Outdoors Reporter

Mark Heinz

Mark Heinz covers the outdoors and wildlife for Cowboy State Daily.

He previously worked or freelanced for numerous newspapers and magazines across Wyoming, Idaho and Montana, covering all manner of news and feature stories. He has a strong background in topics related to wildlife, hunting, and wildlands conservation. He's written extensively since the 1990s about the controversies surrounding wolves, grizzly bears and mustangs.

He also enjoys people-centric stories with quirky edge of humor and has written several such pieces for Cowboy State Daily.

Mark lives in Laramie with his wife, Kendy, and the youngest of their five children.

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Latest from Mark Heinz

Wildlife Winterkill Leaves Grim Reality — Gathering Hundreds Of Carcasses On Wyoming Highways

This winter’s grim tally of roadkill and starved animals continues to mount, although tallies from the Wyoming Department of Transportation are actually lower than some previous years.

Mark HeinzApril 27, 2023

Fences on the Sun family ranch west of Casper — like many across Wyoming — have been hammered by huge snowdrifts this winter.

Record Winter Claims Another Casualty Around Wyoming — Fences

As massive snowbanks start finally start to melt across Wyoming, they’re leaving ruined fences in their wake and a daunting amount of work for ranchers and state road crews.

Mark HeinzApril 26, 2023

The annual Elk Fest in Jackson Hole features a shed antler auction for what area Boy Scouts collect from the National Wildlife Refuge. The auction typically brings in about $280,000, of which 25% goes to western Wyoming Scout troops.

Jackson Braces For Throngs Of Shed Antler Hunters, But Boy Scouts Get A Head Start

Mobs of shed antler hunters are expected to descend on Jackson on Monday in what could be the last season for many nonresidents. But area Boy Scouts have already had their traditional first crack at shed hunting the National Elk Refuge.

Mark HeinzApril 26, 2023

Colorado Lawmakers File Last-Ditch Effort To Halt Wolf Reintroduction

In an apparent effort to delay Colorado’s imminent reintroduction of wolves, and possibly allow wolf hunting, some lawmakers there have introduced a bill to have the predators designated an “experimental population.”

Mark HeinzApril 26, 2023

Wyoming Shed Hunting Season Delayed Everywhere In Wyoming Except Teton County

The Wyoming Game and Fish Department announced Tuesday that it will delay the shed antler hunting season across much of Wyoming until May 15 – two weeks after the normal start date. Shed hunting will start as normal, on May 1, in the premier areas of Teton County.

Mark HeinzApril 26, 2023

Black Bear Shrugs Off Bear Spray To Steal Hiker’s Dog: ‘Holy Crap,’ Says Wyoming Wildlife Official

Despite being sprayed and beaten by a hiker, a black bear in Canada killed a dog and stashed its carcass. A Wyoming wildlife official said his reaction to the incident was, “Holy crap.”

Mark HeinzApril 25, 2023

20 MPH Robot Bear That Simulates Grizzly Attack To Tour Wyoming This Summer

Are you calm enough to deploy bear spray if a 1,000-pound grizzly is charging after you? To help you prepare, a remote-controlled robot bear that can travel 20 mph will tour Wyoming this summer to teach grace under pressure.

Mark HeinzApril 25, 2023

This mule deer buck laid down to sleep in the Upper Green River Basin, then froze to death in place and was buried by blowing snow.

I-80 A Corridor Of Death As Wyoming Wildlife Officials May Not Know Extent Of Winterkill Until July

A Wyoming Game and Fish official says it might be months before the full scope of winter death among some of the state’s premier big game herds is known.

Mark HeinzApril 24, 2023

Zachary Key and his son Parker of LaBarge, Wyoming enjoy hunting together. This year, Zachary is asking fellow hunters to forfeit their deer hunts this fall after deer were hit with devastating winterkill. Instead, deer tags can be used as “raffle tickets” for prize drawings.

Wyoming Hunter Asks Others To Sacrifice Deer Tags For Prize Drawings

An avid hunter from LaBarge, Wyoming has an idea to save a few deer this fall after a vicious winterkill: Turn deer tags into raffle tickets for expensive prizes.

Mark HeinzApril 24, 2023

Those ‘Other’ Deer: Wyoming Whitetail Often Ignored, But Still Loved By Some Hunters

Whitetail deer are often regarded as an afterthought among Wyoming’s big game animals – overshadowed by elk, antelope and mule deer. But some hunters still treasure them.

Mark HeinzApril 21, 2023

Still No Sign Of Teton Park Grizzly 399, But Close Followers Of Famed Bruin Not Too Concerned

Wyoming’s most beloved bear, Grizzly 399, has yet to emerge from her den, but some of her closest followers say there’s no reason to worry, yet.

Mark HeinzApril 21, 2023

Wyoming Game and Fish Department wardens captured four orphaned 6-month-old orphaned mountain lion cubs near Pinedale last year. They were taken to the Bear Country USA zoo in South Dakota.

Orphaned Wyoming Mountain Lion Cubs Find Home In South Dakota Zoo

At least two of four orphaned mountain lion cubs captured last year near Pinedale are thriving at a South Dakota wildlife park.

Mark HeinzApril 20, 2023

Other Authors

Wyoming U.S. Sens. Cynthia Lummis and John Barrasso are both supporting a bill to halt federal land management agencies from enacting bans on lead ammunition.

Lummis And Barrasso Call Lead Ammunition Ban “Activist-Driven Nonsense”

Wyoming’s U.S. senators joined an ongoing battle to stop the ban of lead ammunition and fishing tackle on public lands, claiming the effort’s nothing but “activist-driven nonsense” and would unjustly punish Wyoming hunters and anglers.

Mark HeinzApril 20, 2023

Antelope near Big Piney have resorted to traveling on highways because much of the countryside remains locked under deep snow.

Shooting Range Scaring Off Hundreds Of Struggling Wyoming Antelope, Rancher Says

Gunfire from a shooting range near Big Piney has kept hundreds of antelope from seeking shelter on some of the last suitable ground there this winter, says an area rancher.

Mark HeinzApril 20, 2023

Roxy, a Pomeranian-Dachshund mix, adds to her owner’s springtime poop patrol duties.

Record Snow Means Wyoming Faces Record Spring Dog Doo Season

Huge snowfall and record cold mean there’s also an equally huge spring dog doo cleanup season in store for Wyoming.

Mark HeinzApril 19, 2023

In the wake of more than 10,000 winterkill antelope, the Wyoming Game and Fish Commission approved a cut to hunting tags.

More Than 10,000 Antelope Hunting Tags Cut In Wake Of Brutal Wyoming Winterkill

With the ultimate antelope death toll from the worst winter in recent memory still unknown, game managers Tuesday agreed to cut more than 10,000 hunting tags for the struggling herds this fall.

Mark HeinzApril 18, 2023

Concerned over a large amount of big game winterkill, the Wyoming Game and Fish Commission has OK'd raising kill quotas for predator hunting seasons in some areas.

After Massive Wyoming Big Game Winterkill, Some Hunters Worry Predators Will Decimate Herds

With big game herds facing huge losses from winterkill, some Wyoming hunters say it’s time to turn up the heat on predators to prevent losing even more antelope, deer and elk.

Mark HeinzApril 18, 2023

In Wake Of Bird Flu Killing Wyoming Mountain Lion, Experts Say Virus Is Unpredictable

It’s difficult to say whether the recent death of a Wyoming mountain lion from bird flu indicates more mammals with catch the virus.

Mark HeinzApril 17, 2023

Brutal Winter Could Delay Shed Antler Season, The Last For Nonresidents Before New Regs Kick In

Because of persistent winter conditions, the last shed antler hunting season allowing nonresidents to start their treasure hunts at the same time as Wyomingites could be delayed. The Wyoming Game and Fish Commission discussed the situation Monday.

Mark HeinzApril 17, 2023

A bull elk that came up on a mountain lion in Yellowstone National Park recently is lucky the lion had already dined on bighorn sheep, a wildlife official says.

Elk Chilling Out Near Yellowstone Mountain Lion Lucky Big Cat Wasn’t Hungry

A mountain lion that had a bull elk walk right up to it recently in Yellowstone Park had just finished eating a bighorn sheep, and apparently wasn’t interested in dessert, park officials said.

Mark HeinzApril 17, 2023

How A Laramie, Wyoming Company Revolutionized The Maritime Industry

Wyoming might not seem like a maritime industry hub, but a Laramie-based company has been making its mark with shipping companies across the globe. The world's largest ships have Kent Henry's water sanitation technology onboard.

Mark HeinzApril 16, 2023

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