A roadside elk near Hoback Junction (photo Mark Gocke).  Have you had a chance to read the 2023 Teton County Annual Indicator Report? Being a science-based conservation organization, we love that Teton County created measurable, achievable goals to strive toward the...

By Hilary Turner As you can imagine, it has been a difficult winter for many ungulates (hoofed mammals) in the Jackson Hole area. Nature Mappers have reported many dead animals, which have succumbed to vehicle collisions, predation, apparent malnutrition, and other...

NMJH Welcomes Bernie McHugh! This March, we're excited to welcome Bernie McHugh as a new data vetter for Nature Mapping Jackson Hole. Bernie is a longtime bird enthusiast and Wilson resident. As a data vetter, Bernie will review wildlife observation submissions and...

By Kyle Kissock Riprap forming the levee system along the Snake River can be challenging and dangerous for wildlife to navigate. This summer, the Jackson Hole Wildlife Foundation (JHWF) collaborated with Teton Conservation District, Teton County, Wyoming Game and Fish...

By Hilary Turner This winter, The Jackson Hole Wildlife Foundation has been lucky enough to get to play a small role in helping students at Jackson Hole Middle School (JHMS) start an afterschool club called Feathers, Fins, and Fur. The club is the first of its kind at...

By Charlie Brandin The great debate - bison or buffalo? I spent last weekend at the Wind River Indian Reservation learning how western science (which classifies the animal as bison) and indigenous knowledge (which classifies it as buffalo) come together for an...

Jackson Hole Wildlife Foundation is proud to partner with Maven® Outdoor Equipment Company in a Nature Mapping Summer Challenge! Maven® has graciously donated a pair of C.1 10x42 binoculars (MSRP $425) to the JHWF to be given away to a Nature Mapper who completes the...

Nature Mapping Enews – April 4, 2022 – Written by Frances Clark “I saw my first robin!”  “I saw bluebirds!” “Did you hear the sandhill cranes the other day?”  “No, but I heard meadowlarks up in Antelope Flats.” “The bears are out.” “Have you seen an...

By Frances Clark A valiant cadre of over 95 volunteers ventured out on a frigid morning to scout for moose with great accomplishment. The latest count, still to be verified, is 94 moose. This compares well with Moose Day 2021 when 109 volunteers recorded 106 moose....

We'd like to extend a special thank you to all the new participants and visitors who joined us at Rendezvous Park in sub-zero temperatures on the morning of February, 26th for Hosted Moose Day. While only one of our hiking groups spotted a moose, it's important to...

By Dr. Hannah Specht, University of Montana Citizen scientists, the world round, invest in data collection on the understanding that this effort will contribute to expanding knowledge and the hope that it will move us forward. The timeline for knowledge expansion, and...

Did you know that Teton County experiences an average of 71 human-bear conflicts per year? Sadly, in 2021 alone, six grizzly bears were euthanized because of human food-conditioning.   Now more than ever, we believe bears need our...

By John Stephenson, Grand Teton National Park wildlife biologist While people flock to Grand Teton National Park for its spectacular wildlife often hoping for a glimpse of an elusive wolf or grizzly, most visitors are all but guaranteed sightings of remarkable bird...

By Morgan Graham, Teton Conservation District Growing up in Pennsylvania, I was not intimately familiar with the concept of winter range. Seasonal shifts were marked by hundreds of Canada geese gorging on leftover corn and soybeans. Over time more and more of those...

By Jeff Burrell - Hydrologist and former director of the Wildlife Conservation Society Northern Rockies Program. Cover Photo from Neil Herbert (Yellowstone National Park) There’s been a growing appreciation of the important role beavers can play in creating and...

Holy cow. I am impressed at the boldness of bear 399. She is a survivor and is imparting this skill and resourcefulness on her four cubs. How did we get from the near extirpation of grizzly bears to bears walking through Jackson? The incredible foresight of the...

By Hilary A. Turner, JHWF Neighbors to Nature (N2N) is a community science project supported by the Jackson Hole Wildlife Foundation (JHWF) and our partners – The Nature Conservancy of Wyoming (TNC), Friends of Pathways (FOP), and the Bridger-Teton National Forest...

Hilary Turner | Nature Mapping Program Coordinator Fall migration is a fun time for birders and it is the only time of year we Wyomingites get to examine many members of one of my favorite groups – the shorebirds. These members of the order Charadriiformes can be...

By Kate Gersh Holy moly technology! We have exciting news to share stemming from our Neighbors to Nature: Cache Creek Study project (N2N), which is a partnership with Friends of Pathways, The Nature Conservancy-Wyoming, and the Bridger-Teton National Forest (BTNF)....

By Hanna Holcomb In 2009, local volunteers and biologists launched Nature Mapping Jackson Hole under the Meg and Bert Raynes Fund as a way to document local wildlife. Since then, more than 500 citizen scientists have logged over 70,000 observations. But as Nature...

By Frances Clark The members of the Corvid or Crow family are smart, often showy, and have a reputation. As a group they are omnivores, eating a range of food from carrion to berries to bugs. They are known for their intelligence, such as remembering locations of food...

By Renee Seidler Sign, sign, everywhere a sign… And these ones are meant to preserve the scenery, as opposed to the signs in Les Emmerson’s song (1970). I know many of you have been long awaiting the fixed radar speed limit sign installations in Wilson. Where are...

By Renee Seidler This month, the Teton County Board of Commissioners unanimously approved the Agreement to Render Services (ARS) that allows Wyoming Department of Transportation (WYDOT) to conduct the planning, engineering, design, permitting and construction of two...

By Arne Johanson Why are our local, native plants important? Well for me, it is important that Jackson looks and feels like Jackson. If I wanted to have a suburban yard I'd be living in any suburb USA. But my opinion doesn't really answer the question. Local native...

By Debra Patla The tiny Boreal Chorus Frog owns the natural soundscape of Jackson Hole wetland areas during mild weather in May and early June. Each male chorus frog sends out a trill, lasting about one second and repeated 30 or more times per minute. Each responds to...

By Kyle Kissock | Communications Manager Feathers as Clues “I think I found a strike!” said Wes. Beneath the fence lay a small clump of feathers - evidence, perhaps of what we’d been looking for since we’d left the trucks that morning? The speckled down was so...

By Troy Koser | PhD Candidate, Montana State University Dear Nature Mappers, Do you love moose and frequently see them in or around your home? If so, we would like for you to consider participating in a scientific project studying the interactions between moose,...

By Frances Clark | Lead Nature Mapping Volunteer The data is in: 127 moose, 100 volunteers in 32 teams, who donated over 350 hours!  Wow, thank you all. Teams ranged north to Arizona Creek in Grand Teton National Park, east out the Gros Ventre, west to Alta, and south...

By Aly Courtemanch, Wildlife Biologist | Wyoming Game and Fish Department Moose are one of the most beloved wildlife species by our community. During the winter, they become more easily observable when they migrate down to low elevations and are often seen right in...

By Jon Mobeck, Executive Director | The Jackson Hole Wildlife Foundation had a terrific year in 2019, making meaningful contributions to our wild community in a variety of ways. Our work to make roads safer for people and wildlife, which began at our founding 26 years...

By Kyle Kissock | What birds come to mind when you think of species that are 'seasonal residents' of Jackson Hole? While you'll likely consider any number of summertime breeders, Osprey, Mountain Bluebird, or vibrant Yellow Warblers, there are a select few...

By Lead Nature Mapping Volunteer Frances Clark Late fall, early winter is a time of adjustment for wildlife, as well as us. The increasing cold and diminishing food in November encourages movement of species. Many warm bodied critters have left the valley, while...

By Kyle Kissock | Communications Manager Wildlife-Fencing Project Completed The Wyoming Department of Transportation (WYDOT) recently completed the installation of “wildlife-fencing” along S. Highway 89 from South Park Loop Road to Munger Mountain Elementary School....

By Kyle Kissock, Communications Manager 2.9 billion birds. Let that number sink in. That’s how many less birds inhabit North American skies, forests, and cityscapes today, than did in 1970. You probably saw the (now viral) scientific study that was released last...

As wildflowers fade and grasses dry, wildlife depend on the more permanent presence of woody plants to get through the next several months. Lowly shrubs are key for survival. They offer up colorful fruits and still-green leaves and stems providing essential fats and...

By Kyle Kissock, Communications Manager Not all wildlife-friendlier fence projects are created equal. Rarely, for example, are Jackson Hole Wildlife Foundation fence volunteers treated to homemade pastries, a full wash station, and unobstructed mountain views all in...

Guest Blog by Ben Wise |  Biologist - Wyoming Game and Fish Pronghorn Antelope can be found throughout the grasslands and sagebrush landscapes of the valley and have a long history of finding ways to survive in the harsh landscapes of western North America.  Pronghorn...