Summer Experience: Wildlife-Friendly Fences and Conservation

Genevieve Halcomb inventorying fences in the Hoback Basin.

The Ricketts Conservation Foundation partnered with the Wyoming Game and Fish Department to hire a seasonal technician to complete wildlife friendly fence mapping and inventory in the Hoback Basin. Genevieve started with us May, spearheading a community conservation effort.

Genevieve's reflection on her summer experience:

This summer, I had the opportunity to work for Ricketts Conservation Foundation as a Wildlife-Friendly Fence Technician. This position focused on understanding and improving fencing data in the Hoback Basin. Throughout the summer, I spent much of my time in the field mapping and inventorying fences, working alongside conservation organizations, participating in hands-on fencing projects, and engaging with the community about the importance of wildlife-friendly fences.

The biggest part of my work was mapping and inventorying fences. Over the course of the summer, I mapped ~263.418 miles of fence and inventoried about 39.78% of that (Figure 1). Mapping involves digitally recording the location and length of fence lines so that we can see where fences are located across the landscape. Inventorying takes that process a step further by documenting characteristics of each fence, including the type and condition of the fence. This information gives a much better understanding of what is actually on the ground and where potential problems may exist for wildlife. The data I collected will help Wyoming Game and Fish identify and prioritize fences that could be removed or converted to wildlife-friendly designs. By knowing where fences are located and understanding their condition, conservation partners can focus their efforts on projects that could have the greatest benefit for wildlife movement.

Figure 1. Displays the Wyoming Mule Deer migration corridor and its relationship to fences mapped and inventoried in 2026.

Another important part of my summer was engaging with the community. The reason I only inventoried 39.78% of the fences is due to the remaining fences being on private land where I could not collect the more specific information. Once I realized how much was located on private property, I focused more of my attention on engaging with the community and building awareness. I attended monthly Bondurant Community Club meetings, where I had the opportunity to talk about my work and the impact fencing can have on wildlife migration. To increase community outreach, I also set up an information table at The Branding Iron once a week and participated in Conservation Field Day. These events allowed me to start conversations about wildlife-friendly fencing, answer questions, and share what I had been learning through my work. Engaging with the public gave me the opportunity to connect the work I was doing in the field with the community it directly affects. It also showed me that building awareness and having conversations with local communities are important parts of creating successful, lasting conservation efforts.

I also had the opportunity to participate in several hands-on fencing projects. Working alongside the Jackson Hole Wildlife Foundation, I was able to take part in several fence lowerings and removals. These projects allowed me to see firsthand how volunteers, conservation organizations, and landowners can work together to make a meaningful difference for wildlife. I then brought that experience to Jackson Fork Ranch, where I helped remove several different types of unnecessary fencing. Being involved in the physical side of fence work helped me see the connection between the data I collected in the field and the real-world conservation work that can come from it. These projects were especially rewarding because they showed me that conservation does not always require a major undertaking. Sometimes, simply removing a fence that is no longer needed or modifying an existing fence can make the landscape safer and more accessible for wildlife.

Before tear-out
After tear-out

Looking back on the summer, I am grateful for the variety of experiences this position with the Ricketts Conservation Foundation has given me. I have learned how to collect and organize fence data, work with landowners, physically remove and modify fences, communicate with the public, and collaborate with other conservation organizations.

Most importantly, I have learned how connected these experiences are. Mapping and inventorying fences provides the information needed to identify conservation priorities. Organizations such as Wyoming Game and Fish and the Jackson Hole Wildlife Foundation can then use that information to help plan and carry out on-the-ground conservation projects. However, none of this work is possible without the support and involvement of local communities and landowners.

This summer has shown me that conservation is a combination of data, hands-on work, collaboration, and community involvement. Every part of this position has contributed to a larger goal: making Wyoming's landscapes safer and more accessible for wildlife. I am proud of what I have been able to accomplish this summer and grateful for everything I have learned along the way.  

If you would like to know more about wildlife-friendly fence conversion on your property, please contact [email protected].

Hummingbirds 2026

For a couple of weeks in July, the wildflower meadows of Monument Ridge come alive with a gentle whirring sound—that of the wings of hundreds of hummingbirds. Among them are the Calliope Hummingbird, the smallest migratory bird in the world, and the Rufous Hummingbird, which completes the longest migration of any bird proportional to their body size. These extraordinary species rely on montane meadows across the interior west to fuel their fall migration southward.


As part of Ricketts Conservation Foundation’s work to understand how regeneration following fire affects birds, we’ve observed high numbers of hummingbirds in recently burned sites. There, they take advantage of abundant wildflower growth in the years after a wild or prescribed fire. These tiny birds are often captured in the mist nets we use to study songbirds in the burn. During 2024, the inaugural year of banding at a couple of wildfire sites, we captured up to 120 hummingbirds in one day!


Because of their size, banding hummingbirds requires specialized training, tools, and permits. Unlike songbird bands, which come ready to use, hummingbird bands come as a flat sheet of lightweight metal which must be cut and shaped to fit. Hummingbirds also require different handling techniques and data collection than songbirds. Luckily, RCF banders were able to collaborate with an expert hummingbird researcher, Kyle Shepard, to receive the training needed to band hummingbirds.


In 2025 and 2026, we’ve captured fewer hummingbirds than in 2024–likely correlating with a reduced wildflower bloom due to drought or other changing conditions. As RCF continues to band hummingbirds several years into the future, this data will become a valuable aspect of understanding how wildlife responds to fire.

A Male Broad-tailed Hummingbird
An Immature Hummingbird About to Get Banded
A Male Rufous Hummingbird

Pushing Boundaries: Spring Update on the Yellowstone Ecosystem Virtual Fence Collaborative

Cattle with collars in Star Valley, Wyoming

Just over a month ago, The Ricketts Conservation Foundation (RCF) and The Property and Environment Research Center (PERC) announced an exciting collaboration to deploy virtual fencing technology on eight participating ranches spanning across the Yellowstone Ecosystem. With the ink on the press release barely dry, our team hit the ground running in the field. Over the past few weeks, we have transitioned from concept and planning to implementation and action. Spring has been a season of momentum, collaboration, and hands-on work.

Site Visits

Projects of this scale don’t happen single-handedly, but rather when a dedicated group of livestock producers, land managers, government agencies, and conservationists work together towards a common goal. Recently, RCF and PERC, along with representatives from various state agency and non-government organization (NGO) partners, completed successful site visits to all eight participating ranches. These visits spanned a range of landscapes, from Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and United States Forest Service (USFS) allotments to state and private rangelands. Each visit allowed us to identify specific conservation goals for each unique operation – whether that meant implementing a grazing rotation, protecting riparian areas for native trout, managing invasive weeds, or mitigating wildlife-fence conflicts. These conversations laid the groundwork for virtual fence strategies tailored to reflect the unique objectives and needs of each operation.

Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3

Collaboration in action: partners from RCF, PERC, Wyoming Game and Fish Department (WGFD), Trout Unlimited (TU), Greater Yellowstone Coalition (GYC) and the USFS (plus the pups) meet with producers to discuss trout spawning redds and potential uses of virtual fence to limit livestock impacts to stream beds (Figures 1-3).

Baseline Ecological Monitoring 

Using virtual fencing can accomplish incredible conservation outcomes, such as healthier soils, rejuvenated riparian areas, and unobstructed wildlife migration pathways. But to prove it works, we first need data to back up these claims.  

Ecological monitoring is officially underway at the Lucky 7 Angus Ranch in Boulder (WY), the XX Ranch in Auburn (ID), and with the Goat Guy in Ashton (ID). We will add additional ranches in the coming weeks. Thus far, our monitoring efforts are tracking vegetation species composition and nutritional quality, invasive weed cover, soil health, riparian condition, and wildlife movements. By establishing baseline metrics prior to livestock turnout, we can track whether grazing management with virtual fence results in desirable ecological change over time. The data we gather this season will serve as the foundation for evaluating whether or not virtual fence helped producers accomplish their ecological, economic, and social objectives across the four-year duration of their projects. 

Figure 4
Figure 5
Figure 6

Science on the range: Establishing long-term ecological monitoring to track forage quality, invasive weed cover, and soil health (Figures 4-6). 

Livestock Online! 

Over the past month we have assisted ranchers with the physical collaring process. Fitting livestock with GPS-enabled collars is the last step before they are trained and head out to summer pastures. These collars allow producers to manage pasture boundaries from their smartphone or laptop as well as track individual animal location and behavior.

Figure 7
Figure 8
Figure 9

Collaring cattle at different operations throughout the Yellowstone Ecosystem (Figures 7-9), including cattle that are headed to the Upper Green River as a result of the Dollar Lake Fire collaboration.

What’s Next? 

As producers continue towards livestock turnout on summer range, their virtual fences will go live and shape grazing management across the Yellowstone Ecosystem. We will continue to support our ranch partners over the coming months, as they integrate virtual fence technology into their daily operations. RCF will also continue to conduct monitoring for ecological, economic, and social outcomes. On a final note, we are incredibly grateful to the visionary producers and partners who are willing to test these new tools, share their knowledge, and push the boundaries of what conservation can look like on working lands. 

Using virtual fence technology, cattle are restricted from accessing a busy road to trail to summer pasture. This helped ensure livestock and human safety during turnout to summer range in Star Valley, Wyoming.

Conservation Field Day

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

May 28, 2026

Ricketts Conservation Foundation and Bondurant Art & Agriculture Market to Host Engaging Conservation Field Day in Bondurant

Conservation Field Day to celebrate conservation and stewardship of natural resources in the Hoback Basin

Bondurant, Wyo. – The Ricketts Conservation Foundation (RCF) and the Bondurant Art and Ag Market (BAAM) are partnering to connect conservation organizations with the community through a Conservation Field Day in the Hoback Basin.

The Conservation Field Day will be hosted in conjunction with BAAM at the Branding Iron Café in Bondurant, Wyoming, on June 13, 2026, from 10 am to 2 pm. The community event will celebrate conservation and stewardship of natural resources in the Hoback Basin through topical discussions and conservation project tours.

Part of the Yellowstone Ecosystem, Hoback Basin hosts diverse wildlife, migratory species, and the headwaters of the Hoback River. Over the past decade, the basin has faced impacts from fire, drought, and expanded development, which impacts the overall function of the natural systems. Landowners and community members play a vital role in easing pressure on this ecosystem, but often lack the resources needed to help steward the surrounding environment.

“We live in an extraordinary landscape and to ensure its long-term viability, we all must do our best to steward every acre.  Conservation Field Day is intended to provide landowners with tools and programs they can utilize, helping everyone achieve optimum natural resource stewardship on every acre,” says Shari Meeks, Project Manager of RCF.

A series of brief informational presentations will cover topics such as Sublette County Weed & Pest programs, bees, gardens, native plants, the history of Bondurant, forest planning, and grant opportunities. These talks will be followed by an opportunity to visit ongoing conservation projects, including the Hoback River Restoration project.

Participating organizations include Sublette County Weed & Pest, Green River Valley Program of the Jackson Hole Land Trust, Friends of the Bridger-Teton, Wyoming Game and Fish Department, Trout Unlimited, Greater Yellowstone Coalition, Wyoming Outdoor Council, Jackson Hole Wildlife Foundation, Teton Conservation District, Museum of the Mountain Man, Wyoming Wilderness Association, Snake River Fund, and Sage and Snow Garden Club.

About Bondurant Art & Ag Market: Established in 2023, the Bondurant Art and Ag Market (BAAM) was created as an opportunity to gather the community, providing Bondurant residents with an opportunity to showcase the many talented artists in the area.  While it initially focused on art and agricultural products – such as locally grown beef, lamb and dairy – it has since expanded to include fruits, vegetables and baked goods.  The market continues to grow and attract a wide variety of vendors.

About Ricketts Conservation Foundation: The Ricketts Conservation Foundation exists to study, protect and enhance populations of at-risk species through partnering with non-government and government organizations, educational institutions and public agencies to understand the natural processes and human management decisions affecting the Yellowstone Ecosystem. 

###

For more information or to schedule an interview with an event representative, please contact Shari Meeks (RCF) at [email protected]. 

Conservation Partners Launch Yellowstone Ecosystem Virtual Fence Collaborative

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

April 22, 2026

Ricketts Conservation Foundation and PERC are investing $600,000 to deploy transformative technology across one of North America's most iconic ecosystems

Bondurant, Wyo. – Two leading conservation organizations are joining forces to accelerate one of the most promising innovations in modern land stewardship. The Ricketts Conservation Foundation (RCF) and the Property and Environment Research Center (PERC) today announced the $600,000 Yellowstone Ecosystem Virtual Fence Collaborative, a bold effort to deploy GPS-collar livestock management technology across working ranches throughout the Yellowstone Ecosystem.

Virtual fencing is an emerging technology that replaces miles of traditional fencing, commonly barbed wire, with GPS-enabled collars that guide livestock using audio and mild physical stimulus cues. Managed from a smartphone or laptop, ranchers can create and adjust grazing boundaries almost instantaneously, improving flexibility and adaptability, and reducing infrastructure costs. The technology allows ranchers to remove physical barriers from the landscape, helping wildlife migration. With it, ranchers can also keep cattle out of ecologically sensitive areas and producers can respond quickly to livestock losses, reducing conflict while supporting working ranches.

Located amidst one of the largest and most intact ecosystems in North America, the new initiative will support eight ranches that collectively span more than 366,000 acres with over 5,300 head of cattle across Wyoming and Idaho.

"The Yellowstone region is home to remarkable wildlife and working lands that support both local communities and global biodiversity," said Shari Meeks, project manager with the Ricketts Conservation Foundation. "Partnering with livestock producers who are willing to try innovative approaches like virtual fencing is a practical way to advance conservation while sustaining the landscapes that make this region extraordinary."

RCF is investing $400,000 toward the initiative, with an additional $200,000 in funding from PERC. The Ricketts Conservation Foundation has long focused its work on studying, protecting and enhancing at-risk species populations throughout the Yellowstone Ecosystem. RCF appreciates the value of working private ranching lands and acknowledges the significant ecosystem services they provide. Together with private and public partners, RCF seeks to encourage sustainable grazing management through tools like virtual fencing technology.

PERC brings expertise and experience in funding virtual fencing to the partnership. The Bozeman, Montana-based conservation organization convened the first national gathering of ranchers, technology developers, conservationists and researchers to explore the conservation potential of virtual fencing. In 2024, PERC launched America's first Virtual Fence Conservation Fund, awarding more than $400,000 in grant funding to ranches across six states. Earlier this year, PERC released “Virtual Fencing for Conservation,” a comprehensive roadmap detailing how conservationists can use the technology to create conservation outcomes and support agricultural viability.

"PERC has worked with ranchers, researchers and technology leaders to leverage the conservation potential of virtual fencing," said Travis Brammer, PERC's director of conservation. "This partnership helps turn that vision into action on the ground in one of the most important ecosystems in the world."

Leaders of the initiative designed the cost-share structure to attract additional collaborators and investments to accelerate and scale virtual fencing across the Yellowstone Ecosystem. Several producers have already engaged additional conservation organizations and wildlife agencies to secure further investment and voluntary support, creating a “web of partnerships” to support the effort.

Funding is being awarded now, with implementation beginning later this spring. The initiative will provide continuous monitoring and support over the next four years to quantify outcomes for conservation and working lands.

Projects Across the Yellowstone Ecosystem

The initiative will deploy virtual fencing technology across a diverse set of ranching operations, each targeting conservation outcomes specific to their landscape:

About PERC: The Property and Environment Research Center (PERC) is the national leader in market solutions for conservation, with over 40 years of research and a network of respected scholars and practitioners. Through research, law and policy, and innovative applied conservation programs, PERC explores how aligning incentives for environmental stewardship produces sustainable outcomes for land, water, and wildlife. Founded in 1980, PERC is nonprofit, nonpartisan, and proudly based in Bozeman, Montana.

About Ricketts Conservation Foundation: The Ricketts Conservation Foundation exists to study, protect and enhance populations of at-risk species through partnering with non-government and government organizations, educational institutions and public agencies to understand the natural processes and human management decisions affecting the Yellowstone Ecosystem.

###

For more information or to schedule an interview with a representative from PERC or RCF, please contact Kat Dwyer (PERC) at [email protected] or Shari Meeks (RCF) at [email protected].

Clark's Nutcracker - Spring 2026

This spring, we’ve continued our work to capture and tag Clark’s Nutcrackers around Yellowstone National Park.

In 2020 the University of Colorado-Denver (UCD) and RCF attempted to capture Clark’s Nutcrackers in Yellowstone National Park. Our effort was interrupted when Covid shut down the park, but since then our work has developed into a multi-year project aimed at understanding movement patterns and habitat use of Clark’s Nutcrackers across the Yellowstone Ecosystem (YE). Since 2021, Ricketts Conservation Foundation staff have teamed up with UCD researchers to trap Nutcrackers in the park, from Mammoth Hot Springs, to the Lamar Valley, and south to Canyon Junction. We capture, band, and attach transmitters to individual Nutcrackers so that we can track their movements across the ecosystem in every season.

Figure 1. A newly captured Clark Nutcracker getting fitted for its transmitters by researchers from RCF and the University of Colorado

Our trapping approach remains straightforward and effective. Bait is deployed at selected sites and monitored over several days before traps are set. Steller’s Jays and Canada Jays frequently find the bait first, but once they arrive, we focus our efforts exclusively on nutcrackers. This year, we expanded our effort beyond park boundaries. We established new trapping sites in the Custer-Gallatin National Forest in Montana to expand our banding opportunities. This expansion is important, as the YE extends well beyond the park’s borders, and to understand nutcracker movement we need to sample across that broader landscape. This work proved successful, and we caught five individuals at one of our new locations.

In addition to capturing new individuals, we encountered birds that we trapped previously. Over the years, we have marked each captured bird with a unique color leg-band combination. This allows us to identify birds banded in the previous seasons and recapture individuals with old, non-functioning, transmitters. Upon recapturing these birds, we assessed their body condition and removed their units, reducing the load on the bird and allowing them to continue their lives unencumbered by the transmitter and harness. There’s something unique and special about releasing such a bird back into the wild after it carried a tag that contributed greatly to our understanding of its movements and habitat use.

With a new cohort of seven transmitters deployed in 2026, our project continues to build a growing dataset on annual nutcracker movement patterns and habitat use. As the dataset expands, so does our ability to better understand the ecological role of Clark’s Nutcrackers across the YE. Increasing our sample size will allow us to conduct more robust analyses of how these birds use the landscape and their primary food resource, the whitebark pine.

Clark's Nutcracker with backpack transmitter and color bands.
Clark's Nutcracker with solar-powered backpack transmitter.

Collaboration on the Dollar Lake Fire

Figure 1. Dollar Lake Fire burns along the west shore of upper Green River Lake. Squaretop Mountain is in the background.
Bridger-Teton National Forest (Source: www.wyomingnews.com)

On August 21, 2025, a summer thunderstorm developed across the western Wyoming skies.  The area was ripe for wildfire as there had been little rain in the region since spring.  We distinctly recall this storm, because the cell moved eastward across Jackson Fork Ranch during the Saving Yellowstone Conservation Summit.  Not long into the afternoon sessions, cell phone emergency tones began sounding in the tent, warning of a nearby fire.  As the afternoon progressed, Summit participants could see an expanding plume of dark smoke, 28 miles to the northeast of us. While we were not in harm’s way, others were.

As is the case with most late-summer forest fires, the Dollar Lake Fire was most likely lightning-caused. Burning in thick timber on the Bridger-Teton National Forest’s (BTNF) Pinedale Ranger District and driven by strong winds, it burned 600 acres within hours. It eventually grew to over 19,000 acres according to the Teton Interagency Fire incident management page (Figure 2). 

The aftermath of a wildfire presents a unique opportunity for positive collaboration among multiple user groups with a strong connection to the resource.  Fire is an important part of landscape ecology and must be considered as part of the United States Forest Service’s (USFS) multiple use management mandate. There are many factors that play into fire recovery, where multiple use encourages collaboration, finding solutions that build relationships, exploring different opportunities for wildfire recovery, and leveraging funding from different sources to mitigate or offset costs for lost and damaged infrastructure.

Figure 2. Area affected by the Dollar Lake Fire.
Figure 2. Area affected by the Dollar Lake Fire.

The USFS requires that livestock on permitted grazing allotments be excluded from burned areas for a minimum of two years, or until 60% of vegetative ground cover is achieved in the area burned. However, wildfires often don’t burn landscapes evenly, nor do they discriminate against jurisdictional boundary lines, or fencelines.  In the Dollar Lake Fire, the burned area covered only a portion of two different pastures within the allotment, leaving unburned vegetation available for livestock consumption.  The fire also burned several miles of physical fencing. Replacing them by the onset of grazing season was unreasonable, which left the permittees with few practical options that would allow them to graze the area in 2026.

One out-of-the-box solution suggested when reviewing options for the 2026 grazing season was the use of virtual fencing. Along with a modified livestock grazing rotation and stocking rate, permittees chose to explore the idea of virtual fence technology to exclude cattle from the burned area. 

In 2024, the Ricketts Conservation Foundation established the Virtual Fencing Conservation Initiative and partners with producers on a variety of projects scattered across the Yellowstone Ecosystem. Virtual fencing is where livestock are fitted with a GPS collar that is programmed with “virtual” fences, or perimeters, within which livestock are contained. This prevents them from accessing burned areas, allowing for adequate vegetation recovery. 

The Ricketts Conservation Foundation is thrilled to partner with the permittees, the Sublette County Conservation District, and the USFS in 2026 and 2027 on the Dollar Lake Fire virtual fence implementation.  Using virtual fence to exclude livestock from grazing the burned area is key. This will result in two years of grazing deferment, allowing for successful wildfire recovery in the area.  Equally important, the collaboration creates an opportunity for livestock producers to implement a novel technology year-round. The economic, social, and conservation benefits on private land can be further explored by both livestock producers and the Ricketts Conservation Foundation using the captured results.  We hope that this approach of simultaneously addressing the concerns of land managers and producers can become more widely used within the Yellowstone Ecosystem and beyond.

2025 Fall Bird Banding Summary

American Redstart- This juvenile was the first of its species documented in the Hoback Basin
American Redstart- This juvenile was the first of its species documented in the Hoback Basin
Boreal Owl
Canada Jay- A local species with a lot of personality, these large jays are difficult to catch but always fun to work with when we do get one
Cassin's Vireo- an uncommon migrant in wetern Wyoming, we are very lucky to catch a few of them every fall at our songbird station

Ricketts Conservation Foundation’s 2025 fall bird banding season began on August 25th at our songbird migration station. Unlike over the summer when we catch songbirds using ten nets at nine rotating locations, our fall station is comprised of fifteen nets that are run every day at the same location. In autumn, disturbing nesting birds is no longer a concern, and instead our aim is to discover how migrating birds are using a select patch of stop-over habitat. For our fall banding efforts, a location on Jackson Fork Ranch along the Hoback River is utilized. This patch is comprised of riparian habitat with Willows and Cottonwood trees as well as tall Spruces and some Pines. The diverse flora and fresh water at this spot make it an appealing location for migrating birds to stop to rest and refuel along their journey south for the winter.

Fall songbird migration in western Wyoming is a fairly short phenomenon, with the bulk of the small migratory bird species moving through the region during the month of September. Due to some bad weather in late September and early October, our final morning of songbird banding was September 27th. Despite ending a few days earlier than we otherwise would have, it was an excellent season. The songbird crew banded 739 new birds and had 74 unique recaptures, comprised of 44 different species (Figure 1). Our 2025 total of 813 captures was a new record high, up from 694 in 2024 and 515 in 2023. Our most abundant bird caught in fall continues to be Wilson’s Warbler (113), but we also had a significant increase of Dark-eyed Juncos. In 2025 we banded 109 Juncos, compared to only 16 in 2024. Our 2025 fall season also had a few exciting first-time species captured- American Redstart, Clay-colored Sparrow, and Townsend’s Warbler are all uncommon migrants in western Wyoming. The Redstart and Sparrow species had not been previously documented in the Hoback basin, and this was only the 3rd fall record of Townsend’s Warbler in the area. These species are not known to regularly breed in our region and the individuals we caught this fall were likely migrating from breeding grounds in Montana, Idaho, or Canada to wintering grounds in Mexico.

On the evening of September 1st, we began our target banding effort for Northern Saw-whet Owls. Saw-whets are a small species of migratory owl that RCF biologists began to study in 2021. Since 2023, we have been conducting songbird banding in the mornings and Saw-whet Owl banding at night at the same location on Jackson Fork Ranch. Several miles up the river from the songbird and Saw-whet Owl banding station, we established a second Owl banding site in 2024, specifically to catch Boreal Owls. Boreal Owls are larger than Saw-whets but still very small compared to other familiar owl species like Great-horned Owl. Boreal Owls are considered a nomadic species but are under-studied in North America. Through our banding efforts, we hope to better understand their winter movements and juvenile dispersal. Both Boreal and Saw-whet Owls breed in high elevation forests of the Yellowstone Ecosystem, and are well insulated for cold weather with lots of body feathers, particularly the Boreals. While most Saw-whets migrate out of the area by the end of October, many Boreals are likely to spend all winter in the region.

Our 2025 Northern Saw-whet Owl season ran until October 31st, and over the 2-month capture period we banded 213 new Saw-whets. While catching over 200 of these birds is still a very good season, it was fewer owls than the past 2 years- we banded 320 in 2024 and 253 in 2023. Saw-whet Owls are known to sometimes have large year-to-year fluctuations in local population size, likely tied to small mammal populations and juvenile survival. Catching over 300 last fall was exceptional, so having our number decrease this year was not a big surprise.

Since Boreal Owls can overwinter in our area and have unpredictable nomadic movements, we continue to try catching them into November. This year our final night of Boreal Owl banding was November 22nd. In slightly over 2 months of effort we banded 23 Boreals Owls. This was a big drop off from last year’s total of 68. Boreal Owl populations likely experience yearly fluctuations similar to the Saw-whet Owls, but we are still learning about their population size and seasonal occurrence in our area. Given the overall perceived scarcity of Boreals, catching 23 this year was still very valuable, and we hope to continue to gain a better understanding of their population with on-going fall banding efforts.

2025 was another successful year for RCF’s fall migration banding operation and it would not have been possible without all the hard work of our seasonal banding crew- Noah Price, Olivia Fortuna, Wyatt Westerkamp, and Aiden Gifford. Without their passion and dedication, this banding season would not have been possible! Below is a chart of all our captures from this past fall. With the continued support of Ricketts Conservation Foundation and Jackson Fork Ranch, we look forward to continuing to use bird banding to study migratory songbirds and owls in the Hoback Basin.

Figure 1. Capture results summary for 2025 fall migration bird banding.

Ricketts Conservation Foundation - National Loon Center Research Grants

Since 2018, the Ricketts Conservation Foundation (RCF) has studied loons in the Yellowstone Ecosystem. However, Joe Ricketts' commitment to loon conservation stretches back to 2013, when he funded loon conservation efforts in the Yellowstone Ecosystem, Minnesota, and Massachusetts. While the loons in Yellowstone are the southernmost population in North America, the vast majority of common loons are found in Canada, Alaska, and the northern tier of the lower 48 states (Photo 1). These birds also face conservation challenges, and RCF is doing its part to help these birds on a continental scale.

Photo 1. Breeding range and migration routes of the Common Loon (Gavia immer) in North America courtesy of Boreal Birds (https://www.borealbirds.org/bird/common-loon).

In 2025 RCF donated $1,000,000 towards the National Loon Center’s (NLC) new headquarters in Crosslake, Minnesota (Photo 2). In addition, RCF committed to providing $100,000/year from 2025 to 2029 to spur conservation-related research on Common Loons throughout North America.

Photo 2. Design of new National Loon Center headquarters in Crosslake, MN.

In the first year of funding conservation-related research, we initiated a range-wide genetics study with the Bird Genoscape Project at Colorado State University. Our goal is to better understand genetic variation in the Common Loon. This species is found throughout Canada, Alaska, and the northern tier of the lower 48 states. However, there are also breeding populations in Greenland and Iceland. We hope to obtain samples from all these populations so conservationists have a comprehensive understanding of their interactions, migration routes, and wintering grounds.

Currently, we are reviewing 12 great proposals for 2026 and now have the difficult decision to decide which to fund. Thankfully, RCF and NLC have an excellent scientific advisory council making these decisions, so we look forward to their decisions. Stay tuned!

 

A Wildlife-Friendly Fence Story

Fences are a major obstacle to wildlife migrations in the Yellowstone Ecosystem.  Since its inception in 2018, the Ricketts Conservation Foundation (RCF) has partnered with Jackson Fork Ranch (JFR) to make wildlife friendly fence modifications to the bison fence that stretches along the upper Hoback River.  Beginning in 2019, RCF worked with JFR and the Wyoming Game and Fish Department (WGFD) to install 22 wildlife crossings in the fence. This improved wildlife movements across the ranch greatly.  In 2024, JFR decided to enhance the wildlife crossings even further. They proposed to design let-down fence sections up to 1200’ in length in targeted areas where known mule deer migration corridors cross the ranch.

Photo 1. Holes are drilled and hinges are placed at the ends of each section of fence to allow the fence to pivot.

Photo 1. Holes are drilled and hinges are placed at the ends of each section of fence to allow the fence to pivot.

After consulting with WGFD, RCF assisted with this effort in spring of 2025 by inventorying the identified migration corridors at Horse Pasture Draw and Nutting Draw.  JFR then hired a local welding company to modify the fence posts.  The welder added sleeves at the bottom of some posts, which allow for the post to be lifted off its base easily.  Other posts have rebar stays that the fence was then tied to, with cups to hold the rebar in place on both the bottom and top of the fence post.  In addition, by modifying the ends of each section, the fence can pivot (Photo 1), lay flat, and thus present less of an obstacle to migrating animals.

Once completed, these sections of fence were to be let down on October 15 (Photo 2), just in time for the fall mule deer migration.  However, the Jackson Fork Ranch is surrounded primarily by the U.S. Forest Service Hoback Grazing Allotment, which permits seasonal grazing by cattle and horses.  Wyoming is a fence-out state, so it was imperative to coordinate with neighboring users regarding the timing of letting the fence down.  RCF coordinated with the Hoback Grazing Association so JFR could reach its goal to improve wildlife movement across the ranch without complicating roundup.

Photo 2. A section of fence that has been let down for wildlife passage.

RCF and JFR will continue to work with WGFD to monitor the use of these segments by migrating wildlife and determine if any additional modifications need to be made to the fence in the future. 

As a private landowner, it’s important to continue learning about your property and how to align your vision with what takes place in the surrounding landscape.  It’s never too late to improve your management when you find out something you didn’t know that you didn’t know. In this case JFR was unaware of the mule deer migration corridor when they erected the bison fence. However, once they were made aware of this, they worked with RCF to remedy the situation. 

RCF continues to partner with WGFD, focusing on additional opportunities to improve mule deer migration movement within the Hoback River watershed in 2026. We will continue to support landowners that now know what they didn’t know before and choose to reduce their impact on the landscape through wildlife friendly fence improvements.

Stay tuned for more information in 2026.