Western Wild

Dave Showalter's Conservation Photography Weblog

The Archives

April 2011




  • Energy

    The Fracking Truth

    April 30, 2011 | Permalink | Post a Comment

    Questar Gas Rig and Fracking Pond on the Pinedale Anticline, Pinedale Mule Deer Winter Range. Sublette County, WY

    It seems people everywhere are questioning what’s in the “proprietary” hydraulic fracturing compounds that gas companies are pumping into the earth across the U.S. Wyoming stands alone as the most progressive state on this matter, requiring energy companies to disclose the chemistry of their fracking fluid, cancer causing chemicals and all. The rest of the states are hiding behind the “Halliburton Loophole“, Dick Cheney’s lasting gift to the American people. This article, “Truth Comes Out On Fracking Toxins” is one of the more comprehensively damning pieces about “earth fucking” that I’ve seen.

    Maybe we’re resigned to gas rigs blanketing the U.S, but you’d think we could at least regulate the industry and know what chemicals to look for in our ground water. Tell your elected officials that you want natural gas drilling regulated, by clicking on this NRDC link then clicking on Yellowstone/Greater Rockies. Thanks for adding your voice!

  • Colorado, Endangered Species, Sagebrush Sea

    Hope For The Gunnison Sage Grouse

    April 20, 2011 | Permalink | Post a Comment

    “Please Take Care Of Our Gunnison Sage Grouse, by Browne Troop 10512, Gunnison, Colorado”

    Impressions From The Gunnison Sage Grouse Summit, April, 2011

    I just attended the Gunnison Sage-grouse Summit in Gunnison, CO; three days of presentations on all things related to saving the namesake grouse from extinction. And while the academic papers were impressive and the scope of the conservation effort mind-boggling, I kept looking at this mural made by the local Brownie Troop, a symbol of a community united for their endangered species. It also stands for hope, education, outreach, teaching kids the value of this place they call home and the fragility of an animal that may be the toughest bird out there – fragile because they need freedom to roam. I listened to the presenters talk about how our efforts will be measured 20 or 30 years from now, and thought about those Brownies just coming of age, finding their own voice. It’s part of what keeps me coming back to Gunnison, a sense of community that is real; ranchers, top Western biologists, agencies, conservationists, sportsmen, even the Brownie Troop rowing the same direction. (more…)

  • Events, Sagebrush Sea

    Sage Spirit Fund-Raiser

    April 18, 2011 | Permalink | Post a Comment

    Sunset from the top of Pacific Butte, Oregon Buttes Wilderness Study Area, Red Desert, Wyoming

    My amazing wife, Marla has organized a fund-raising event that will happen this Saturday, 4/23 from 3:00 to 6:00 p.m. at Indian TreeGolf Club in Arvada. We’ll have a silent auction, appetizers, beverages, and a slide show with new images from the “Sage Spirit” conservation project. Patagonia, Mountainsmith, and many others have generously donated great items for the auction. There’s still time to come out on Saturday – here’s the scoop:
    Please join us as we celebrate the beauty and the wild of the American West at a fundraising event on Saturday, April 23, 2011 at Indian Tree Golf Club, 7555 Wadsworth Blvd., Arvada, CO from 3:00 to 6:00 pm. We will have a silent auction and a presentation of Sage Spirit. If you are unable to join us at this event, you may make a donation via Paypal. Use dave@daveshowalter.com and select the gift option. If you would prefer to send a check for your donation, please make the check to “Laramie Audubon Society” and note “SageSpirit” in the lower left portion of your check. Everyone will receive a receipt via email. The address is: Dave Showalter, 6640 Moss Court, Arvada, CO,. 80007.

  • Colorado, Endangered Species, Sagebrush Sea

    Gunnison Sage-grouse ~ Rare Bird

    April 5, 2011 | Permalink | 8 Comments

    Male Gunnison Sage-grouse perform an elaborate display… with a tail shimmy at the end.

    It’s dark-thirty and I’m sitting in a blind waiting for birds again. It feels familiar, the early spring chill that seeps into my bones, sounds of coyotes, cows, a ranch dog barking, wood smoke wafting across the valley floor, a mountain valley waking up. I’ve been here before, but the feeling is different, the anticipation building. And I’m not alone – circumstances led to a blind-sharing arrangement, so I find myself spending the wait for birds and light with Noppadol Paothong, a top-notch conservation and wildlife photographer who’s working on a book about the lekking birds of North America. Nop and I are here to photograph Gunnison Sage-grouse, one of the most endangered creatures in North America, yet only listed as a candidate species – “warranted but precluded” from protection under the Endangered Species Act. Whatever their status, there are roughly 2,500 birds in eight counties, most in the Gunnison Basin, and people come from the world over for a glimpse of the bird and their elaborate display. They spend their life in sagebrush; and because of their secretive nature and low numbers, spring lekking season is the only realistic time of year to see Gunnison Sage-grouse. (more…)