CHEYENNE, Wyo. - Yellowstone National Park is studying how human behavior affects natural ecosystems. More than 52,000 resource warnings were issued as visitation passed the four million mark for the first time last year, and 2016 attendance is expected to be even higher. With increased numbers come increased violations, and staff members have turned their eyes away from wildlife to study how humans behave in the park. This summer has already seen two deaths, as well as incidents when people got too close to elk and bison.

Ryan Atwell is the park's new social science coordinator.

"We're trying to get better information on visitor behavior," he said. "Our employees, at least, feel at this point that, because of the amounts of visitation and traffic and crowding, they feel like the atmosphere in the park is changing. They say things like, 'It's starting to feel more like an amusement park than a national park at times.'"

Last August, after the park issued more than 52,000 warnings, Atwell surveyed staff to find out where and when congestion was highest, which restrooms had long lines, and which pull-outs tourists had turned into their own unauthorized restroom sites.

Atwell said adjustments have been made to keep visitors and natural resources safe. He reports the park is fully staffed this year, more toilets and trash cans have been added, and a new communications strategy was launched to emphasize safety regulations and expectation management.

"Helping visitors to understand that, if they come during the peak time of the summer, during the sort of 9-to-5 hours of the day, they're likely to experience waits at the gate, crowding, congestion," he said.

He adds social media is another challenge. At key attractions, Atwell said every other person seems to be taking a selfie, or looking at a phone instead of watching where they're walking. He said one option under consideration, to keep foot traffic moving, is to build additional pull-outs on boardwalks.

"More and more people, and increasingly globally more and more people, want to visit a place like Yellowstone in the summer," he added. "With the need to protect the natural resources here, with the need to steward visitor experience, and then with limited staffing, we're really looking at all the different solutions that might be on the table."

Atwell encourages visitors to pack plenty of patience for the best experience. He also suggests people stay on the boardwalks to avoid geothermal burns; practice "safe selfies" by not approaching wildlife; drive the speed limit, and use pull-outs to view animals so other cars can pass.


get more stories like this via email

An environmental group is suing the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to protect the Arkansas mudalia snail under the Endangered Species Act.

In Arkansas and Missouri, including along the North Fork River, mudalia are critically endangered freshwater snails.

Trisha Sharma, legal fellow at the Center for Biological Diversity, emphasized the need to save the snail from vanishing entirely. She said freshwater mollusks are the most endangered group of animals in North America, and snails are the most endangered mollusks.

"We've already lost more than 70 species of freshwater snails," Sharma pointed out. "The Endangered Species Act has a very high success rate. So if we can get it listed and protected under the ESA, it's highly likely that the species will survive and be able to continue playing its important role in the ecosystems where it's found."

Sharma noted areas where the Arkansas mudalia can be found have decreased by 90% and the main threat to the species is habitat degradation, primarily from dam construction and operation along the rivers.

Sharma emphasized mudalia is also threatened by habitat loss from grazing, logging and mining. She added climate change is also expected to threaten the species.

"Part of what can make a species more resilient to climate impacts is its ability to disperse as its habitat becomes unsuitable, and to essentially relocate to areas where it can survive," Sharma explained. "But snails have a pretty narrow set of habitat requirements and very limited dispersal capabilities."

Sharma said freshwater snails play a crucial role in managing nutrients by consuming detritus and plant matter, preventing their decay and subsequent disruption of water quality, and snails are vital for food webs, converting unusable food sources into usable ones for birds and turtles.


get more stories like this via email

Today is Earth Day, and one initiative in southern Arizona is helping build public gardens providing beneficial habitat for pollinators, from Monarch butterflies to bees and bats.

Emily Bishton, founder and coordinator of the Arivaca Pollinator Pathway Project, said the human population depends on these animals and insects, as many of our foods and plant-based products require pollination. But human activity and climate change have put pollinators in jeopardy and Bishton wants to increase awareness of how crucial they are.

"The best chance you have for attracting and nurturing pollinators is with the species that they've co-evolved with," Bishton explained. "They will instinctively know that is food for them, or a place they can lay their eggs. They also are more likely to be able to put up with the way our climate is now and the way it is changing."

Bishton pointed out one focus of the project is to get Arizonans to plant more native species like milkweed, which is especially critical for Monarch butterflies. She would also like people to reconsider the use of pesticides since they do kill pests but also other beneficial insects. She suggested contacting a local county extension service or master-gardener program for alternative methods.

Madian Romero, technical assistant supervisor for the Caviglia-Arivaca Library, has been responsible for getting teenagers in the area to participate in the Arivaca Pollinator Pathway Project. They not only help build garden spaces around town but grow their knowledge behind the importance of pollinators, as well as community building.

"The teens, they've come up with ideas on how to fundraise for the projects," Romero emphasized. "Each business that agrees to have a garden, it can be free."

Romero added the project has also been a character-building exercise for the young people of Arivaca, and hopes it is an experience they will cherish.

The state Department of Natural Resources and Iowa State University are looking for volunteers to help create a new Bumble Bee Atlas.

Bees are an important part of the ecosystem, and scientists are figuring out their habitats to help them thrive.

Iowa is home to at least 14 species of bumble bees that help pollinate native wildflowers and flowering crops in farm fields and backyard gardens.

Iowa State University University Professor of Sustainable Agriculture and plant pathologist Matt O'Neal said the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service recently listed several bee species as endangered.

"And that includes the Rusty Patch bumble bee," said O'Neal, "20% of what it used to be, and that includes parts of Iowa. There is also evidence that other bumble species are in decline and so, this survey will give us a chance to see where those bees are and how abundant they are."

With that information, O'Neal said scientists can work to protect the bees' habitats and create Iowa's Bumble Bee Atlas.

It's part of a larger project to map the bees and foster bee development nationwide. Sign up online to volunteer.

The national project is part of a collaboration with the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation.

Some 900 people have volunteered for the national atlas project, and counted more than 20,000 bumble bees - which O'Neal said face several major threats.

"Pesticide exposure, parasite and pathogens," said O'Neal, "and then the last 'P,' and probably the most important, is poor forage."

The researchers will work to alleviate those threats by knowing where the bees are.

Volunteers have discovered species thought to be gone from their states, contributed to new field guides, and improved scientists' understanding of bumble bee populations across the country.




get more stories like this via email