
On June 5, we arrived for our first day of work as the
Flat Ranch’s summer interns. Earlier that week, through the generous support of
the A. Paul Knight Internship Program in Conservation through Washington and
Lee University, we had traveled over 2,000 miles from Virginia to Idaho. We go
to school in the Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17756546312011597419noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24550101.post-46042405502636075972015-07-31T11:21:00.000-07:002015-07-31T11:21:15.067-07:00California Condor
by Lisa Eller, director of communications
As we turned
another corner along the old coast Highway 1 between our campsite at Pfeiffer
Big Sur State Park and Sand Dollar Beach, I looked out admiringly at the
majestic scene, the Pacific Ocean crashing against the rugged coastline, framed
by the Los Padres National Forest. I could look at this view all day. This
stretch of road is one of my Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17756546312011597419noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24550101.post-7721128734019066562015-07-17T10:38:00.000-07:002015-07-17T10:38:39.485-07:00Cuba to Yellowstone
by Bob Unnasch director of science
During
the past several weeks I had the opportunity to take a break and travel some.
At the end of May I traveled to the Archipiélago de los Jardines de la Reina, a
cluster of islands off the southern coast of Cuba. Two weeks later I spent a
few days in Yellowstone.
While
honestly, the main reason for my visit to the Caribbean was to catch large Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17756546312011597419noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24550101.post-48957163714751892432015-07-06T12:46:00.001-07:002015-07-06T12:46:25.865-07:00Tree Hugger
by Valerie Connor board liaison/operations assistant
Big, strong, dark and handsome. I’m standing under a mighty Ponderosa Pine and
it is my new favorite tree. The orange-brown color, the vanilla smell, and the
puzzle-like texture of the bark are all so captivating. It’s the weekend and my
husband and I are out exploring. We end
up outside of Featherville in the Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17756546312011597419noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24550101.post-40329477525628645082015-06-05T11:04:00.000-07:002015-06-05T11:04:30.926-07:00Driving Really Slow….
by Marilynne Manguba Idaho protection specialist
Did you know that most vehicle cruise controls don’t
work under 25 mph? A group of citizen
scientists figured this out last summer and fall when they participated in
mobile acoustic surveys to gather basic information on bat ecology and
population dynamics.
A few years ago, I attended a presentation on bats
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17756546312011597419noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24550101.post-17623500207739580592015-05-20T08:51:00.000-07:002015-05-20T08:51:06.280-07:00The Big Burn and the Mid-Seral Bulge
By Ryan Haugo, forest ecologist
and Jon Schwedler, associate director,conservation programs
Earlier this winter PBS ran a documentary based on
Timothy Egan’s bestselling book “The Big Burn”, the story of the massive
wildfires of 1910 that reshaped many forests across north Idaho and western
Montana. With current snowpack at or
near record low levels across much of the NorthwestAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17756546312011597419noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24550101.post-41765194989524417382015-05-14T09:25:00.004-07:002015-05-14T09:25:23.801-07:00An Appreciation of Scott Reed, 1928-2015By Will Whelan, director of government relations, Lou Lunte, deputy state director and Robyn Miller, director of conservation programs
<!--[if gte mso 9]>
<![endif]-->
Scott Reed © Diane Ronayne
<!--[if gte mso 9]>
Normal
0
false
false
false
EN-US
X-NONE
X-NONE
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17756546312011597419noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24550101.post-11318802838094012892015-05-07T11:09:00.000-07:002015-05-07T11:09:35.092-07:00A Fine Spring Morning in the Owyhees
By Bas Hargrove, senior policy representative
“How
many birds do you count?” asked Alan Sands, former Nature Conservancy
biologist. I scanned the lek, trying not to double count the sage grouse. “Forty-one males and two females,” I answer
as Alan scribbled in a pocket notebook.
Even though we’re only on a casual field trip and Alan retired a couple
of years ago, he was Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17756546312011597419noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24550101.post-72555751643226072792015-04-21T08:52:00.000-07:002015-04-21T08:52:29.563-07:00Tracking the Wild Greater Sage Grouse
By David Weskamp conservation manager for Eastern Idaho<!--[if gte mso 9]>
<![endif]-->
<!--[if gte mso 9]>
Normal
0
false
false
false
EN-US
X-NONE
X-NONE
<![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17756546312011597419noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24550101.post-61238520730714734852015-03-26T10:31:00.000-07:002015-03-26T13:13:12.931-07:00Sagebrush: A Western Legacy
By Lisa Eller, director of communications
<!--[if gte mso 9]>
Normal
0
false
false
false
EN-US
X-NONE
X-NONE
<![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17756546312011597419noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24550101.post-30200011720070193382015-03-03T09:50:00.000-08:002015-03-03T11:08:03.047-08:00Little Things That Make a Big DifferenceBy Sunny Healey, Silver Creek Preserve manager
While learning about pollinators, their importance
and how we can help them, I thought of what John Muir said: “When we tug at a
single thing in nature, we find it attached to the rest of the world”. For example,
from a leading cacao expert Allen Young: “A tiny fly no bigger than the head of
a pin is responsible for the world's supply of Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17756546312011597419noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24550101.post-28662210129960545442015-02-18T10:46:00.000-08:002015-02-18T10:46:58.233-08:00A Trip to the Sea<!--[if gte mso 9]>
<![endif]-->
<!--[if gte mso 9]>
Normal
0
false
false
false
EN-US
X-NONE
X-NONE
<![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17756546312011597419noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24550101.post-13552109262607082632015-01-14T10:27:00.000-08:002015-01-15T12:40:06.230-08:00A Fairfield Roadtrip<!--[if gte mso 9]>
<![endif]-->
<!--[if gte mso 9]>
Normal
0
false
false
false
EN-US
X-NONE
X-NONE
<![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16736653885954831447noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24550101.post-23647835455944975612014-12-10T08:00:00.000-08:002014-12-12T12:53:03.760-08:00The Influence of ApplesBy Marilynne Manguba, protection specialist
The Big Cougar fire grew to over 65,000 acres in western
Idaho this summer. The Nature Conservancy’s staff in Idaho anxiously monitored
the status of the fire as it surrounded our 1500-acre Garden Creek Preserve.
Nine structures were lost and a large portion of the Craig Mountain Wildlife
Management Area was affected. Amazingly,
the Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16736653885954831447noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24550101.post-55668056459957802902014-12-02T10:08:00.002-08:002014-12-02T13:54:40.985-08:00Conservation: As American as Mom and Apple PieBy Bas Hargrove, senior policy representative, The Nature Conservancy in Idaho
After election day, the main storyline was the Republican wave that washed over the country. But there was another wave, a conservation wave, that touched shore that Tuesday as well.
Voters in 20 states approved 26 state and local ballot measures that will dedicate more than $28 billion – with a “B” – to natural Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24550101.post-80110139810202297432014-10-24T12:16:00.000-07:002014-10-24T12:18:05.699-07:00The Bears of Hall Mountain By Kennon McClintock, North Idaho field representative
Several years ago, The Nature Conservancy purchased 320 acres of forestland at the base of Hall Mountain located in northern Boundary County, Idaho, just five miles from the Canada/USA border.
Hall Creek Forest. Photo by Lisa Eller/TNC.
This property, which was named the “Hall Creek Forest,” was destined to be subdivided — the long-termUnknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24550101.post-72073798443388443112014-10-08T09:00:00.000-07:002014-10-08T09:00:05.610-07:00Reflections on Silver Creekby Sarah Long, Silver Creek Preserve summer intern
Editor's note: Sarah graduated from the
University of the South at Sewanee and was the recipient of the 2011
Raoul Conservation Scholarship. She completed her first position with the
Nature Conservancy as the Seasonal Educator at the Cape May Migratory Bird
Refuge along the Atlantic Flyway in NJ. Her interest in birds and TNC brought
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16736653885954831447noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24550101.post-23203625190457251502014-09-25T13:48:00.000-07:002014-09-25T14:04:22.128-07:00The Green Flash<!--[if gte mso 9]>
<![endif]-->
By Susanna Danner, director of protection
For the past seven years, I’ve been writing conservation
agreements for salmon in the Lemhi River, working from my faraway desk here in
Idaho’s capital city. I’ve fallen in love with the upper Salmon River watershed
– I’ve backpacked in the Lemhi Mountains, fished the Lemhi River, and even
visited Sacajawea’s Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16736653885954831447noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24550101.post-56809027662519729782014-08-05T13:28:00.000-07:002014-08-05T13:28:38.455-07:00Rock Creek Ranch Hoedown Editor's note: This year,
Rock Creek Ranch was purchased by the Wood River Land Trust and the Conservancy from the Rinker family. Working with the Natural Resources
Conservation Service, the ranch was protected from development by a permanent grassland
conservation easement.
<!--[if gte mso 9]>
<![endif]-->
by Caroline Clawson, development assistant
On June 26th The Nature Conservancy andAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16736653885954831447noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24550101.post-55399535140901333512014-07-28T15:03:00.000-07:002014-08-07T11:32:32.844-07:00The Wildfire Disaster Funding Act of 2014Update: On August 1st we learned that a key Senate subcommittee included legislative language to enact the Wildland Disaster Funding Act, as well as language to access the disaster cap on an emergency basis to address suppression in FY15. This means that the key provisions of the WDFA could be included in the Senate version of the spending package that funds the main wildfire fighting agencies, Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16736653885954831447noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24550101.post-78842862839757938242014-07-25T10:40:00.001-07:002014-07-25T10:45:06.344-07:00Where have all the trout gone?<!--[if gte mso 9]>
<![endif]-->Editor's note: Silver Creek is currently experiencing
record low flows, high water temperatures and low dissolved oxygen
levels. In an effort to reduce stress on the fishery at the preserve,
The Nature Conservancy is temporarily restricting access to Silver Creek
for fishing. For more information go to this link. Coincidentally, the following blog was Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16736653885954831447noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24550101.post-10201644817960740562014-06-30T11:13:00.000-07:002014-07-01T12:16:23.561-07:00Curlew Tracking Update from the Flat Ranch Preserve<!--[if gte mso 9]>
<![endif]-->
<!--[if gte mso 9]>
<![endif]-->by Jordan Reeves, East Idaho conservation manager
As you may recall from earlier
blog posts, we’ve been anxiously awaiting the annual late spring arrival of long-billed
curlew to our Flat Ranch Preserve. While
we are always excited to witness the birds return to nest at the ranch, this
year was particularly Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16736653885954831447noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24550101.post-2312179425202854292014-06-02T08:00:00.000-07:002014-06-02T08:08:07.242-07:00Night at the Museum – It’s Transformingby Lou Lunte, deputy state director
<!--[if gte mso 9]>
Normal
0
false
false
false
EN-US
X-NONE
X-NONE
<![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16736653885954831447noreply@blogger.com3