Sage Grouse Courtesy US FWSWhat’s happening: The Bureau of Land Management is considering significant changes in how they manage sage grouse on over 50 million acres of habitat across the West, including here in Utah. Please speak up to protecting this species, which will benefit communities and so many other wildlife found in sagebrush country.
With a majority of Greater Sage-grouse found on public lands, we want BLM to succeed with good plans and address concerns that we have – which include proposed changes to habitat designations (and thus management actions) in Utah!
Take Action to Preserve the US Forest Service Roadless Rule Comment by Sept 19th
The USDA Forest Service is rescinding the roadless rule implemented to protect forests without roads in 2001. This is a clear grab for us and our children to pay to open forests up for logging. Many of these roadless forest properties have near Wilderness qualities and are in many cases adjacent to declared Wilderness. Help preserve connected wild lands to promote wildlife protection, watersheds, reduce human-caused wildfires and current and ongoing costs.
We recommend telling the Forest Service you support preserving undefiled forest property.
The 2001 Roadless Rule established prohibitions on road construction, road reconstruction, and timber harvesting in nearly 60 million acres inventoried roadless areas, with limited exceptions. Today, the 2001 Roadless Rule applies to nearly 45 million acres of National Forest System lands, including in Alaska.
The 2020 Alaska Roadless Rule, which exempted the Tongass National Forest in Alaska from roadless protections, was repealed on Jan. 27, 2023, returning the inventoried roadless areas of the forest to management under the 2001 Roadless Rule. For more information see the project documents.
The 2001 Roadless Rule no longer applies to more than 9 million acres in Idaho and more than 4 million acres in Colorado. Those state-specific roadless rules supersede 2001 rule. –more–
Inventoried Roadless Areas on National Forest System Lands Courtesy USDA Forest Service
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USDA Forest Service Press Releases For Removing the Roadless Rule:
Earthjustice Responds as Trump Administration Takes Aim at Longstanding Rule Protecting National Forestlands, Earthjustice, June 23, 2025,
https://earthjustice.org/press/2025/earthjustice-responds-as-trump-administration-takes-aim-at-longstanding-rule-protecting-national-forestlands
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This is not the first time that our protected lands have been endangered. Learn about the efforts of Bernard and Avis DeVoto to protect wild places:
“In late-1940s America, few writers commanded attention like Bernard DeVoto. Alongside his brilliant wife and editor, Avis, DeVoto was a firebrand of American liberty, free speech, and perhaps our greatest national treasure: public lands. But when a corrupt band of lawmakers, led by Senator Pat McCarran, sought to quietly cede millions of acres of national parks and other western lands to logging, mining, and private industry, the DeVotos entered the fight of their lives. Bernard and Avis built a broad grassroots coalition to sound the alarm—from Julia and Paul Child to Ansel Adams, Arthur Schlesinger Jr., Alfred Knopf, Adlai Stevenson, and Wallace Stegner—while the very pillars of American democracy, embodied in free and public access to Western lands, hung in the balance. Their dramatic crusade would earn them censorship and blacklisting by Joe McCarthy, J. Edgar Hoover, and Roy Cohn, and it even cost Bernard his life. –more–“
Cinnamon Teal Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge 05-11-2020
Courtesy & Copyright Chris Crook
Cache Valley Wild Bird Photo Contest 2021 One of the species that may be seen
Saturday August 23, 2025
Birding with Bridgerland Audubon at the Amalga Barrens.
We met at 7 AM in Logan and caravaned to the Amalga Town Hall where we met up with a few more people. Kim Sullivan had checked out 4 walkie-talkies from USU to have one in each vehicle as we planned to be mostly driving. Meg Kast also helped to co-lead this trip. We had 4 vehicles, 3 with leaders and radios in each. Fifteen people participated in this event.
Because of the excessively dry summer no shorebirds were using this area at the time except for Killdeer. We did also see Horned Larks, a Virginia Rail, Northern Harrier, Savannah Sparrow and Brewer’s Sparrow. Singing Western Meadowlarks was a highlight of the trip. A total of 22 species were found. One benefit of the drought was a shortage of mosquitoes!
Birds, Butterflies & Blooms at Tony Grove,
Saturday August 2nd, 8:30 a.m. Carpool from US Forest Service District Ranger Station, 1500 East Hwy 89
Explore Tony Grove and its abundance of birds, butterflies and wildflowers with Jack Greene
Stokes Nature Center, Bridgerland Audubon and the International Friends Program are sponsoring a field trip to Tony Grove from 8:30-early afternoon Saturday, August 2nd.
“Beautiful flowers with wings”, a phrase frequently used to express the exquisite beauty of butterflies. Join the Bridgerland Audubon Society for a field trip to learn the secret lives of these amazing sparks of life, the flowers they visit, and birds that eat them! Place: Tony Grove meadows.
Meet at the US Forest Service parking lot 1500 East Hwy 89 at 8:30 am on August 2nd for carpooling. Return early afternoon. Bring lunch, water, light jacket, hat or sun screen, binoculars, camera, butterfly net (we will have some).