NEWS ROUNDUP

Feds kill four Farson wolves Federal wildlife control specialists killed four wolves near the Prospect Mountains northeast of here Wednesday afternoon, according to Mike Jimenez of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Last week federal wildlife control specialists confirmed that four domestic sheep had been killed by wolves in the same area where wolves were confirmed to have killed at least a dozen ewes and lambs in June. In response to the spring depredations on the domestic sheep lambing ground, the female wolf and her pups were killed, halting depredations for a few months. In August, USDA Wildlife Services specialists confirmed that wolves in the same area had killed one ewe, and another 12 dead ewes were classified as “probable” wolf kills. The remaining 19 dead lambs were too decomposed for a determination to be made....
Plan to control prairie dogs includes poison, shooting A new plan to manage prairie dogs on federal land in northwestern Nebraska and central and southwestern South Dakota that includes more liberal use of poisons could be in use by the end of the month. Ranchers say their property has been invaded by prairie dogs from Nebraska's Oglala and South Dakota's Buffalo Gap and Fort Pierre national grasslands. Prairie dogs can destroy grazing on private land and federal grasslands that ranchers lease for their cattle. Don Bright, supervisor of the Nebraska National Forest, developed the plan, which will allow expanded use of a number of lethal and nonlethal methods to keep prairie dogs from spreading to private property....
Column: Your birthright, up for grabs ALL MY LIFE, I have introduced people to our nation's public lands, as a seasonal fishing guide in the Upper Midwest, as the head of the Bureau of Land Management and as the chief of the U.S. Forest Service — agencies that manage hundreds of millions of acres of public land. One thing I learned was that Americans love their national forests, parks and grasslands. Americans inherit a birthright that is the envy of the world: hundreds of millions of acres scattered across all regions of the country. The public estate includes famous places, such as Yellowstone National Park, and obscure places that make up picnic spots, fishing holes and weekend getaways. It has been that way for 100 years, thanks to the conservation legacy sparked by President Theodore Roosevelt. Unfortunately, our federal public lands are now under siege in Congress. It seems that some folks simply do not like the idea of the public owning land....
Hearts and mines The latest salvo in the public relations war over the Rock Creek mining project was fired Nov. 6, when Canadian corporation Revett Minerals, owner of the Washington-based company that would operate the mine, began running advertisements in Montana newspapers and visiting with editorial boards. One of the first things readers see in the full-color, half-page ad is a Mary Mitchell quote from an article that appeared in the Sept. 18 Bonner County [Idaho] Daily Bee. Mitchell, the executive director of the Rock Creek Alliance, an environmental group fighting the proposed mine, is quoted as saying, "I mean, the company's at a point where they're saying the mine is even going to help the grizzly bear." At the bottom of the page is Revett's reply: "So you see, Mary, we are good for the bear!" Between the two quotes is a photograph of three bears in a creek and five paragraphs explaining Revett's proposed mitigation plan for the mine, and how it would benefit the population of 15 to 20 grizzly bears in the Cabinet-Yaak ecosystem....
Huckleberry thicket could get forest service protection The U.S. Forest Service has proposed a plan to protect 9,500-acres of a huckleberry thicket in Southern Oregon considered sacred to generations of American Indian tribes. The administrative designation would recognize the cultural and historical significance of the area, dubbed the Huckleberry Patch by locals, and would require a management strategy to protect the shrubs. "Huckleberry production is low compared to historic levels," said Amy Amoroso, director of natural resources for the Cow Creek Band of Umpqua Indians, who helped the Forest Service develop the project's environmental assessment. "We would like to increase huckleberry production in this area." The huckleberry, a cousin to blueberries, is unique to the high mountains of the Pacific Northwest. They usually ripen in early fall....
Deer and People Clash in Minnesota So many deer inhabit the area around Pig's Eye Lake just east of St. Paul that one frustrated local official has compared them to unwanted vermin. In a recent aerial survey of the 11-square-mile, mostly residential area, county biologists expecting to find about 100 deer instead counted more than 500. Some of the hooved creatures have been wandering into town, showing up at places like the emergency entrance of Regions Hospital and in front of the pro hockey arena. Most notably, a big buck broke several windows at the state Capitol before bounding just a few feet away from Gov. Tim Pawlenty and his startled security detail. "They're just everywhere. You see them every day," said Kathy Lantry, a city councilwoman who represents the area Pig's Eye Lake area. "They've become like rats."....
Pa. May Let Hunters Use Ancient Weapon An ancient weapon that was apparently used as early as prehistoric times to slay woolly mammoths may soon be added to the arsenals of Pennsylvania hunters. The state Game Commission is drafting proposed regulations to allow hunters to use the atlatl, a small wooden device that propels a six-foot dart as fast as 80 mph. The commission could vote in January and make a final decision in April, officials said. It's not yet clear which animals would be hunted, but the proposal has the support of people who want to kill deer with the handmade weapon of Stone Age design. To use an atlatl _ the name is derived from an Aztec word for "throwing board" _ hunters hook arrowlike hunting darts into the end of the weapon, which is generally a wooden piece about 2 feet long. The leverage of the atlatl allows them to throw the 5- to 8-foot darts much farther than they could throw a spear. At BPS Engineering in Manhattan, Mont., a leading manufacturer of atlatls, owner Bob Perkins said customers pay $140 for a 2-foot maple production-line model, the Warrior, and a set of five 5 1/2-foot aluminum darts. Perkins has killed two deer with atlatls and recently killed his first buffalo....
Scarce plant gets another chance Found only in Utah County, one of the world's rarest plants may be a step closer to survival. An agreement has been reached to take another look at protecting the habitat of the Deseret milkvetch, which grows only along the highway near the ghost town of Thistle in Spanish Fork Canyon. First discovered in 1909, the Deseret milkvetch, a member of the pea family, was thought to have become extinct until Brigham Young University botanist Elizabeth Meese stumbled upon it in 1981. Between 5,000 and 10,000 of the plants are believed to exist on about 200 acres, all within 1,000 feet of the highway in Spanish Fork Canyon, said Tony Frates of the Utah Native Plant Society. In July, the Utah Native Plant Society and the Center for Native Ecosystems filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, saying the FWS has done nothing to protect the plant since it was listed as an endangered species in 1999....
Aid for the Steelhead? It's Up the Creek Stepping up efforts to help endangered steelhead trout make a comeback in Southern California, a state wildlife agency on Thursday agreed to pay for a $1.2-million fish ladder in Orange County that will enable the trout to swim upstream and spawn. The ladder will help fish migrating from the ocean to swim through a concrete culvert under Interstate 5 on Trabuco Creek in San Juan Capistrano. Currently, fish swimming upstream can go only as far as a large pool at the bottom of the culvert. The ladder will resemble a wide concrete stairway with eight to 12 steps, each about 1 foot higher than the other. During the rainy season, fish will be able to rest in 3-foot-deep pools between jumps. State biologists in May 2003 spotted what they believed were southern steelhead trout at the bottom of the culvert, the first sighting there in decades....
Judge: Alabama sturgeon can stay on endangered list A federal judge has ruled that the Alabama sturgeon can remain on the endangered species list, but directed a federal agency to designate areas as its critical habitat — if the fish can be found again and bred. U.S. District Judge Virginia Hopkins, in an opinion Monday, denied a request by the Alabama-Tombigbee Rivers Coalition to have the fish removed from federal protection under the Endangered Species Act. The coalition, a group of businesses, filed suit in 2001 contesting the Alabama sturgeon's listing as an endangered species, citing economic consequences like disruption of river dredging, barge traffic and damming efforts needed for water commerce. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service placed the sturgeon on the list in May 2000, despite arguments that there was no evidence to show the fish is a distinct species....
Bearly speaking The posters for the Northern Rockies Nature Forum listed a Tuesday, Nov. 15, event titled "State of the Grizzly: Recovered or Reeling." Those posters also listed three forum participants: Kate Kendall, U.S. Geological Service research biologist and leader of the Northern Divide Grizzly Project in Montana; Chris Servheen, Grizzly Bear recovery coordinator for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; and Lee Metzgar, retired professor of wildlife biology at the University of Montana. None of those people appeared on Tuesday's panel, perhaps saying more about the contentious state of the discourse on environmental issues than any panel discussion could. The "State of the Grizzly" panel began to unravel when Metzgar withdrew due to a personal conflict. The Forum's organizers, the Native Forest Network (NFN), substituted Brian Peck, grizzly recovery specialist for the Great Bear Foundation, and Doug Honnold, an attorney with Earthjustice, aiming for what NFN Director Matt Koehler calls "a diversity of perspectives." Shortly after Kendall and Servheen learned of Honnold and Peck's addition to the panel, however, they withdrew. Kendall explains that she "was not comfortable being involved in a discussion of the politics of bear conservation," which the panel almost certainly would have turned out to be, since NFN had "substituted a lawyer who is actively involved in litigating agencies about grizzly bears and a bear advocate."....
Hunters-homeowner conflicts grow When Tyler Maxwell fired off the shot that brought down an elk near here earlier this week, nearby homeowner Tim Plaska was on the phone almost immediately with game wardens to complain about the proximity to his home. Plaska, however, quickly learned Maxwell had broken no laws and had, in fact, been quite meticulous about making sure his shot was safe. It still didn't sit well with Plaska, who thought the law prevented someone from firing a high-powered rifle within a quarter-mile of a home. "There is no restriction," said Plaska, whose home is only about 50 yards from where Maxwell shot the elk. "And it was a legal kill." State game wardens say such complaints are growing as more people move into rural areas abutting public lands....
Workshop details taming the wild in mustangs What does it take to turn a wild horse or burro into a gentle and social animal? Plenty of patience. Participants at the recent Wild Horse Workshop in Seguin spent a lot of time in the pen learning the first steps in gentling and training mustangs. The five-day workshop was an educational project involving Least Resistance Training Concepts (LRTC) and the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). Participants who signed up received “hands-on” training from clinicians from around the United States....
Grandmother Closer To Being Allowed To Live At National Park A Colorado grandmother living in Rocky Mountain National Park is several steps closer to be allowed to stay in her home for good. The U.S. Senate on Wednesday approved a deal that would provide the 83-year-old widow with a lifetime lease on her family's cabin inside Rocky Mountain National Park. The National Park Service wanted to evict Betty Dick when her lease expired on July 16, but after the intervention of two U.S. senators and a congressman, a compromise was reached. The bill approved Wednesday essentially extends Dick's lease, allowing her to rent the cabin, which she uses as a summer home, and eight surrounding acres for $300 a year for the rest of her life....
Group Lobbies for Human Extinction "We can't be breeding right now," says Les Knight. "It's obvious that the intentional creation of another [human being] by anyone anywhere can't be justified today." Knight is the founder of the Voluntary Human Extinction Movement, an informal network of people dedicated to phasing out the human race in the interest of the health of the Earth. Knight, whose convictions led him to get a vasectomy in the 1970s, when he was 25, believes that the human race is inherently dangerous to the planet and inevitably creates an unsustainable situation. "As long as there's one breeding couple," he says cheerfully, "we're in danger of being right back here again. Wherever humans live, not much else lives. It isn't that we're evil and want to kill everything -- it's just how we live."....This would, of course, violate the Endangered Species Act, even Pombo's version. Can't you just see it: a heavily armed USFWS agent telling a bear, "You can't hibernate there, that's critical human habitat."....
Sierra Club Launches New TV Series With Robert Greenwald The Sierra Club today announced plans for a new television series with award winning filmmaker Robert Greenwald ("Outfoxed, Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Price"). "Sierra Club Chronicles," a new monthly television series produced by Greenwald, captures the dramatic efforts of committed individuals across the country working everyday to protect the health of their environment and their communities. "All over America, there are inspirational, real life stories of women and men defending their homes, health and families from environmental hazards and threats," explained Carl Pope, Executive Director of the Sierra Club. "'Sierra Club Chronicles' will take viewers directly into those communities and provide a first hand look at these profiles in environmental courage." The people and stories profiled in "Sierra Club Chronicles" come from diverse backgrounds: ranchers in New Mexico, emergency medical technicians in New York City, fishermen in Alaska, neighbors of a chemical plant in Mississippi, but all are united in a common cause -- the fight to protect their families, communities and the lands and livelihoods they love from pollution, corporate greed and short-sighted government policies....
Farm Bureau: Thanksgiving Dinner Cost Up Slightly This Year A traditional Thanksgiving dinner with turkey, stuffing, cranberries, pumpkin pie and all the trimmings, increased slightly in price this year, but still remains affordable, according to the American Farm Bureau Federation. In AFBF's 20th annual informal survey of the price of basic items found on the Thanksgiving Day dinner table, the average cost of this year's feast for 10 is $36.78, a $1.10 price increase from last year's survey average of $35.68. The AFBF survey shopping list includes turkey, stuffing, sweet potatoes, rolls with butter, peas, cranberries, a relish tray of carrots and celery, pumpkin pie with whipped cream and beverages of coffee and milk, all in quantities sufficient to serve a family of 10. The cost of a 16-pound turkey, at $15.11 or roughly 94 cents per pound, reflects an increase of 5 cents per pound, or a total of 88 cents per turkey compared to 2004. This is the largest contributor to the overall increase in the cost of the 2005 Thanksgiving dinner....
Cattle think they are dolphins while on marijuana There is evidence that some Hawaiian cattle are under the influence of dope and going into the ocean thinking they are dolphins. Oceanographers studying around the Hawaiian Islands describe the strange situation as exposure to second-hand smoke from terrific Hawaiian-grown marijuana. "A cattle rancher here has been growing some high-grade weed," said officer Loo Hakabaki, who is working with the oceanographers. "His cattle have been grazing on the crop." "And what has happened," said oceanographer C. Kenneth Broke, "is that the cattle are having mind-altering experiences. In this case, one or more have obviously been thinking they are dolphins and have set off to pack with the intelligent creatures." Police arrested the farmer and part-time ukulele player, Donnie Hoo, for growing illegal drugs. At the time of his arrest, Mr. Hoo claimed to be a librarian. "When the pot wears off," said Broke, "we are afraid the cattle will drown. But while they are under the influence of the drug, they seem to be doing rather well and getting along great with the dolphins."

Lot's of weird news tonight: endangered peas, deer like rats, huntin' with ancient darts, human extinction and the spoof of those darned ol' cows gettin' high on, well, grass. I'm going to bed.