NEWS ROUNDUP

Court upholds dismissal of charges against wolf biologist A federal appeals court has upheld the dismissal of trespassing and littering charges against a federal wolf biologist and a private contractor who were found with tranquilized wolves on private property near Cody. The 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals concluded in a ruling released Thursday that the prosecution of Mike Jimenez, Wyoming's wolf recovery coordinator for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and Wes Livingston, a private contractor from Cody, was more an "attempt to hinder a locally unpopular federal program," than a "bona fide effort to punish a violation of Wyoming trespass law." Rancher Randy Kruger pursued the charges after he found Jimenez and Livingston on his private land near Meeteetse Feb. 14, 2004. The men had four tranquilized wolves they were collaring because of depredation problems in the area. The incident raised speculation by some that they were trying to secretly transplant wolves into the area. The FWS said Jimenez and Livingston inadvertently wound up on the private land while working to place radio tracking collars on the wolves. FWS regional director Ralph Morganweck apologized for the incident....
Wyoming asks EPA to discard Montana rules Gov. Dave Freudenthal has asked the Environmental Protection Agency to reject Montana water quality rules that he says would severely limit natural gas production in Wyoming. However, Montana Gov. Brian Schweitzer said his state intends to stick by its rules and said he's not pleased Wyoming took the dispute to federal regulators. Freudenthal announced Wednesday that his letter to Stephen L. Johnson, EPA administrator in Washington, D.C., asks the agency to appoint a mediator to resolve the dispute between the states. He wants discussion about the Montana rules and recognition that they "have serious impacts in Wyoming." But Schweitzer maintains that Wyoming's booming coalbed methane development is already having serious impacts in Montana....
Wildlife Officers “Seize” Elk From Local Ranch Wildlife enforcement officers served a search warrant March 28 on Joey Perdue, owner of Beaverhorn Elk Ranch in the Bethel community. The search warrant, signed by Superior Court judge James Baker, allowed wildlife management officials to “seize” five elk, the last remnants of Perdue’s herd, after a citation accused her of failing to comply with state regulations. By “seize,” though, the warrant was really empowering officials to kill the elk and dispose of their carcasses in a pit at the Wilkes Wildlife Depot. Perdue says wildlife officials never told her the violations would end in the death of her elk, which included a 23-year-old bull and three pregnant cows. What’s worse, she said, is the animals, which officials say were killed as part of the state’s effort to keep a mysterious brain ailment known as Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) from infecting wild herds, were rendered inedible when two veterinarians tranquilized them before euthanizing them with a bolt gun shot to the brain. “This waste amounted to approximately 5,000 pounds of the most healthy meat in the world,” an infuriated Perdue wrote in a March 31 letter to the Democrat. Perdue had been involved in a running dispute with state Wildlife Management officials who say they’d been after the 71-year-old rancher since 2004 to bring her operation into compliance with state law....
Calaveras rancher jumps to support Endangered Species Act It took a frog to make Calaveras County rancher Danny Pearson hop on an airplane. Pearson runs cattle on his family's ranch near Burson, off a dirt road east of San Andreas. In his 42 years, he has never found occasion to fly. He's never registered with any political party, and he's certainly never lobbied Congress. Until now. This week, incited by his regard for the California red-legged frog and his concern over the future of the Endangered Species Act, Pearson has become the quintessential citizen lobbyist. He's learning legislative mechanics, navigating Capitol Hill and beginning to appreciate the art of the sound bite. "I've got to get the message out there," Pearson said Monday. "Not all ranchers can be bought." Pearson's is one sun-beaten face of the Endangered Species Act debate, which has stymied Congress for years. His opposite number, a man he has never met, is also a one-time rancher. As chairman of the House Resources Committee, Rep. Richard Pombo, R-Tracy, is pushing a dramatic rewrite of the 33-year-old environmental law....
County says bill would hurt landowners Local opposition is gaining steam against a bill in the Colorado Senate that critics say would fail to protect the rights of surface landowners involved in disputes with gas drillers. The La Plata County commissioners wrote in a letter on Monday to the bill's Senate sponsor, Jim Isgar, D-Hesperus, that it was a "serious step backward" that "undermines local government authority in a wholly unacceptable way." Commissioners had earlier supported the bill, but they said it underwent "serious and deleterious changes." The bill requires gas companies to try to get a surface-use agreement with the landowner. However, if the landowner won't sign, the company could still drill by making an offer to reimburse the landowner and by posting a $15,000 bond with the state. Much of the current language was written by BP Amoco, the major driller in Southwest Colorado. The bill limits payment for damages to land that is disturbed by wells or pipelines, not the lost value of the entire parcel of land. The bill, HB 1185, passed by an overwhelming 60-3 vote in the House. It could receive a vote in the full Senate as early as today. Isgar has signed on as Senate sponsor. A Bayfield ranching family said Tuesday that the bill was a step backward and must be defeated. "This is just a bad bill," said Jim Fitzgerald, who owns 400 acres southeast of Bayfield. "It's unfair, and it takes rights away from landowners." Fitzgerald said he has one gas well on his land, two on adjacent land and "more coming," courtesy of BP Amoco. Gwen Lachelt, executive director of the Oil & Gas Accountability Project in Durango, said the bill was hijacked by the oil and gas industry....
Court asked to review mileage rules An environmental group on Thursday asked for a court review of tighter gas mileage rules for pickups and sport utility vehicles that many conservationists said do not go far enough in limiting greenhouse gas emissions. The federal government set the new standards last week in response to rising concern about the supply and cost of energy from abroad. The rules, covering 2008 through 2011, would save 10.7 billion gallons of fuel over the lifetime of the vehicles sold during that period, officials said. The Tucson, Ariz.-based Center for Biological Diversity filed a one-page petition Thursday asking the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to review the decision. Deborah Sivas, director of Stanford University's Environmental Law Clinic, which is representing the center, said the government did not adequately consider whether tighter standards would have been a greater boon for the environment. She also said the new rules would not adequately protect endangered species....
"Laurel and Hardy effect” spells good news for captive breeding Animals bred in captivity for reintroduction to the wild are able to retain their defences against predators for several generations, ecologists have found. According to new research published in the British Ecological Society’s Journal of Applied Ecology, tadpoles of the Mallorcan midwife toad (Alytes muletensis) retain their ability to change their body shape – a defence they have evolved in the face of predators – even after being bred in captivity for three to eight generations. The results have important implications for conserving endangered species through captive breeding programmes. Tadpoles of many amphibians have developed ways of defending themselves against predators. Mallorcan midwife toad tadpoles grow longer tails and shallower fins to help them escape from danger when predators are present. These defences have evolved in response to two predators that were introduced to Mallorca about 2,000 years ago: the viperine snake (Natrix maura) and the green frog (Rana perezi). The authors of the paper, Dr Richard Griffiths and colleagues from the University of Kent and the University of Sussex, have dubbed this change in shape the “Laurel and Hardy effect”. The researchers compared the responses of tadpoles in a predator-free, reintroduced population with those in the population from which their ancestors were collected several years earlier. When the tadpoles were exposed to chemical cues from predators, the researchers found that the reintroduced population retained their anti-predator responses, even though they had been bred in captivity for three to eight generations in the absence of predator selection pressures....
Lawsuit challenges use of hatchery fish in counts Conservation groups Thursday challenged a new government policy that includes hatchery fish in counts used to determine the status of dwindling salmon and steelhead runs. In a federal court lawsuit the plaintiffs also challenged the downlisting of upper Columbia steelhead -- from endangered to threatened -- that has resulted from that policy. "The purpose of the Endangered Species Act is to protect wildlife's ability to sustain itself in the wild. And that means the focus is on wild steelhead in rivers, not steelhead that are produced in hatcheries," said Patti Goldman of Earthjustice. Earthjustice filed the lawsuit on behalf of six plaintiff groups against the National Marine Fisheries Service and its regional director, Bob Lohn....
Conservation Celebrities Recognized as Disney Fund Reaches Milestone $10 Million Investment in Wildlife Five renowned conservation celebrities joined with Disney Thursday night to celebrate a $10 million milestone for the Disney Wildlife Conservation Fund (DWCF) -- a program that has benefited nearly 500 wildlife projects around the world. Actor/comedian John Cleese; elephant expert Iain Douglas-Hamilton; primatologist Jane Goodall; actress Isabella Rossellini; and Nobel Peace Prize winner Wangari Maathai accepted awards of $100,000 each for their conservation causes in a ceremony at Disney's Animal Kingdom at Walt Disney World Resort. "These very special people, who have devoted their lives and lent their voices to conservation, are the key to engaging the public in caring for animals," said Jerry Montgomery, senior vice president of Walt Disney World Public Affairs. "The adventures and excitement at Disney's Animal Kingdom help us share conservation stories with our guests, and we are thrilled that many of them join our global conservation efforts through the Disney Wildlife Conservation Fund. Together, we are making a difference for wildlife and wild places -- we are helping to create the next generation of Disney's conservation legacy." The conservation focus is a large part of the park's mission as a facility accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA). Since 1998, the DWCF has been supported by donations from guests visiting Walt Disney World Resort and enhanced by company contributions. The $500,000 awarded at the celebration will be divided among several charitable organizations working in the U.S. and abroad....
Mountain lion bill introduced A bill making it a crime for a mountain lion to attack a human has been introduced into the state Legislature. Assembly Bill 2273, introduced by Assemblyman Bill Maze, R-Visalia, is intended to make victims of mountain lion attacks eligible for compensation for their injuries through the state crime victims' fund, according to Somke Mastrup, deputy director of the state Department of Fish and Game. For them to be eligible, they must be crime victims. Mastrup reported on a number of bills pending in Sacramento at Thursday's meeting of the state Department of Fish and Game in Monterey, legislation that the commission should keep an eye on, he said....
Wildfires Scorch 27,000 Acres in Texas The parched Texas Panhandle apparently survived another wildfire scare, but forecasters predicted dangerous conditions in other parts of the state Friday. Wildfires fueled by steady 40 mph winds scorched 27,000 acres Thursday and destroyed at least nine homes while forcing the evacuation of two small towns about 65 miles east of Amarillo. The roughly 600 residents of Lefors and Bowers City were allowed to return home in the evening and lighter winds helped firefighters contain most of the more than two dozen blazes, officials said. No injuries were reported....
Last frontier From 1987 to 2002, Colorado lost an average of 460 acres per day of agricultural land, according to a report released this week by Environment Colorado. The report, titled "Losing Ground: Colorado's Vanishing Agricultural Landscape," predicts 3.1 million more acres will be lost to development by 2022. "Colorado is losing the equivalent of five family farms every week," said Pam Kiely, the report's author. "Loss of farmlands impacts the environment, the economy and the very landscapes that define us as a state." The report, which is based on statistics from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, predicts Moffat County will lose more than 100,000 acres of agricultural land to development by 2022. Struggling rural economies and increased development of large-lot residential property is largely to blame for the decline in agricultural lands, according to the report....
A little lambsie jivey: fraud at the stock show The two top winners of the National Western Stock Show's junior market lamb show and 16 other lambs were illegally injected with an unknown substance, stock show President Pat Grant said Wednesday. Grant said officials were alerted to the tampering Jan. 19, the night of the contest. The lambs were recovered at the packing plant, and the Denver district attorney was notified. The injections caused swelling and inflammation, which made the lambs appear more muscular, he said. None of the altered animals was consumed, he said. "It could be something criminal," said Lynn Kimbrough, of the Denver district attorney's office. "We're in the middle of the investigation."....