Kent and Meg Sundell return on May 13 to share part of their July 2015 trip to Africa; this program will concentrate on their time in Namibia.

They travelled with a small diverse group of mostly repeat travelers. This trip was billed as more of a cultural trip compared to the specifically wildlife trip in 2012; however, with a former zoo curator, several working ecologists, geologist, pharmacy Ph.D. and everyone being bird and wildlife enthusiasts, the trip focused as much or more on wildlife.  While not billed as a wildlife viewing trip they saw many species daily, including the elusive aardwolf and the ubiquitous Oryx.

As always, Kent and Meg will educate as well as entertain, so don’t miss this last program before our summer break.  The program will be on Friday, May 13, 2016, at 7 PM at the Oil & Gas Conservation Commission Building at 2211 King Blvd.  And as always, the program is free and open to the public!!

Program Chair—Bruce Walgren

Our guest speaker for April has handled eleven of the 18 species of bats that either live or migrate through Wyoming. Laura Beard has been with Wyoming Game and Fish’s Nongame program for just over a year. Before that, she worked for Alaska Fish and Game, surveying bats in SE Alaska.

She will discuss bat ecology in Wyoming, touching on white-nose syndrome (WNS) along with other conservation issues affecting bats. As the fungus that causes WNS continues to spread west, more species will become exposed and their specific ecology and suite of behaviors may affect whether they experience mortality. The genus Myotis appears to be the most affected, and this group is the most numerous in Wyoming, therefore it is important to get detailed baseline data on the distribution of this genus before the arrival of the fungus.

Laura and her colleagues have just finished up an eight year survey of bats throughout the state. Four years were dedicated to categorizing which bats live in forests, the second four years looked at cliffs and caves. They will be changing focus soon to the eastern part of the state, which represents the East-West division between certain analogous species.

Come and hear more about bats in Wyoming on Friday, April 8, 2016, at 7 PM at the Oil & Gas Conservation Commission Building at 2211 King Blvd.  As always, the program is free and open to the public!!

PROGRAM CHAIR—Bruce Walgren & info. from  Laura Beard

Sportfish Populations of Wyoming

Travis Neebling is the Reservoir Research Biologist with the Wyoming Game and Fish Department, a role he has served in since 2009.  Prior to beginning with the Department, he earned his Master of Science degree from Iowa State University and his Bachelor of Science degree from Northland College.

Travis’ research focuses on native and non-native sportfish populations in Wyoming’s large natural lakes and reservoirs.  He evaluates new gear and techniques, monitors trends in populations, evaluates fish size and health, and evaluates stocking and harvest rates.  He also serves as the state’s technical specialist on hydroacoustics and technical specialist on mercury contamination in fish.  He will be describing his work in more detail and will be available to answer any questions you may have on Wyoming’s fisheries.

Come and hear more about this ongoing research on Friday, March 11, 2016, at 7 PM at the Oil & Gas Conservation Commission Building at 2211 King Blvd.  As always, the program is free and open to the public!!

PROGRAM CHAIR – Bruce Walgren

Wolverines in Wyoming

(Due to a scheduling problem, Nichole Bjornlie was unable to present the wolverine program in November.  Nichole will be here for the January program. Below is a repeat of the announcement.)

Wolverines (Gulo gulo) have long been popular in mythology, as sports mascots, and recently as the well-known star of a popular Marvel comic.  However, despite their popularity, wolverines are rarely seen and little is known about their status and distribution in Wyoming, which lies at the southern edge of their continental range.  Join Wyoming Game and Fish Department Nongame Mammal Biologist Nichole Bjornlie to learn about wolverine ecology and history in Wyoming, and the current work being conducted by the Department to learn more about this popular, but secretive species.  Nichole will also touch on some of the work being done on other nongame mammals in Wyoming.

Nichole has been working in conservation and management of nongame and sensitive mammals since 2006.  An Iowa native, Nichole received her BS in Animal Ecology from Iowa State University in 2006 and her MS in Natural Resources from the University of Arizona in 2009, studying the ecology and space utilized by the endemic Arizona gray squirrel.  Since joining the Wyoming Game and Fish Department in 2010, she has worked with species ranging from prairie dogs, pygmy rabbits, and Preble’s meadow jumping mice, to swift fox, black-footed ferrets, and bats.  In March of 2015, Nichole started as the Nongame Mammal Biologist and is in charge of overseeing all nongame mammal management and research for the State of Wyoming.

Come and hear more about this ongoing study on Friday, January 8, 2016, at 7 PM at the Oil & Gas Conservation Commission Building at 2211 King Blvd.  As always, the program is free and open to the public!!

PROGRAM CHAIR—Bruce Walgren

Wolverines in Wyoming

Wolverines (Gulo gulo) have long been popular in mythology, as sports mascots, and recently as the well-known star of a popular Marvel comic.  However, despite their popularity, wolverines are rarely seen and little is known about their status and distribution in Wyoming, which lies at the southern edge of their continental range.  Join Wyoming Game and Fish Department Nongame Mammal Biologist Nichole Bjornlie to learn about wolverine ecology and history in Wyoming, and the current work being conducted by the Department to learn more about this popular, but secretive species.  Nichole will also touch on some of the work being done on other nongame mammals in Wyoming.

Nichole has been working in conservation and management of nongame and sensitive mammals since 2006.  An Iowa native, Nichole received her BS in Animal Ecology from Iowa State University in 2006 and her MS in Natural Resources from the University of Arizona in 2009, studying the ecology and space utilized by the endemic Arizona gray squirrel.  Since joining the Wyoming Game and Fish Department in 2010, she has worked with species ranging from prairie dogs, pygmy rabbits, and Preble’s meadow jumping mice, to swift fox, black-footed ferrets, and bats.  In March of 2015, Nichole started as the Nongame Mammal Biologist where she focuses on management and research needs for nongame mammals for the State of Wyoming.

Come and hear more about this ongoing study on Friday, November 13, 2015, at 7 PM at the Oil & Gas Conservation Commission Building at 2211 King Blvd.  As always, the program is free and open to the public!!

PROGRAM CHAIR—BRUCE WALGREN

After the blaze: tracking long-term ecosystem responses to the 1988 Yellowstone Fires

Our guest speaker for the October program will be Dr. Hayley Lanier; she studied the effects of the Yellowstone fires on the area’s communities. The 1988 Yellowstone fires were the largest historically recorded fires in the region.  Scorching more than 1/3 of the Greater Yellowstone Area, these fires were particularly extreme due to an exceptionally dry summer and a build-up of fuel from decades of fire suppression. Immediately after the fires, researchers from the University of Wyoming began studying the impacts of these fires on the small mammals, insects, and habitat structure.  In regular intervals covering the subsequent 27 years, we have worked to study communities in these burned habitats to examine how habitat changes resulting from the fires relate to shifts in species distributions, abundance, and animal movement, and what the long-term implications of such a massive fire season are for the region. In a summer where huge forest fires dominate the headlines, it is even more important for us to understand what decades of fire research are telling us about how these ecosystems will be changing in the future.

In addition to being a new board member for Murie Audubon, Hayley has been an assistant professor of Zoology & Physiology at the University of Wyoming at Casper College since 2013, where she teaches courses in evolution, ornithology, mammalogy, and conservation biology. Her research on the ecology and evolution of mammals has taken her from the farthest islands and mountains of Alaska, to the cloud forests of Guatemala and Costa Rica, to the backcountry of Wyoming.

Come and hear more about this ongoing study on Friday, October 9, 2015, at 7 PM at the Oil & Gas Conservation Commission Building at 2211 King Blvd.  As always, the program is free and open to the public!!

The November program will be “Wolverines and other Nongame Mammals of Wyoming”, presented by Nichole Bjornlie.

PROGRAM CHAIR—Bruce Walgren

Elk, Aspen, and Birds

Jenny Edwards, science teacher at Natrona County High School, where she teaches Physical Science and IB Environmental Systems and Societies, will be our guest speaker for our September program. She recently received her Masters of Science in Science Education from Montana State University, and defended her thesis on elk, aspen, and birds in the National Elk Refuge.

Aspen stands are not only beautiful to the human eye, but also provide valuable habitat to birds throughout the Rocky Mountains. However, high densities of elk and other ungulates can alter the structure of aspen stands through browsing. Jenny’s investigation sought to understand how the multitudes of elk wintering in the National Elk Refuge impacted aspen stand structure, growth, and bird populations.

Come and hear more about her thesis on Friday, September 11, 2015, at 7PM at the Oil & Gas Conservation Commission Building at 2211 King Blvd.  As always, the program is free and open to the public!!

In June 2014 Jim Brown and Karen Anfang embarked on a two week tour of China. (They still wonder how you can leave San Francisco mid day and arrive in Beijing 2:30 the next afternoon without flying overnight.) They visited many of the places you’ve probably heard about, including the Forbidden City, Great Wall, Ming Tombs, Three Gorges Dam, Terracotta soldiers, Shanghai and Hong Kong, plus the added dividend of a three day cruise on the Yangtze River and pandas in the pouring rain.  Their Power Point presentation will feature all of the above and much more.  Spoiler alert (from Jim): this is not a bird talk, but we did eat a duck

The meeting will be on Friday, March 13, 2015, at 7PM at the Oil & Gas Conservation Commission Building at 2211 King Blvd.  As always, the program is free and open to the public!

Submitted by Jim Brown

Winter in Yellowstone

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to watch wolves hunt in winter, or walk through a geyser basin during minus 27 degree temperatures?  Following his recent article in Wyoming Lifestyle Magazine, Beau Johnston will show you the many wildlife and scenic viewing opportunities available in Yellowstone National Park during the winter.  Beau has made more than 10 trips to Yellowstone in the last five years; and in the last two years has devoted a week each February to exploring the park. Gripped in the clutches of the Polar Vortex this last February, Yellowstone saw some of the coldest temperatures in recent decades.  These brutally cold temperatures made for spectacular photographic opportunities.

Beau Johnston is a mechanical engineer, writer, and photographer based in Casper.  Passionate about the outdoors and the outdoor lifestyle, Beau, his wife (Krista), and their dog (Gus) can be found spending most weekends traveling, camping, and fly fishing.  Beau’s award winning photography has been recognized by publications across the region.  He feels that many people have lost their sense of adventure, and are now disconnected from nature and from each other. By documenting travel, through photography, he strives to inspire others to experience new cultures and the world around them.

You are invited to join us and learn how you, too, can experience Yellowstone National Park as few ever will.  The meeting will be on Friday, November 14, 2014 at 7 pm at the Oil & Gas Conservation Commission Building at 2211 King Blvd.  As always, the program is free and open to the public!

PROGRAM CHAIR—BRUCE WALGREN

Napo Love Call: Sexual Exploits of a Charismatic Ecuadoran Wasp

Murie Audubon members may remember the talk a couple of years ago by Sarah Bucklin, who reported on UW entomologist Scott Shaw’s tropical ecology class at Yanayacu Biological Station in Napo Province near the town of Cosango, Ecuador.   Will Robinson, our featured speaker for October, will present a talk on field research he conducted with Scott Shaw and two of his CC students, Andy Kulikowski and Delina Barbosa, at the Yanayacu Biological Station.

They studied the mating behavior of a newly described species of parasitic wasp under the trying conditions of the equatorial cloud forest. They found some fascinating things in this tiny wasp, including lekking behavior reminiscent of what you see in sage grouse, complete with competition and fighting among males, and mate choice by females. Similar behaviors have rarely been seen in such wasps, and almost never in the field.

It has been quite a departure for Will, switching from the charismatic giant honey bees of Thailand to a minuscule creature no one would never notice in dense forest. But it has been fascinating, in a very different way. Will hopes to try to stress the contrast between charismatic megafauna (the bees) and seemingly ordinary microfauna (the wasps). Both are vital to ecosystem functioning; both provide a lot of entertainment for human observers.

Please join us on Friday, October 10, 2014 at 7 PM at the Oil & Gas Conservation Commission Building at 2211 King Blvd. for this fascinating program.  As always, the program is free and open to the public!

PROGRAM CHAIR—Bruce Walgren