Every Groundhog Day, they drag a poor old Punxsutawney Phil out of his constructed den and see if he sees his own shadow. Will there be 6 more weeks of winter or is spring right around the corner? That predicitive logic might be acceptable for an eastern Groundhog (I personally prefer Woodchuck), but we have our own Groundhog in the Rockies who won’t even if see sunlight for another 3 or 4 months.

Hoary marmots live in the high alpine reaches of northwestern North America and, in particular, the Crown of the Continent ecosystem which encompasses Glacier National Park. They live and thrive in an environment that is immensely harsh. The winters are so taxing that the Hoary marmot must hibernate 7-8 months of the year. These 20 pound rodents spend their winters in a den on a talus slope under feet of snow and ice.

Come summer, the marmots feed upon alpine plants and frolic among the lichen-covered boulders. Folks that are fortunate enough to visit the high country will find these fearless creatures incredibly entertaining.

So if a Hoary Marmot sees its shadow in May, it means that summer is coming…well, even if he doesn’t, summer is coming.

Researchers in Indonesia have rediscovered the Banggai Crow (Corvus unicolor) on a small island in the archipelago. The species was first discovered in 1900 and not seen since. Full story is on LiveScience.

An interesting article from Japan describes a research project that placed small cameras on Black-browed Albatrosses to passively gather data on their lives. One very intriguing behavior came to light. The Albatrosses were actively following Killer Whales to probably feed on the scraps from the orca’s kills. What a great strategy to find a meal in an otherwise featureless expanse of blue.

I had the great opportunity to give of talks at the Bridger Raptor Festival. This festival is a great educational event with many great exhibits and live rehab birds, including the Turkey Vulture that once threw up on me. The talks went well with great attendance. It has been a long time since the last time I spoke publicly, and it felt good to get back up on that horse.

An article from BirdLife International is announcing the great news that a recently undertaken survey of White-shouldered Ibis Pseudibis davisoni has revealed a record count of 310 individuals. It is always good to hear a bit of good news when we seem to be deluged with gloom and doom.

We are very pleased to announce the release of WilderTrack 2.0. WilderTrack is the most comprehensive birding and outdoor-focused web application available. If you enjoy watching and studying the natural world, and you need to be able to record, track, and share your outdoor life easily and quickly, WilderTrack is definitely for you.

With WilderTrack you get access to more than 29,000 species in the current database and the ability to record all of your birding, wildlife, hiking, and other outdoor activities in one simple, easy-to-use online package – no downloading or installing software.

Introducing WilderTrack for iPhone. Finally, there is a listing web application for the iPhone mobile device. Imagine being in the field and simply tapping your iPhone as you record and share your sightings and trips. Entering your data with WilderTrack for iPhone could not be any easier and quicker.

There are a host of new improvements and features to the core software.

• The launch of WilderTrack for iPhone
• Improved performance
• Rare Bird and ID Challenge sighting entry
• Easier sighting entry with new and improved QuickSight

Remember, as a member of WilderTrack.com, you automatically receive access to WilderTrack for iPhone. Just go to wildertrack.com on your iPhone or find the web app at apple.com.

I was just informed about this story about Worcester’s buttonquail was known only through illustrations based on decades-old museum specimens until a television crew documented the live bird in the market before it was sold in January, NationalGeographic.com reported.

Scientists had suspected the bird, found only on the island of Luzon, to be extinct, according to NationalGeographic.com.

With the approach of warming temperatures and longer days, we will soon be seeing the trickle and then the flood of migrants as they cascade into the forests and prairies of the northern latitudes. Most, if not all, of us herald this annual event with fervor. We think of the birds as making steady, daily progress northward, but according to an article recently published in Science, the yearly passage may be at a pace that is absolutely astonishing. The study focused on Purple Martins and Wood Thrushes (both rarities in our Montana neck of the woods, but bear with me) that were outfitted with small (weighing less than a dime) geolocator transmitters. The data streaming from those miniscule electronic devices brought to light that the birds were covering the vast distances with more speed than previously anticipated. The birds more traveling between ~230 and nearly 600 kilometers per day. These rates and distances underlie the importance of migration stopovers and the protection of these areas. The article abstract can be found at on the Science website.

What a concept! Breaking the cycle of the historically adversarial relationship between resource industry and conservation groups, the Beaverhead-Deerlodge Partnership shows what can happen when folks actually sit down, find common ground, and do the right thing. I believe that this state has to learn the art of compromise, understanding that the best solution usually lies within the middle ground. I am very excited to see this collaborative process applied on other forests and federal lands in the West.

Of course, this plan is not without its detractors. The bone-heads on both sides (motorized recreation and hardcore enviros) and their nonsensical, no compromise stances are and will continue to throw stones at the plan from the sidelines. The “multiple-use” groups, not necessarily the individuals, are the worst offenders – they don’t have a plan, they are not going to contribute an alternative plan, and they are dead set against any plan that involves any real conservation. These guys are the worst outcome of the red state mentality, “I have rights, but I have no responsibility” – the heights of selfishness are continually displayed in these people. The hardcore enviros are no better. Their “No compromise” philosophy leads to discord and mistrust with communities and industry in the West. They create or, at least, encourage enemies. I am sick of hearing about the evil rancher, the greedy logger or the bourgeois businessman, while these idiots sing stupid songs and chants at hearings and meetings, even when they have a legitimate point (they do have legitimate points more often than not). The ideas seem silly coming from the court jesters in corduroys.

Key Elements of the Beaverhead-Deerlodge Partnership Legislation

• Designates 570,000 acres of roadless country in 16 areas as wilderness.
• Establishes six “Stewardship Areas,” roughly equivalent to forest planning units
• Identifies 698,000 of forested acres as “eligible lands” for stewardship projects.
• Directs the FS to make a decision on one landscape-sale restoration project of up to 50,000 years in the “eligible lands” within a year of the bill passing.
• Directs the FS to mechanically treat 14,000 within two years and 70,000 within 10 years, with a priority on lands that have high road densities, ongoing impacts to wildlife and fish due to past logging and roading, are at high risk because of insects and high-severity fires, and which are in the wildland urban .
• Requires all projects carried out under the legislation to employ stewardship contracts, thereby funneling the value of timber taken back onto the landscape for restoration activities.
• Requires a post-project road density of less than 1.5 miles per square mile
• Requires that any roads necessary for a project have to be temporary.
• Requires INFISH riparian-protection standards for all projects
• Requires the Forest to establish a citizen-run Resource Advisory Council to advise it on identification of projects.
• Requires the RAC to establish multi-interest advisory committees to aid the forest in developing and monitoring projects.
• Requires the Forest to report back to Congress within five years on progress of activities directed in the plan
• All measures in the bill, except the wilderness designation, terminate in 10-15 years, when it is expected the next major revision of the forest plan will occur.
• Land-use allocations, standards and traveling planning not specified or directly implicated in
  the legislation default to the forest plan and other agency plans.
• The legislation has no effect on the appeals process or judicial review.

I encourage everyone to read about the plan at the Beaverhead-Deerlodge Partnership website. The entire Montana legislative delegation has voiced approval of the plan, save for Denny Rehberg (surprise, surprise), please contact Mr. Rehberg (see contact information below)

Montana Congressional Delegation