CODY, Wyo. – Aspen trees are on the rebound in and around Yellowstone National Park, and a new report says predators deserve the credit.

Luke Painter, a wildlife ecologist at Oregon State University and the study’s lead author, says the trees were in decline for decades largely because concentrated elk populations were eating new tree shoots.

He says since wolves were reintroduced, elk numbers have decreased and most of the herd's winter range is now outside the park.

"So that's relieved the pressure on the young aspen plants, and we're seeing new aspen trees beginning to grow,” he points out. “So, this is a sign that things really have turned around for aspen in northern Yellowstone."

Wolves, along with bears, cougars and hunters outside the park, are culling the elk herd, which translates into fewer elk grazing on aspen and other woody species.

Putting wolves back into the park in 1995 was a point of controversy because of ranchers' concerns about losing livestock and dogs, and outfitters who worried that fewer elk could mean a loss of tourism dollars.

Painter admits that some outfitters that depended on large elk concentrations in and near the park in the 1980s and '90s have lost some of that business.

"At the same time, there's a lot of new businesses around here bringing people into the park to see the wolves,” he stresses. “That's actually stimulated some of the local economy, and there's a number of new startups doing that."

Painter says what's happening in Yellowstone is the emergence of an ecosystem that is more normal for the region and one that will support greater biodiversity.

He says as one of the area's few deciduous trees, aspens are important because birds, insects and various kinds of plants thrive in their stands.

"As well as providing habitat and food for deer and elk and other animals,” Painter adds. “When you start seeing these aspen stands popping up and getting more dense, you start finding these animals using them. So, all these plants are important for the landscape, for the ecology."

Painter notes that restoring aspen in northern Yellowstone has been a goal of the National Park Service for decades, a goal he says it largely has reached by letting the animals do the heavy lifting.


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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.




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A coalition of conservation groups has sued the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for refusing to relist wolves under the Endangered Species Act.

Helena-based Alliance for the Wild Rockies is part of the suit. The Alliance sued to successfully overturn the wolf's delisting in 2012 but the move fell victim to congressional funding bill negotiations.

Mike Garrity, executive director of the alliance, said the wolves clearly qualify to be protected under the Act and hunting is driving down their numbers, which could cause problems for the animals.

"As their numbers decline, they are at greater risk for inbreeding," Garrity pointed out. "Once inbreeding sets in, the population is sunk."

Livestock and cattle owners argued wolves are a threat to their flocks and herds and want their numbers reduced. The suit was filed in federal District Court in Missoula.

Beyond keeping a robust population of wolves on Montana's lands and helping their species thrive, Garrity noted wolves can also help reduce the population of diseased animals.

"We're starting to have disease in deer, such as Chronic Wasting Disease," Garrity explained. "Predators like wolves are really good at focusing on the sick animals, so that's an excellent way to control Chronic Wasting Disease."

Garrity added wolf management policies in Montana, Idaho and Wyoming, all of which allow aggressive hunting of the animals, fail to protect wolves and all native species for future generations, the primary mandate of the Endangered Species Act.