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Knight Lake, formerly Swastika Lake, in southern Wyoming.

18 Months After Name Change, Wyomingites Still Argue Over ‘Swastika Lake’

Nearly 18 months after Swastika Lake in Albany County was renamed Knight Lake, there’s still controversy and arguments over whether the change was justified or erased history.

Mark HeinzJuly 25, 2025

Rancher and outdoorsman Carl Strachan took this elk calf into his home near Livingston, Montana, trying to nurse it back to health after it survived an apparent mountain lion attack. The calf died, but Strachan said he doesn’t regret trying to help.

Rancher Tries To Save Elk Calf Mauled In Mountain Lion Attack

A Montana outdoorsman and rancher found an elk calf that had been critically hurt in a mountain lion attack and took it into his home. The calf died, but he doesn’t regret trying to save it. It also follows a trend of more mountain lion sightings.

Mark HeinzJuly 25, 2025

A proposed change in Wyoming Game and Fish regulations would let trappers off the hook for “unintentionally” killing otters. But they’d have to surrender the otters’ carcasses to Game and Fish.

Rule Would Let Trappers Off Hook For Some Otter Killings, But They Can’t Keep Pelts

A proposed change in Wyoming Game and Fish regulations would let trappers off the hook for “unintentionally” killing otters. But they’d have to surrender the otters’ carcasses to Game and Fish.

Mark HeinzJuly 25, 2025

A barred owl, inset, with a group of spotted owls.

Congress Moves To Stop Killing Of 500,000 Barred Owls To Save Spotted Owls

Environmental groups have pulled together a bipartisan effort in Congress, which introduced a bill Wednesday to halt a Biden-era plan for a mass killing of 500,000 barred owls. Killing those owls would save endangered spotted owls, officials have said.

Mark HeinzJuly 24, 2025

A screenshot from a trail cam video showing a three new wolf pups in Colorado. Wildlife officials say there are now four wolf packs with pups in Colorado.

Not Everyone Thrilled With Colorado’s Wolf Boom — Four New Litters

Colorado’s wolf population is booming, with four packs known to have litters of pups born this spring. Not everyone is thrilled with that news, including ranchers who say wolves have killed numerous cattle.

Mark HeinzJuly 23, 2025

Mom and cubs: A mother black bear and her cubs stop by a bear bait site in Wyoming. Proponents of bear bait hunting argue that it’s a good way to closely observe bears and avoid shooting a female with cubs by mistake.

Proposed Bear-Baiting Ban In Wyoming Sparks Debate Over What’s Ethical In Bear Hunting

A coalition of animal welfare groups is backing a congressional bill to ban bear-baiting on federal land in Wyoming and other states, but some hunters argue it’s an ethical way to hunt bears.

Mark HeinzJuly 22, 2025

Rumors started flying online Sunday that Grizzly 399’s final cub, Spirit, has been found alive and identified through DNA. Wyoming wildlife officials say don’t believe it, that it’s a bogus story.

Story That Grizzly 399’s Cub Spirit Found Through DNA Testing Is Bogus

Rumors started flying online Sunday that Grizzly 399’s final cub, Spirit, has been found alive and identified through DNA. Wyoming wildlife officials say don’t believe it, that it’s a bogus story.

Mark HeinzJuly 21, 2025

On a recent outing in Mount Spokane State Park, northeast of the city in Washington state, Jon Gelder and his wife, Heather, found bountiful berry bushes.

It’s Huckleberry Season, But Don’t Ask A Picker Where To Find Them

Throngs of huckleberry hunters are out as the season for picking the wild-growing fruit is hitting its peak in Wyoming. But don’t you dare ask a picker where to find them, as they protect their prime patches the way anglers do a favorite fishing hole.

Anna-Louise JacksonJuly 20, 2025

Hoback Canyon, where the Cow and Calf of the Woods avalanche chutes spill danger onto the highway below.

Cutting-Edge Avalanche Radar Planned For Wyoming’s Notorious Hoback Canyon

Hoback Canyon in northwest Wyoming is notorious for being avalanche-prone. It’s been selected to get a new cutting-edge avalanche radar system that can detect potential slides 24/7 in any weather. That promises faster road closures and safety for drivers.

David MadisonJuly 19, 2025

Drives on this part of Louis Loop Road can expect a bumpy ride dominated by a washboard road.

One Of Wyoming’s Most Beautiful Drives Is Also A Kidney-Rattling Washboard Ride

Just past Sinks Canyon State Park south of Lander is Louis Lake Loop Road. Nearly 100 years old, it leads to some of Wyoming’s most beautiful places, but it's a rough ride. The road wasn't built for today's traffic. It was designed to handle Model Ts going 15 mph.

Mark HeinzJuly 19, 2025

Bison behavior is a largely unexplored realm, but anecdotal evidence suggests that bison might have specific behaviors associated with death and "mourning." Here, a herd of bison investigate a wolf-killed comrade near Blacktail Pond in 2020.

Do Bison Understand Death? Bison Funerals Suggest They Might

Anecdotal evidence suggests bison might have specific behaviors associated with death and mourning. In one case in northern Yellowstone, bison maintained a constant vigil around a deceased bison, circling around the carcass for more than an hour.

Andrew RossiJuly 19, 2025

Barbed fishing hooks inflict ghastly injuries to prized trout in the North Platte River near Casper. The Wyoming Game and Fish Commission ruled to ban barbed hooks along sections of the river.

Mouth-Ripping Barbed Hooks Banned On North Platte Blue-Ribbon Trout Fisheries

Barbed fishing hooks inflict ghastly injuries to prized trout in the North Platte River near Casper. The Wyoming Game and Fish Commission this week banned barbed hooks along sections of the river, a move fishing guides say is overdue.

Mark HeinzJuly 18, 2025

The National Park Service has put up lighthearted signs warning people of a fox, or foxes, stealing shoes from the Lizard Creek campground in Grand Teton National Park.

Fox-Turned-Shoe Bandit Makes Grand Teton’s ‘Most Wanted’ List

At least one naughty fox has been making off with people’s shoes from a campground in Grand Teton National Park. At least 32 shoes have been stolen so far, prompting the park to put the fox on its “Most Wanted” list.

Mark HeinzJuly 18, 2025

Michelino Sunseri is an Idaho ultrarunner who has been prosecuted for deviating from a trail running up Grand Teton. Now Wyoming U.S. Rep. Harriet Hageman is getting involved, asking the prosecutor for documents in what she says may be an overzealous prosecution of Sunseri.

Hageman Wants Answers About Prosecution Of Grand Teton Trail Runner

Idaho ultrarunner Michelino Sunseri is awaiting a verdict in a criminal trial for cutting a switchback while running up Grand Teton last fall. U.S. Rep. Harriet Hageman says she’s investigating a possible overzealous prosecution.

Sean BarryJuly 17, 2025

A black bear with a taste for human food that was involved in "a series of concerning incidents" in Yellowstone National Park campgrounds had to be killed, park officials say. The last straw was the bear ransacking a tent and tearing down food storage poles.

Park Service Kills "Food-Conditioned" Black Bear In Yellowstone

The National Park Service announced Thursday that a black bear in Yellowstone was killed because it had developed a taste for human food. The last straw was ransacking a tent and tearing down food storage poles.

Andrew RossiJuly 17, 2025

Fred Eshelman, the landowner at the center of Wyoming’s famous “corner-crossing” case, has lost every court battle against hunters who crossed at the corner of his property to get to public land. Wednesday, he filed a petition for the U.S. Supreme Court to hear the case.

Supreme Court Petition Is Final Hail Mary For Wyoming Corner-Crossing Landowner

The landowner at the center of Wyoming’s famous “corner-crossing” case has lost every court battle against hunters who crossed at the corner of his property to get to public land. Wednesday, he filed a petition for the U.S. Supreme Court to hear the case.

Mark HeinzJuly 16, 2025

Wolves getty 10 18 24

Montana Considers Killing Nearly Half Of Its Wolf Population

Montana is considering setting a wolf kill quota of 500 for the 2025-2026 wolf seasons, nearly half of its wolf population. It would allow hunters and trappers to take as many as 15 wolves each. 

Mark HeinzJuly 16, 2025

Dozens of landowners showed up at the Game and Fish Commission in Casper Tuesday, to speak out against proposed changes in the landowner hunting tag program.

After Hours Of Testimony, Commission Rejects Changes To Landowner Hunting Tags

After landowners showed up in force to oppose proposed changes to landowner hunting tag requirements, the Wyoming Game and Fish Commission rejected the changes Tuesday.

Mark HeinzJuly 16, 2025

A U.S. House committee advanced legislation Tuesday sponsored by U.S. Rep. Harriet Hageman, R-Wyoming, to remove Yellowstone-area grizzly bears from the Endangered Species Act list. The bill also would ban courts from blocking the delisting.

Hageman’s Bill To Delist Grizzlies Passes House Committee

A U.S. House committee advanced legislation Tuesday sponsored by U.S. Rep. Harriet Hageman, R-Wyoming, to remove Yellowstone-area grizzly bears from the Endangered Species Act list. The bill also would ban courts from blocking the delisting.

Sean BarryJuly 15, 2025

Horses from the Salt Wells Creek mustang herd will be spared from Bureau of Land Management roundups, at least for now, after a federal court ruled against the BLM.

Federal Court Halts Roundup Of Rare Wyoming Curly-Haired Mustangs

A plan to round up rare curly-haired mustangs from herds in southcentral Wyoming is on hold after a Tuesday federal court ruling. The court sided with horse advocate groups against the BLM’s plan.

Mark HeinzJuly 15, 2025

Jackson-Area resident Sarah Harrison MacMillan found this unidentified dead critter floating in the South Fork of the Shoshone River on Saturday. She thinks is might be a young marmot, but others have guessed that it could be an otter, a fisher or even a baby wolverine.

Jackson Woman Stupefied By Dead Mystery Critter Floating In Shoshone River

A Jackson-area woman found a cat-sized dead animal floating in the South Fork of the Shoshone River on Saturday. She doesn’t know what it is and is going nuts trying to positively identify the critter. And it's not a cat.

Mark HeinzJuly 15, 2025

After venturing into Sheridan, this healthy young female black bear was trapped by the Wyoming Game and Fish Department July 5. The bear was set loose deep in the Bighorn Mountains the next day.

Black Bears In Sheridan County Towns So Routine People Say They're Neighbors

Black bears showing up in Sheridan, Story, Dayton and other towns around the Bighorn Mountains has become routine for folks there. Locals say they feel like the bears are neighbors, but “repeat offender” bears sometimes have to be killed.

Mark HeinzJuly 14, 2025

Avianna Frady demonstrates how the Domeco can be used to train for rock climbing during the International Climbers' Festival in Lander.

One Weekend A Year, Lander’s The Center Of The Rock Climbing World

Lander, Wyoming, is an international destination for rock climbers. This past weekend was the 32nd International Climbers’ Festival, which makes Lander the center of the rock-climbing world, drawing hundreds of rock climbers.

Renée JeanJuly 14, 2025

Yellowstone National Park announced Monday the discovery of a new 13-foot, baby blue hot spring. It emerged with little volcanic fanfare in the Norris Geyser Basin and has scientists excited.

Yellowstone Announces Discovery Of A New Baby Blue Thermal Pool

Yellowstone National Park announced Monday the discovery of a new 13-foot baby blue hot spring. It emerged with little volcanic fanfare in the Norris Geyser Basin and has scientists excited.

Andrew RossiJuly 14, 2025

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