The Wilderness Blog

The latest updates, insights and stories from across the country. We hope you enjoy the conversation. Comment and let us know what you think.

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Wildlife Refuges — Not Just for the Birds! Serving up a taste of America’s history

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America’s National Wildlife Refuges — 549 of them, scattered throughout the 50 states and U.S. territories — are best known for the wildlife they protect: thousands of species of animals, birds, reptiles, fish, wildflowers, and trees. What’s less well known is that many refuges also offer a glimpse into America’s past — encompassing the story of our land beginning with the native people who lived here long before the first European settlers, and continuing through the major events of our nation’s history. more

Yukon Flats Safe at Last!

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Last week the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced its decision to identify the “no action alternative” for a proposed land exchange under consideration for the Yukon Flats National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska. more

Ecologist Wendy Loya helps agencies plan for future change

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Alaska is ground zero for global warming. Temperatures here are rising faster than anywhere else in the world, and the kinds of things scientists have been warning about for years — hotter and drier summers, more wild fires, insect outbreaks, and unusual weather patterns — are already posing some unprecedented threats for the state’s natural resources. more

A conservation-minded President? A look at Obama’s first 100 days in office

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Following eight years of unbalanced, exploitative policies toward wildlands, the opening days of President Barack Obama’s administration appear to be a promising start in a new era of wildlands and wildlife protection. In his first 100 days, President Obama reversed or put on hold a number of misguided Bush administration policies, signaling a more balanced use of public lands. He also put muscle behind campaign promises to reinstate science in federal decision making and to advance a clean energy future. more

What a day with the Atlantic Brant teaches about Alaska’s Izembek

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I spent last weekend birding the coastline of New Jersey. My partner in crime was Seth Cutright, a hawk counter at Sandy Hook Bird Observatory, just across the pond from New York City. After a hectic morning in which the air was alive with American kestrels and Northern harriers, the slowness of the afternoon prompted Seth’s generous supervisor to give him the rest of the day off. Seth and I did not waste a minute — off to Edwin B. Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge (a.k.a. Brigantine, or simply Brig, to locals) we went. more

Migratory birds take long flight to Alaska

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It’s a long airplane flight from Baltimore to northern Alaska. But what if you were a tundra swan? This time of year, these birds head off from their wintering grounds in the Chesapeake Bay, flying about 4,000 miles to their breeding grounds in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and other spots across Alaska’s Arctic coastline. Typically, they fly through Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, and North Dakota, stopping at national wildlife refuges and other suitable spots. more

How we benefit from wilderness legislation

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In wilderness, nature rules. Wilderness is nature in the raw — a place undeveloped, untrammeled and unspeakably beautiful. It's a place open and accessible to anyone — sportsmen, anglers, hikers, backpackers, equestrians, climbers and others — who are willing to venture out and survive, if even for a short while, at the mercy of their wits and the elements. more

A new era begins for wild lands: Welcome Mr. President!

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For the past eight years, The Wilderness Society and other conservationists have fought constantly to protect America’s natural treasures from an administration more interested in promoting commercial development of them. more