Wyoming
Wyoming Elk, Antelope Adapt Better To Housing, Energy Developments Than Mule Deer
Being set in their ways could be a disadvantage to Wyoming’s mule deer as housing and energy development continues in parts of the state, a wildlife biologist said.
“Elk are very plastic (flexible) in their movements. Pronghorn are a little less plastic, but they’re able to roll with the punches. With mule deer, they almost put their hooves in the exact same place their mothers did,” Kristen Barker told Cowboy State Daily.
She’s the Cody-based research coordinator for the Beyond Yellowstone Program, a collaborative effort between the Wyoming Game and Fish Department, the University of Wyoming and the University of California, Berkeley.
The group recently completed a study of how land development affects big game in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. Research was conducted around Cody, Pinedale and along big game migration corridors in the Red Desert.
It revealed that for the most part, critters avoid development, she said.
“Even if there’s good stuff right around the development, if the animals are going to avoid it, it doesn’t really count as habitat anymore,” Barker said.
Avoidance Tactics
Development for housing or energy can have a big effect on how elk, deer and antelope behave, according Beyond Yellowstone Program’s research brief.
“Our work reveals land development is one of the strongest single influences on migratory big game, affecting everything from where herds live within the broader landscape to where individual animals walk each day,” the brief states.
And it doesn’t take much. A little as 3% of the land in a given area being developed can be enough to disrupt animals’ movement patterns, according to the brief.
But there doesn’t seem to be a one-size-fits-all pattern for Wyoming’s premier big game species — elk, mule deer and antelope, Barker said.
Elk seem to be best at just avoiding human activity and are willing to go out of their way to do it, she said.
“Those Cody elk herds, they can still make big, broad movements” to avoid human activity, she said.
Antelope, not so much. But they still might alter their routes to get around things.
Stubborn Mule Deer Take Long Journeys
But mule deer are “set in their ways and very loyal” to their ingrained migration routes, Barker said.
That’s why people might see mulies showing up in their back yards, she said. It might not be that the deer are completely comfortable being around people, but because homes were built along migration routes, and the deer were just too darn stubborn to change their ways.
And those who see mule deer in their yards should appreciate they might have come from a long way off and still have a long journey ahead of them.
Some deer herds in Wyoming frequently travel great distances as they move between summer range, typically high in the mountains, and winter range in lowlands such as the Red Desert, Barker said.
One Wyoming long-distance record-holder is a mule deer doe, Deer 255, which logged 242 miles one way during her seasonal migration, according to radio collar data.
The Curious Case Of The Estes Park Elk
Of course, many rules in nature have exceptions. As Barker noted, her group’s research indicates that as a general rule, elk like to avoid development.
But here are the huge elk herds that spend part of the year camping out right in the middle of Estes Park, Colorado. Those elk trace their ancestry back to Wyoming. During migrations in and out of Rocky Mountain National Park, they take over the town, grazing in city parks and loitering in downtown business parking lots.
“The situation in Estes Park shows how flexible elk are. One reason they’ll hang out in an area where there’s a bunch of people is, there’s also a bunch of food there,” Barker said. “If there’s not a big cost associated with them being around people, if they’re not being hunted or they’re not being chased around by dogs, they will stick around if the food rewards are there.”
With mule deer, however, their hard-set migration routes might hurt their food supply, she said.
They’ll likely still go through developed spots on their migration routes, but they’ll hurry through. So, they might miss the prime growth periods for certain types of forage along the way, Barker said.
What’s Next
It’s evident that big game animals prefer a “buffer zone” between themselves and human development, Barker said. But just how much distance is required for which species remains unclear, so that could be the subject of further research.
How research might affect policy isn’t up to the Beyond Yellowstone Program, Barker said.
“We’re more of a research group than an advocacy group. We have a mission of getting the information out there in a way that is more digestible than typical scientific research papers,” she said.
And there needn’t be a zero-sum “either-or” between development and wildlife movement, she added.
“It’s possible to have both. It’s possible to have good, solid development and to preserve wildlife migration routes, if we do it the right way,” she said.
Mark Heinz can be reached at mark@cowboystatedaily.com.
GILLETTE, Wyo. — As the Aug. 18 primary election approaches, County 17 is introducing candidate questionnaires to help voters make informed decisions at the ballot box.
Every candidate in the primary field was sent the same three questions and given a limit of 500 words, which could be distributed among their answers as they saw fit. To ensure a fair and direct line to the community, all responses are published exactly as submitted, without edits or alterations.
Candidates were asked:
- What are the most crucial challenges your constituents are facing?
- If elected, how will you address these challenges?
- What qualities or qualifications do you possess that have prepared you to meet these challenges?
Questionnaires are being published on a rolling basis online through Aug. 11. They will be accessible via the County 17 Election Tracker.
Scott Smith (R), Wyoming state treasurer
What are the most crucial challenges your constituents are facing?
Everywhere I go many Wyoming citizens are concerned that our government is selling out our state lands to the highest bidder for crony capitalism. Some are concerned about Data Centers, Commercial Wind Generators, or nuclear waste storage. The biggest concern is the resources these outfits are taking, secondly, they are concerned about health issues related to living nearby, and lastly they are concerned with cost associated with these projects being passed onto the taxpayer.
If elected, how will you address these challenges?
One of the things that many people don’t know is that the State Treasurer sits on the State Land and Investment Board. (SLIB) The same issues that concern our citizens are the same reasons that I have decided to run for this office. The SLIB has voted to lease state lands to a hydrogen plant in Converse County that would take eight gallons of our valuable water to produce one gallon of hydrogen jet fuel using wind and solar generation to power the plant. These same elected officials have sold off $100 million of our state lands to the federal government. I believe that some things are not for sale. As Treasurer you can count on me to count the cost and listen to the people in the public testimony. If we are going to accept some of these projects the citizens need to have the benefit, like lower utility costs.
What qualities/qualifications do you possess that have prepared you to meet these challenges?
My bachelor’s degree is in Business Administration with an emphasis in management and marketing. I will be a leader in the state treasurer’s office that creates a positive work environment that will allow our investment team to create higher returns on the people’s money that the state invests. I would like to work with the legislature to use these interest earnings to buy down the people’s property taxes to alleviate part of the burden inflation has caused on the average citizen. My day job, I work as a bookkeeper and work with numbers day in and day out and have corrected some inefficiencies to help small businesses become more profitable. I plan to do that within the state office and make those profits available to the legislature to reduce the tax burden for the people. I have also served in the Wyoming House of Representatives for Goshen County and I have served on the Appropriations Committee and I am familiar with the massive state budget.
Related
Scroll down for a list of fireworks restrictions across Wyoming.
I usually don’t buy fireworks for the 4th of July. I go places to watch them. But since this year is the 250th anniversary of our nation, I was going to purchase a small arsenal and have a blast, pardon the pun.
But this has been a very dry year, as happens now and then in the cycles of weather. So I figured I’d wait until things were wet again and just hold my personal celebration a little late.
Many towns across Wyoming have canceled their July 4th fireworks due to the drought. They don’t want you firing off any either.
Based on 2026 reports, several Wyoming towns and counties have canceled or significantly restricted Fourth of July fireworks displays due to high wildfire risks, drought conditions, and Stage 1 fire restrictions.
Canceled/Restricted Public Displays (2026)
- Gillette/Campbell County: The CAM-PLEX fireworks show was postponed, and the county is maintaining a Stage 1 fire restriction due to extreme drought.
- Douglas: The Volunteer Fire Department canceled the 4th of July fireworks show due to fire concerns.
- Newcastle: Fireworks show canceled due to high fire danger, according to a June 27 report.
- Pine Haven: Canceled its Fourth of July fireworks display, according to a June 27 report.
- Riverton: Passed a resolution banning personal fireworks within city limits on July 4, with only a limited, designated area for public displays at the Honeycutt Softball and Saban Baseball Complex.
- Teton County: Fireworks have been historically canceled, and fire officials are urging residents to only attend official, professional displays due to extreme fire danger (confirmed for 2026).
City-Wide Personal Fireworks Bans (2026)
- Cheyenne: Consumer fireworks are prohibited within city limits, despite the county lifting restrictions, with only small novelties allowed.
- Casper: Fireworks are prohibited within city limits and in unincorporated Natrona County.
Key Locations Under Restrictions (2026)
- BLM Land: Fireworks are prohibited on public lands managed by the Bureau of Land Management in Wyoming.
- Weston County: A county-wide ban covers Newcastle and Upton due to high drought conditions.
Even little Chugwater, Wyoming, population 175, has banned fireworks inside its little town limits.
At the State Capital in Cheyenne, however, they will go right ahead with a fireworks display, right over the capital building itself. Dry weather be dammed.
Weird Fireworks Names You’ll Find In Wyoming
Just some of the odd names we found while shopping.
Gallery Credit: Glenn Woods
Media outlets gasped last week at the socialist movement’s success in the New York congressional Democratic primary elections.
That success headed west Tuesday, to Wyoming’s southern neighbor of Colorado.
Democratic socialist Melat Kiros, 29, defeated 15-term incumbent U.S. House Rep. Diana DeGette in Tuesday evening’s primary election.
Colorado Public Radio called the ouster “a stunning blow to the Democratic establishment in Denver and continuing a run of leftist victories in major cities.”
Former Wyoming Gov. Mike Sullivan, a Dvemocrat, told Cowboy State Daily on Tuesday that he wasn’t surprised at the move by Denver voters, but he doubted the proximity of a House socialist – if Kiros wins the general election – will affect Wyoming much.
“We have our own issues, and we’re certainly more sensitive to certain issues than others,” Sullivan said. “And it doesn’t necessarily divide us or make us closer to anybody else.”
Could Deepen ‘Don’t Colorado My Wyoming’ Sentiment
Liz Brimmer, longtime Wyoming politico, agreed in general, but said having a socialist congressional neighbor could galvanize Wyoming even harder into a tendency it already has: spurning anything that looks like Colorado governance.
“I think Wyoming uniformly and strongly feels, you know, ‘Don’t Colorado my Wyoming’,” Brimmer said. “And I think if anything, it deepens that sentiment.”
Brimmer said the ouster speaks of “these times, where there’s no doubt an anti-incumbent strain.” But no one will know all the reasons, nor should presume too much, until the voter data return, she said.
The Republicans saw the anti-incumbent strain surface differently, with newcomers ousting President Donald Trump’s foes in GOP primary elections.
State Rep. Landon Brown, R-Cheyenne, who is finishing off his final legislative term, voiced fascination with the election outcome.
Brown, a self-described political junkie, lives about 14 miles from the Colorado border.
He said the ouster shows Denver is increasingly dictating the rest of Colorado’s fate, and that the state is growing more polarized.
On the Republican gubernatorial primary side, The Associated Press was showing a half-point lead for Victor Marx as of Wednesday.
“He’s just as crazy as a democratic socialist on the left,” said Brown.
As for DeGette’s defeat, it’s not as symptomatic as one would think, he added.
“She was running a ‘Hey, I’m the incumbent and I’ve been here 30 years’ (campaign),” he said.
That hurt her. As did a growing divide on the left over Israel’s approach to its many foes — and Congress’ funding of Israeli war and defense efforts, said Brown.
Israel was also a fulcrum in the May primary loss of libertarian-leaning incumbent Rep. Thomas Massie, of Kentucky. But the Republican voters took the inverse approach on that one, nominating the candidate who supports funding Israeli war efforts.
Jack Speight, the GOP strategist who helped Wyoming Gov. Stan Hathaway to victory in 1966, told Cowboy State Daily Kiros’ win is alarming.
Speight was a Democrat when he graduated from the University of Wyoming law school. But the allure of capitalism and the prevailing logic of his good friends pulled him to the Republican side, he said in another interview last month.
The socialist victories of 2026 are “sad for this country. It may well affect the results of this fall, and nationwide,” he said. He called it a shift of California transplants into the Rockies, and a symptom of a growing entitlement.
Look North
Colorado isn’t the only Wyoming neighbor with socialist momentum.
Sam Forstag, a smoke jumper endorsed by Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vermont, and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio Cortez, D-New York, won his primary bid for Montana’s U.S. House District 1 on June 2.
Forstag may be less favored than Kiros going into the general election: No Democrat has won that Montana House district this century.
The New York Times called Forstag’s candidacy a “test for left-leaning politicians” who have been arguing for a populist surge in the blue party.
Clair McFarland can be reached at clair@cowboystatedaily.com.
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