Wild About Utah

This time of year, we see a cast of characters flying among the trees and bushes as they search for food and a place to nestle to conserve warmth and energy.

My last WAU described the glories of the Colorado Plateau, to which I must return. The very northern reach of the plateau intersects the mighty Uintah Mountains and the Uintah Basin.

Utah’s deep snow and hundreds of miles of publicly accessible groomed trails make snowmobiling an ideal way for individuals and families to experience the state’s backcountry.

Most people enjoy watching birds, except for their occasional deposits on cars or windows. In an earlier program, I mentioned at least fifteen benefits that birds provide to humans and planet Earth. But as human population and developments increase, the survival of many bird species becomes threatened.

Rivers and sandstone pretty much define the Colorado Plateau- perhaps my favorite landscape on our lovely planet. These past few weeks I’ve experienced some of its best in Dinosaur NM and Canyonlands NP with friends and students.

In the early winter, when most wildlife are migrating down the mountains, dusky grouse are heading up. The grouse rely on the evergreen needles for their sole food source during winter.

Autumn leaves are beginning to fall. Trees drop their leaves because of reductions in temperature, sunlight, and moisture. And if the leaves remained on deciduous trees during winter months, the added weight of snow could break entire branches down. So many people will be outside raking leaves off their lawns.

Bear jams, bear stories, bear encounters, bear dreams - I’ve experienced all. Such was the case on our annual Teton trip where I was joined by over 25 Utah State University students and others. Bison, birds, bugling elk, sparring moose, and always the highlight- bears.

Have you ever wondered why the redrock landscape of southeastern Utah ebbs and flows, why the exposed layers of sedimentary rock seem to rise and fall in crests and troughs like so many waves across the surface of the sea? Well, the answer, surprisingly enough, can be found through investigating the ancient seas that once covered vast swathes of Southeast Utah more than 300 million years ago.

Wildfires hit record highs this year in the Western United States. There can be arguments blaming climate change or forest management. Were they caused by human carelessness or natural causes such as lightning? Take your pick. But the results were tragic.