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YELLOWSTONE |
IN THE NEWS TODAY: Northern Yellowstone Elk Herd Count -- by NPS Cross-Country Skiing in Yellowstone -- by NPS Historic Montana Ranch Preserved -- News Brief Sitting Bull Exhibit at Little Bighorn -- News Brief Daily Environmental News -- from ISyndicate |
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ROAD REPORT PUBLISHER EDITOR-IN-
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NORTHERN
YELLOWSTONE ELK HERD COUNT by National Park Service YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK, Wyo. (NPS) -- The annual winter interagency survey of the northern range elk population was carried out on December 27, 1999. Biologists from the National Park Service, Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks, and the U.S.G.S. Biological Resources Division participated in the survey as part of four separate fixed-wing, pilot-observer teams that simultaneously surveyed the entire northern winter range, both inside and outside Yellowstone National Park. The total number of elk counted was 14,538. This number represents a minimum population estimate for the northern Yellowstone elk herd because it includes only those animals actually seen and counted. The 1999-2000 winter northern range count increased from the 11,742 elk counted in 1998-1999. The annual winter survey is usually scheduled prior to the Montana late-season hunt so that elk movements and hunting mortality do not affect the survey results. However, poor flying weather and scheduling difficulties delayed the 1997-98 and 1998-99 surveys until mid-January. During those years the outside-park portion of the count was conducted 2-10 days after the inside-park portion, so cross-boundary elk movements and hunting mortality during the intervening time could have influenced survey results. The northern Yellowstone winter elk count has varied from 8,980 to 19,045 since 1976. As intended, the 1999-2000 count was conducted prior to the start of the late season hunt, and the entire northern winter range was surveyed on the same day under favorable flying and counting conditions. From the Deckard Flats and Crevice Creek area north to Dome Mountain, 3,124 elk were counted on both sides of the Yellowstone River with 15 elk also counted outside the park in the upper Slough Creek drainage. Inside the park 11,399 elk were counted in the area from Cache-Calfee ridge west to Electric Peak and Quadrant Mountain and from Mt. Washburn north to the park boundary. Biologists do not attempt to classify elk according to age and sex during a survey, but focus instead on counting the entire population. The National Park Service, in cooperation with the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks, will conduct a northern range elk population helicopter classification survey to estimate the age and sex structure of the elk population in late winter. |
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CONTRIBUTING WRITERS AND COLUMNISTS Ralph Maughan
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CROSS-COUNTRY
SKIING IN YELLOWSTONE by National Park Service YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK, Wyo. (NPS) -- In the winter, Yellowstone offers a variety of enjoyable and challenging trails for the skier. All trails are marked but may be untracked. On some trails, the more difficult and most difficult sections can be avoided by skiing part way in and returning to the same trailhead. The experiences you have will depend upon the amount of planning and preparation you do prior to your trip. We suggest that you stop at a visitor center or ski shop and discuss your trip in person. The staff will be happy to provide current information on weather, trail, snow conditions, and alert you to any special winter hazards. Wood fires are not permitted. Pets are not allowed on ski trails or in backcountry areas. Some backcountry trails are suitable for skiing, but should only be attempted by experienced parties equipped with topographic maps and a compass. Overnight camping requires a free backcountry use permit which must be obtained in person from the Mammoth or Old Faithful Ranger Stations or West, South or East Entrance Stations. Your permit may be picked up 48 hours in advance and will designate the camping area to be used. When skiing near thermal areas, stay on marked trails. Approaching thermal features is dangerous because of unstable ground. The snow in these areas is often icy and what appears to be bare ground may be a thin crust over boiling water. Winter weather in Yellowstone changes rapidly and can be severe. Many areas are frequently windy. Wear proper clothing. Watch yourself and other members of your party for signs of frostbite and hypothermia. For your safety, always ski with someone else. Carry extra clothing, food, water, map and compass, matches, flashlight, and a whistle. Sign in at trail registers and tell someone where you are going, by what route, and when you plan to return. |
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| HISTORIC MONTANA
RANCH PRESERVED News Brief The historic Matador Ranch, located 40 miles south of Malta, Montana, has been purchased by the Nature Conservancy of Montana and the Tranel family of Billings and Roundup. Founded by Montana cattleman and vigilante Granville Stuart, the ranch at one time was part of the vast Matador Land and Livestock holdings that stretched from Texas to Saskatchewan. The current ranch encompasses some 60,000 acres of land. The importance of the ranch is that it is located in one of the last and largest mixed-grass prairie landscapes in North America. Prairie landscapes, once widespread across the mid-West and West as late as the late 1800s, have been nearly wiped out in the ensuing years. |
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| SITTING-BULL
EXHIBIT AT LITTLE BIGHORN News Brief "The Last Years of Sitting Bull," part of a traveling exhibit on loan from the State Historic Society of North Dakota, will be on display at Little Bighorn National Monument until February 27. The exhibit includes 16 two-sided, walk-around panels. It represents the years between the Great Sioux leader's surrender at Fort Buford in North Dakota in 1881 and his arrest and death in 1890. Sitting Bull was born near the Grand River in present-day South Dakota in 1834. |
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