Summer 2008 Species Challenge Lists Two Birds, Two Mammals
July 21, 2008
CHEYENNE-The Wyoming Game and Fish Department has named four more species for the 2008 Species of the Season Challenge, a program to help the agency gather information about distribution and abundance of some of Wyoming’s wildlife.
The species on the list for this summer are the white-tailed prairie dog, Abert’s squirrel, burrowing owl and the Lewis’s woodpecker. Outdoor enthusiasts encountering these species are asked to report their sightings to the Game and Fish Department.
As the name implies, white-tailed prairie dogs have a short tail with a white tip as opposed to the black-tailed prairie dog, which has a black-tipped tail. The white-tailed prairie dog is the most common of the listed species, occupying the western two thirds of the state.
The burrowing owl is generally found in open, dry grasslands and basin prairies. This small (7″-10″) ground dwelling owl is often associated with burrowing animals such as prairie dogs, badgers and ground squirrels.
The Lewis’s woodpecker is fairly large, (9″-11″) dark colored for the most part, and prefers open ponderosa pine forests, open cottonwood riparian woodlands and burned stands of Douglas fir and mixed conifers. It is found below 8,500 feet.
The Abert’s squirrel is probably the least common of this year’s species. It occurs in the Harriman area of the Laramie Range in the southeast portion of the state. Sometimes called the tassel eared squirrel, the Abert’s squirrel has tufts of hair extending beyond the tips of its ears, and is associated with ponderosa pine forests.
The species challenge is part of a Game and Fish effort to gather more information on the 278 species listed in Wyoming’s Comprehensive Wildlife Conservation Strategy. The CWCS is the state management plan for Species of Greatest Conservation Need. Most of the species are included in the listing because of a lack of basic information on their status and distribution.
Game and Fish supervisor of biological services Reg Rothwell said the Species of the Season Challenge enables citizens to help document locations and abundance of the 278 species of concern. “The species on the list are there not necessarily because they are few in number,” Rothwell said. “Many are there because we don’t know that much about them. Hopefully, the information we gain will help increase our knowledge about them and prevent some from federal listing in the future.”
Rothwell said the CWCS will be updated in the next two years and information will be provided to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service by 2010.
To participate, wildlife viewers can go to the Game and Fish Web site http://gf.state.wy.us
, and click on Species Challenge in the “What’s hot” box. After locating one of these species, participants can return to the Web site and record their findings. (Contact: Al Langston (307) 777-4540)
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Mountain Lion Hunters Asked To Return Surveys
May 6, 2008
CHEYENNE– For the first time, all mountain lion hunters who hunted lions during the 2007-08 hunting season are being surveyed as the Game and Fish is seeking more information on mountain lion hunter success rate and the effort being put into lion hunting.
“For a number of years, all successful lion hunters have been required to have their kill checked by Game and Fish officials,” said Reg Rothwell, Supervisor of Biological Services. “But this is the first year that all licensed hunters have been surveyed, whether they were successful or not in the hunting season.”
Last year (2006-07) hunters harvested 186 lions in Wyoming, which approximates the 5-year harvest average of 188.
Surveys have already been sent to more than 1,600 hunters who purchased licenses in 2007 and the first few months of 2008. The Game and Fish is looking for information from hunters who hunted between Sept. 1, 2007 and Mar. 1, 2008. Even though several hunt areas are open year round, most mountain lion hunting takes place between the September-March time period.Â
Perhaps more than any other big game or trophy game species, more mountain lion licenses are sold to hunters who purchase a license on the chance they will see a mountain lion while hunting other species such as deer and elk, and as such, many hunters with lion licenses do not actively hunt mountain lions. The survey will enable the department to get a better handle on hunter success rates and will also provide needed information on days spent afield and numbers of lions observed.
“This is important information in helping us determine population trends in the different management areas in Wyoming,” Rothwell said.
Harvest survey coordinator Chris Leonard said mountain lion surveys were sent out in the last month and, so far, the return has been less than expected. “We will be doing follow up surveys in the near future,” Leonard said. “But hunters can help right now by getting their surveys back to us as soon as possible.”
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