Colorado: Will the lynx survive?

Posted on August 8, 2011 by Bob Berwyn

A lynx in the wild counry of Colorado. PHOTO COURTESY COLORADO DIVISION OF PARKS AND WILDLIFE.TANYA SHENK.

State wildlife agency testing new method for monitoring wild carnivore populations on a landscape scale

By Bob Berwyn

SUMMIT COUNTY — If you’ve been waiting for the 2011 spring lynx kitten count from the Colorado Division of Parks and Wildlife, don’t hold your breath. Instead if visiting individual dens to collar and count lynx, state biologists are shifting gears, working to determine whether the wild cats can hold their own in Colorado in the long run with an unprecedented habitat occupancy model.

Intensive monitoring during the first 10 years of the state lynx recovery program included annual visits to lynx dens, as well as aerial and satellite monitoring. The research yielded detailed information about lynx behavior and reproduction, including annual reports that specified the number of new kittens as a way of measuring reproductive success. The 2009-2010 annual lynx program report is online here.

But this year, state biologists are switching to a new mode of tracking the rare mountain wild cats. Using a network of motion-activated cameras, snow tracking and genetic sampling, the researchers hope to determine where the cats are living, eating and sleeping, and how well they are filling all the available habitat in the state. An overall assessment of the Colorado lynx recovery program is online here.

The data from those sources will help document the distribution and persistence of lynx across the landscape, said biologist Tanya Shenk, who led the Colorado recovery effort in its first 10 years and now works for the National Park Service as a climate change and landscape ecologist. Shenk said there has been a general move by wildlife and conservation biologists to move away from invasive techniques that put a lot of stress on individual animals. The Colorado Division of Parks and Wildlife lynx program information is online here. (more…)

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Mountain news roundup

Posted on August 6, 2011 by Jenney Coberly

A “blinkered view” of large mammal migration, preserving Colorado’s historic buildings, giant sea monsters in Montana, and more

A lynx in the San Juan Mountains — photo courtesy Colorado Division of Wildlife.

Compiled by Jenney Coberly

Understanding animal migration crucial in increasingly developed landscape

Here’s a story that resonates here in Summit County, with the current debate on the effect of the proposed Breckenridge Peak 6 expansion on local wildlife.

The Denver Post reported on Monday that GPS tracking data collected from radio collars on mountain lions, lynx, wolves and other large mammals are challenging scientific understanding of the animals’ range and habitat. Colorado Division of Wildlife and other western biologists are tracking more animals using satellites and computers and seeing them wander farther, more frequently and far beyond the bounds of what is believed to be their normal habitat.

“We may have had a blinkered view of what their behavior and territory really is,” according to Colorado Division of Wildlife spokesman Theo Stein.

“We’re going to see more development,” said Jodi Hilty, director of the Wildlife Conservation Society’s programs in North America. Understanding wildlife migration is crucial “to make sure we don’t accidentally cut off routes.”

(more…)

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Breckenridge town council to take a hard look at Peak 6 plan

Posted on July 25, 2011 by Bob Berwyn

A crowd of people turned out recently for site visit to the proposed Peak 6 expansion area.

Public input wanted at July 26 work session as town formulates comments

By Bob Berwyn

SUMMIT COUNTY — The Breckenridge Town Council this week will consider a host of issues related to a proposed expansion on Peak 6, including impacts to forest and wildlife, plans for a proposed restaurant as part of the expansion and the cumulative impacts of the expansion. Get more background on the proposal and read past stories at the Summit Voice Peak 6 page.

At issue is a contentious plan to add several hundred acres of new lift-served terrain and expanding the resort’s footprint by another couple of miles across the Tenmile Range. The town is in the process of developing its formal comment letter on the plan. More details and all the public project documents are online at http://breckenridgepeak6.com/.

The Forest Service draft study for the proposal includes three options. The no-action alternative provides a baseline for comparison, alternative 2 is the preferred option of the Forest Service and the resort, while alternative 3 is a scaled-back version of the plan that is seen my many residents as a viable compromise that meets some of the resort’s objectives while leaving a smaller footprint on the land. (more…)

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Breckenridge: Spots still open for Peak 6 site visit

Posted on July 9, 2011 by Bob Berwyn

Forest Service taking comments on Breckenridge ski area expansion through Aug. 9

Does Breckenridge Ski Area need more terrain? Visit the proposed Peak 6 expansion area July 14 and learn more about the proposal to build a new lift and cut trails through healthy spruce and fir forests in an alpine zone considered to be important habitat for rare lynx.

SUMMIT COUNTY — It’s not too late to sign up for the July 14 site visit to the proposed Peak 6 expansion area at Breckenridge.

U.S. Forest Service winter sports ranger Shelly Grail said that, after keeping an eye on the snowpack in the area, it appears that the site visit will able to proceed as planned. The general idea is to hike to the proposed project area to get a sense of what the area looks like in the summer.

After a well-attended winter site visit, some people asked the Forest Service to do a similar tour in the summer. The group will meet at the base of the Colorado Superchair at 9 a.m. and hike out to Peak 6. Grail said there is still some snow on the ground, so people should be prepared to hike on snow. Also, be prepared to spend most of the day outside. (more…)

Filed under: biodiversity, Breckenridge Ski Resort, business, Colorado, Dillon Ranger District, economy, endangered species, Environment, forests, Ski Resorts, Summit County Colorado, Summit County news, US Forest Service, White River National Forest | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

Colorado: I-70 wildlife crossing design finalized

Posted on January 24, 2011 by Bob Berwyn

A rendering of the winning design for a proposed wildlife crossing on I-70, near Vail Pass.

Lynx, bear, mountain lions and even small mammals could use the crossing to avoid interstate traffic

By Summit Voice

SUMMIT COUNTY — The winning design for a wildlife overpass near Vail Pass features multiple types of habitat to make the bridge attractive to all the animals that live in the area, including forest, meadows, shrubs and even a seam of scree, which is important for small mammals like pikas and marmots. (more…)

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Forest Service to continue Vail Pass lynx studies

Posted on September 19, 2010 by Bob Berwyn

The U.S. Forest Service will track lynx this coming winter to learn how they are responding to changes in forest habitat and to human activities. PHOTO BY TANYA SHENK, COLORADO DIVISION OF WILDLIFE.

Tracking will help pinpoint movement patterns, habitat use

By Bob Berwyn

SUMMIT COUNTY — U.S. Forest Service biologists this month retrieved two of three radio collars from lynx that have been roaming the Vail Pass area and beyond. Data from the collars will help researchers begin to understand how lynx use habitat in Colorado.

In a complementary element of the study, snowmobilers and cross-country skiers last winter voluntarily carried electronic beacons tracking their movements in the Vail Pass area. Comparing data from the lynx collars with the information from those tracking beacons may help illustrate what lynx do in response to human activities. (more…)

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Biologists say lynx are back to stay in Colorado

Posted on September 17, 2010 by Bob Berwyn

State’s reintroduction program hailed as success by Gov. Bill Ritter

Lynx could be back to stay in Colorado, barring any dramatic changes in habitat conditions. PHOTO BY TANYA SHENK, COLORADO DIVISION OF WILDLIFE.

Biologists this year documented 14 lynx kittens in five dens, including two in Summit County. PHOTO BY TANYA SHENK, COLORADO DIVISION OF WILDLIFE.

By Bob Berwyn

SUMMIT COUNTY — Colorado Division of Wildlife biologists say their ongoing lynx studies show that the state has done everything needed to establish a self-sustaining population of the rare wild cats in the state. Barring any dramatic changes in land-use or habitat conditions, the animals should be able to persist in the landscape.

According to the data gathered in the past 10 years, reproduction is outstripping mortality, which means the population should be able to sustain itself.

Division of Wildlife Director Tom Remington said biologists are now transitioning to monitor the cats’ long-term persistence in Colorado’s high country. A detailed summary of the state’s lynx program is online here.

To track the lynx population, biologists will now pursue a site occupancy monitoring strategy, using minimally invasive techniques like trail cameras, snow-tracking and genetic sampling to monitor the presence or absence of lynx in established and potential habitats. This will replace the strategy of capturing and collaring individual lynx to gain detailed knowledge of their movements, habits and fate. The new approach will give biologists a better understanding of the lynx population throughout Colorado, although yielding less data on individual cats. (more…)

Filed under: biodiversity, Colorado Division of Wildlife, endangered species, Summit County Colorado, wildlife | Tagged: , , , , , | 2 Comments »

Lynx kittens documented in Summit County

Posted on August 27, 2010 by Bob Berwyn

An adult lynx in the forests of Colorado, photographed by Tanya Shenk of the Colorado Division of Wildlife.

14 kittens found in five dens during annual statewide spring survey

By Bob Berwyn

SUMMIT COUNTY — For the first time since the Colorado Division of Wildlife started rebuilding the state’s lynx population in 1999, the agency reported this week that lynx kittens have been born right here in Summit County.

Hunters and ranchers all but exterminated the endangered cats in the state by the 1970s, when a lynx was illegally poached near Vail. But starting in 1999, the division of wildlife transplanted about 200 lynx from Canada and Alaska into the San Juan Mountains, where they were released into the wild.

Since then, they’ve expanded their core area all the way up to the I-70 corridor, according to Tanya Shenk, the biologist who has headed the state program. Shenk is leaving the division to work for the National Park Service as a landscape ecologist, but she said she will still be working on lynx conservation in her new position. (more…)

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Most-viewed stories, Aug. 4 – 5

Posted on August 7, 2010 by Bob Berwyn

One of the young musicians participating in this week's Scale the Summit music camp.

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Social media drives top two posts

By Summit Voice

SUMMIT COUNTY — The most-viewed stories of the past couple of days show the effects of social media on a local and global scale.

The top story is about a local music program. Parents and other people interested in music education in Summit County helped spread the story via e-mail among neighbors and friends. And by the way, the program culminates with a free concert tonight (Saturday) at the Dillon Community Church. Click on the headline to get all the info.

The number two story was a travel essay about a visit to Naples and Pompeii. the story was first published as our travel feature last weekend and got a decent amount of hits. Then it was picked up by a news aggregator and posted on the first page under Naples, where it picked up considerable traffic. Finally, it was also rebroadcast widely through the Twitter travel community. Whatever the reason, I like the story and if you haven’t read it yet, please click on the link and share it with your friends.

(more…)

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Week in review: Headlines from June 15 – June 19

Posted on June 20, 2010 by Bob Berwyn

A Colorado Division of Wildlife map show the location of lynx using the White River National Forest. In one of our top stories this week we reported that the spread of bark beetles in the forest has altered lynx habitat on a landscape level. As a result, U.S. Forest Service biologists are re-drawing lynx habitat maps used to analyze proposal for ski area expansions and other projects.

By Summit Voice


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In our week in review post we compile a week’s worth of headlines for easy viewing. Sharing this post with friends via Facebook, Twitter, Yahoo groups or e-mail lists is a great way to help spread the word about Summit Voice. We’re online only and we depend on electronic word of mouth.

Please consider subscribing to Summit Voice with the link at the top right-hand corner of every page. A quick note for subscribers: You can change the frequency of e-mail deliveries by clicking on the “Manage Subscriptions” link at the bottom of the page when you receive a story via e-mail. Once you’re on the Subscription Management Page, click on the “Delivery Frequency” tab, where you can choose immediate delivery to have stories e-mailed to you within a few seconds of when they’re published, or the “Daily” option, which means you’ll get a morning summary of the previous day’s stories. The final option is a weekly summary of stories.

A final note, I try to break each story at a logical spot after the first couple of graphs before they’re published to help shorten the length of the e-mails. But every now and then, like with the Jamaica travel story, I forget. Please let me know if you have any feedback for Summit Voice, stories you’d like to see covered or any other suggestions.

Here are the past week’s headlines:

Durango man fined for baiting bighorn sheep

Polis school meal provisions rolled into broader bill

Breckenridge makes sustainability push, wins bike award

Oil plume approaching Florida Keys

Urban creeking in Frisco, Colorado — A photo essay following Meadow Creek down from the Eagles Nest Wilderness through Frisco to Dillon Reservoir.

Get the rest of the headlines after the break … (more…)

Filed under: business, endangered species, energy, Environment, forest fires, forests, public lands, real estate, rivers, Summit County Colorado, Summit Voice weekly headlines, wildlife | Tagged: , , , , , , , | 1 Comment »

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