Category Archives: News

Cutthroat trout’s ear bone reveals its life history

Environmental Issues, News, ,

This recently released study on westslope cutthroat trout migration tracking is pretty interesting stuff . . .

Like a tree’s concentric growth rings, a small bone within a fish’s ear reveals a history of its growth. And according to a new study of westslope cutthroat trout in the Flathead River system, the bone also contains a record of its migration pathways – a kind of geochemical diary of its life.

The bone, called an otolith, acquires a new ring every day of the fish’s life. All fish have them, and for decades scientists have counted the bands of the bone to determine the age of a fish, as well as estimate population growth.

But a study published last week by a slate of Montana researchers in the Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences brings to light new information that the ear bones also contain a unique fingerprint of the water chemistry where the fish swims on a given day, which can be used to map the entire life history of a fish within a river network.

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Another sign of spring: deer counting

Environmental Issues, News, ,

Montana Fish Wildlife and Parks people are out in the field gathering data on deer populations . . .

Hunting deer in springtime resembles its fall cousin in everything but the weaponry: Get up before dawn, go far away from other people, creep quietly to avoid scaring the quarry.

The only difference is that the big scopes don’t have rifles attached. Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks biologist Jay Kolbe has his mounted to his pickup window. As the morning light shifts from blue to yellow, he drives from one patch of new grass to another, counting every whitetail adult and fawn he can spot.

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Glacier Park hosting community meetings

News,

Glacier Park will be hosting two information meetings to discuss upcoming park activities. Superintendent Chas Cartwright will be there, as will Assistant Superintendent Kym Hall. If you’ve got questions for those people, these meetings are a good opportunity. Here is the official press release:

Glacier National Park is hosting two community meetings to share information about park activities and provide an opportunity for personal dialogue between park management and local community members and neighbors. A west-side meeting will take place Tuesday, May 15, 5:30-7 p.m. at Discovery Square in Columbia Falls and an east-side meeting will be Wednesday, May 16 from 3-4:30 p.m. at the Glacier Park Lodge in East Glacier.

The format of the meeting will include presentations by Glacier National Park Superintendent Chas Cartwright and Deputy Superintendent Kym Hall. Following the presentations, there will be a question and answer period and opportunity for informal conversations.

Cartwright and Hall will share updates regarding 2012 park programs, including Going-to-the-Sun Road Rehabilitation, spring plowing, Apgar Transit Center Parking Lot Expansion, aquatic invasive species management, Lake McDonald Cabin Management Plan, and the role of social media with the park. Community members are encouraged to attend and learn more about what’s happening at the park.

Young grizzly captured north of Columbia Falls; released in Whale Creek area

News, , ,

From the Flathead Beacon . . .

Wildlife officials captured a young male grizzly bear Friday in a residential area north of Columbia Falls, according to Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks.

The 4-year-old bear was caught in a trap set for a much larger grizzly that was getting into garbage in the area.

The young male was relocated Saturday in the Whale Creek area of the North Fork of the Flathead River drainage . . .

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Northern Rockies could have mild wildfire season

Fire Information and Status, News

This is a bit like discussing the World Series after the first few games of the regular season but, for what it’s worth, there’s a chance we might have a mild fire season around here this year . . .

It looks to be a busy fire year, but not around here.

Continuing drought and poor snowpack have the nation’s southern states and large parts of the Midwest bracing for smoke and flames as spring moves into summer, according to Ed Delgado of the National Interagency Fire Center. Delgado heads the center’s National Predictive Services Program.

“One of the things we’re having to deal with is the uncertainty in global circulation patterns,” Delgado said during a national teleconference on Thursday. “Whether we transition into a neutral or an El Niño pattern will have dramatically different outcomes for the potential for fire.”

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Surprise caribou rescue

News,

This is a pretty good story. Montana FWP thought they were going out to retrieve a dead caribou that wandered away from a Canadian herd. Instead, they ended up with a live Caribou on their hands . . .

What started out as an unusual hunt for a dead caribou that wandered south of Eureka from Canada turned out to be an animal  rescue mission Thursday for Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks biologists.

British Columbia wildlife officials notified the biologists Thursday morning that a recently transplanted cow caribou had wandered into the Pinkham Creek drainage, and its satellite collar was broadcasting a mortality signal that is triggered when the collar doesn’t move for six hours.

Jim Williams, the regional wildlife manager, teamed up with biologists Tim Thier and Tim Manley to retrieve the animal using snowmobiles.

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Burn permits required starting May 1

News,

If you’ve got a slash pile or whatever that needs burning, you’ll need a burn permit starting May 1 and running through June 30. (No burning is allowed July 1 – September 30.) Here are the highlights . . .

Burn permits are available online at http://www.firesafekalispell.com/.  Fill out the online form and a permit will be emailed to you.

If you don’t have Internet access — or don’t know someone who does — several locations can issue burn permits during normal business hours: the Department of Natural Resources and Conservation office in Kalispell at 655 Timberwolf Parkway, the DNRC office in Olney at 7425 U.S. 93 N., Flathead County Environmental Health on the second floor of the Earl Bennett Building at 1035 1st Ave. W. in Kalispell or the Bigfork Fire Department at 810 Grand Ave. in Bigfork.

Permits are free. One permit is required for each location, but the permit is good through June 30.

Have a copy of your permit with you when you burn.

Depending on air quality, there may be burning restrictions on some days. Before you burn, call the Flathead County Air Quality Hotline at 751-8144 or check online at http://flathead.mt.gov/environmentalhealth/burning.php.

You are responsible for any and all suppression costs if a fire escapes your control. Escaped debris burns are the leading cause of all wildfires in Montana. Don’t leave your fire unattended and don’t burn when windy.

Warm days; rising waters

Flood Information, News

The warm weather triggered a rise in river levels. It doesn’t look like much excitement in the Flathead Valley, though . . .

The National Weather Service is projecting Northwest Montana rivers and streams to rise over the next few days with some expected to approach or exceed flood stage.

The rising waters are due to recent warm weather and rain that is expected Wednesday night, continuing through Thursday. Along the Montana-Idaho border, as much as an inch is expected. About a half inch is expected in areas farther east.

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