Working Wild U

California's recent decision to remove four members of a wolf pack near Lake Tahoe sparked national attention - but the story behind it is much bigger. In this episode, Wildlife Management professor at UC Berkeley, Dr. Arthur Middleton, joins us to dig into his recent New York Times op-ed and explore why America's predator recovery has outpaced our ability to support the people living in these landscape – and what we can do about it. Find the show notes here: https://workingwild.us/season-2/california-wolves-87-dead-cattle-and-the-nyt-op-ed-everyones-sharing/

96% of wolves in the Northern Rockies live in the working wild: public and private lands where people and wildlife share the landscape. But who pays the cost of supporting biodiversity? In this episode from our first season on wolves in the West, we explore the economics of our food system and take a look at how one ranch family is getting creative in order to share the landscape with wolves and maintain open space. Show notes New York Times The Daily podcast episode on prices in the beef market: "Who do you want controlling your food?" John and Weston Helle's wool apparel company, Duckworth The Ruby Valley Strategic Alliance Cole Mannix's enterprise: Old Salt Co-op The Blackfoot Challenge Lesli Allison's Director's Letter in On Land: "Working lands are the future of conservation" Find more info here

Throughout this season, we've explored landowner- and community-led efforts to support imperiled species, from bears and birds to ferrets and fish. In the final episode of this season, we're looking ahead to the future of imperiled pollinators on working lands. Across the country, there is a growing crisis when it comes to pollinators. What happens when wide-ranging species that reside across vast expanses of public, private and Tribal lands, like the western bumblebee and monarch butterfly, are listed under the Endangered Species Act, as appears likely in the coming years? And what role will land stewards and working lands play in this next chapter of conservation? Complete show notes are available at workingwild.us

In the heart of America's grasslands, a battle for survival is unfolding. The lesser prairie-chicken, an iconic species of the Great Plains, is on the brink of extinction. But there's a growing network of producers and partners across the plains looking to change that. Today on the show, can ranchers and partners work together to save the lesser prairie-chicken while supporting their livelihoods and communities? We're headed to eastern New Mexico to find out. Complete show notes can be found at workingwild.us.

Finding an imperiled species on his ranch scared the daylights out of Russell Davis. What he and his neighbors did next may have saved their town. Today on Working Wild U, join us as we return to the high plains of eastern Colorado to learn how a small ranching community transformed a migratory bird's imperiled status from threat to opportunity. Complete show notes are at workingwild.us

Grizzly bears are expanding their range. But where are they headed? To find out, we get out on the land with ranchers Erik Kalsta and Jami Murdoch, who are working with partners to monitor wildlife – including grizzlies – on their operation in southwest Montana. Together with Erik, Jami and Blackfeet rancher Kristen Kipp, plus a band of other experts, we explore what it really means for grizzly bears to recover under the protection of the Endangered Species Act, and the real challenges bears, and people, face as they do. Read the complete show notes, as always, at workingwild.us.

We're excited to announce the second season of Working Wild U: Imperiled. This season we're exploring community and landowner-led wildlife conservation on working and tribal lands across the West. From grizzly bears to lesser-known species, join us as we discover the challenges and successes of how communities are working together for common-ground solutions. We'll dive into the action, meeting individuals on the ground stewarding habitats and supporting thriving rural communities. As the Endangered Species Act turns 50, we reflect on the past and ponder the next 50 years of conservation in the US. Stay tuned for episodes dropping soon – it's a season of surprising stories and crucial questions about the future of working lands in the West. Stay tuned for episodes dropping soon! Working Wild University is a production of Western Landowners Alliance and Dr. Jared Beaver at Montana State University Extension and a proud part of Natural Resources Univers

We've covered a lot this season: wolves, working lands, and some of the ideas and management practices that divide and unite the people of the American West. In our final episode of the season, Alex and Jared head to Colorado, where a ballot initiative, passed in 2020, requires Colorado Parks and Wildlife to reintroduce wolves to the western part of the state by the end of 2023. Show notes: workingwild.us

Today, Alex and Jared explore how livestock producers and researchers are working together to adapt old world tools into new world technologies to help reduce conflicts. They'll look at how innovative solutions can often be simple, and how new tools can help keep people, livestock, and wildlife safe. Find the show notes at workingwild.us

This is a special bonus episode of Working Wild U. In the northeast corner of Washington on the Colville Reservation, wildlife managers are working to ensure a balance across all wildlife species as wolves re-establish themselves. Today, Alex and Jared hear from Cody Desautel, the executive director and former natural resource director for the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation. Full show notes can be found, as always, at workingwild.us.

When wolves disperse, they are increasingly moving through human-dominated landscapes where they often get into trouble. In today's episode, Alex and Jared explore where wolves are, where different people think they should be, and the tricky business of managing and living with wolves in a changing world. Complete show notes are always available at workingwild.us.

In 2021, the Montana and Idaho legislatures each passed a suite of bills liberalizing wolf hunting. These changes ignited national debate around fair chase ethics, norms of state wildlife management decision-making, and potential relisting of wolves in the Northern Rockies under the Endangered Species Act. Honing in on Montana, hosts Alex and Jared explore what these recent changes to wolf hunt regulations could mean for wolf populations in the state and for people who share the landscape with wolves. Plus, they seek to understand if a collaborative, ground-up, scientifically and publicly-informed management approach could create more durable solutions that might help prevent pendulum swings in the future. See our complete show notes and more at workingwild.us

Today we're introducing you to one of our favorite podcasts, Reframing Rural, a show working to "reframe the narrative on rural America." In this episode from their third season, "Groundwork," Reframing Rural producer Megan Torgerson shares the intimate journey of her family's farm succession, as well as others in her home community of Dagmar, Montana, giving listeners an inside look into the emotional, legal and financial factors at play with succession planning. The topic of farm and ranch succession is at the top of mind for many folks in rural America today. Around 40% of farmland in the United States is owned by people over the age of 65, meaning up to 370 million acres could change hands in the next 20 years. To quote Megan, "The fate of rural America matters to everyone, no matter where you live." And this show will help you understand why. Enjoy this guest episode, and Wolves in the West will be back with a new episode next week! Listen to more Reframing Rural at www.reframingrural.org/