Vol 3, # 37

   Friday, April 2, 1999

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YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK, Wyo. (GYC) -- Dismissing federal initiatives and new opportunities for non-lethal management, the State of Montana is expanding its slaughter of buffalo near the western boundary of America’s first national park.

On Wednesday, Montana’s Department of Livestock hazed 29 buffalo into a new capture facility at Horse Butte. The animals have been trucked to another facility for blood tests.  On the basis of the blood tests, Montana has been shipping buffalo to slaughter, where additional tests on tissues have indicated most of the dead animals had no infection, posed no significant risk, and thus were killed needlessly.

Montana has killed 27 buffalo this winter. Of the first 17 slaughtered, 15 turned out not to have any trace of brucellosis infection.

“Take your pick,” said Mike Clark, Executive Director of the Greater Yellowstone Coalition. “Montana is ignoring lab results, pleas from citizens, advice from the federal government, and worst of all, on-the-ground changes that are keeping buffalo and cattle separated, which removes any justification for slaughter.”

Last week, the U.S. Interior Department spelled out numerous reasons why Montana’s construction of a new capture facility at Horse Butte is unnecessary. Now, with 29 buffalo trapped in the facility those federal statements are worth revisiting.

The Interior Department said:

• Montana is choosing to expand its capture and slaughter of bison, instead of exercising flexibility, at a    time when no threat to public health or safety exists.

• Montana’s actions are not necessary to protect the state’s brucellosis-free status.

• There are no cattle in the area.

• Hazing has been successful.

• The Forest Service has modified grazing allotments so, if it chooses, the state can keep cattle away until 30 to 60 days after the last buffalo has left the area and returned to Yellowstone Park.

“This is a good time to remind ourselves that all this slaughter of Yellowstone buffalo—not only this winter and spring, but for the past decade—has occurred in areas where fewer than 2,000 cattle graze,” said Clark.

“The federal government has taken important steps to keep cattle and buffalo from being in the same place at the same time, and Montana is simply ignoring this progress and continuing its slaughter.”

Are you concerned about Yellowstone's bison being slaughtered?  Email Montana Governer Marc Racicot.

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CONTRIBUTING WRITERS AND COLUMNISTS

Ralph Maughan
Kim Steinbacher
Kevin Sanders
Steve Brashear
Clint Wilkes
Tim Gourley
Hon. Bob Gammage
Ruth Colter-Frick
Lee Whittlesey
Tom Mazzarisi
Russ Finley
David Monteith
Denise Elmer
Dr. Bob Bara

YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK (YNET) -- If you are planning a visit to Yellowstone this summer, now is the time to be making preparations, including your lodging and activity reservations.

Yellowstone Net Travel offers the best customer service in the region and can take care of all your Yellowstone reservations, including lodging and activity needs.

Already, most lodging dates in the Park are filled, so you should be prepared to stay at one of the popular gateway cities:  West Yellowstone, Gardiner, Cody or Jackson.  In addition, if you plan on taking a raft trip, make your plans now, as it one of the most popular activities in Yellowstone vicinity.  Other popular activities include horseback riding, bicycle tours, and guided geyser tours.

For more information, be sure to visit the Yellowstone Net Travel website.

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BELGRADE, Mont. (YNET) -- The landscape of Montana is filled with many interesting things and one of my favorite stops lies in the middle of the Paradise Valley. The Absaroka Knoll Farm is the home of Knoll’s Yellowstone Hackle and this ongoing enterprise is true to its web site’s decreed “mission” which is, “to create a farm and business for the 21st century.”

Knoll’s Yellowstone Hackle is a collage of entrepreneurial skill developed by “Doc” and Ellen
Knoll, the owners of the farm. My visits there have been wonderful learning experiences. Ellen, a degreed horticulturist, raises the “textbook” variety of orchids, annual and perennial plants and herbs. Her summertime produce,  is simply the best to be had anywhere and, for many fortunate people of the area,  it is delivered to their doorstep within hours of being
harvested.

Doc follows suit with his own contributions to the workings of the farm. This avid world class fisherman raises “genetic” hackle (for those of us who are not flyfisherman, these are the feathers used to create fishing flies.) and they (the feathers)  are receiving praise from fly tiers all over this watery planet. But, on my last encounter with him, he spoke to me about his "basic idea" of his farm; “It appears to many of our visitors that much of this place has my handprint  on it. Actually it started out as Ellen’s little dream,” Doc said as we talked one bright afternoon. “She always could grow stuff  and one should do what he or she does best. So. . . she went for it big time! She cracked the whip and had me building greenhouses and roto-tilling her gardens.  I had to scramble just to keep up!” Doc started to laugh, which is very much in his nature to do. “That’s about   when I got the birds. Within a year  and since I had the feathers, I guess that entitled me to have  a Flyshop. It received the name Doc’s Flyshop because, like Ellen’s greenhouses, this is my little treasure. But. . . she has her  half of it.”

And a treasure it is. Doc and Ellen have molded their two life’s loves into a perfectly flowing seasonal business that is quite diversified. Upon arriving at the farm the visitor is naturally directed to the farm’s office, Doc’s Flyshop, where a bounty of treasures awaits the guest.

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A female gray wolf that wandered from Idaho into Oregon in February was captured by U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service officers March 26 and whisked back to Idaho. The wolf, B-45, thrived and did quite well while in Oregon, according to USFWS officials who had been tracking her every move. She had even gained weight since moving to Oregon