Wyoming

Melting Ice Reveals Remains of 5,900-Year-Old Trees in Wyoming, Uncovering a Long-Lost Forest

Published

11 months ago

January 13, 2025

Melting Ice Reveals Remains of 5,900-Year-Old Trees in Wyoming, Uncovering a Long-Lost Forest

The trees became visible as an ice patch melted on the Beartooth Plateau, which is part of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem.
Daniel Stahle

A melting ice patch in the Rocky Mountains has revealed the remains of up to 5,900-year-old trees that could offer insights into past climate conditions, according to new research.

Scientists discovered more than 30 dead whitebark pine trees (Pinus albicaulis) that were entombed in ice for millennia, according to a new paper published late last month in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

They found the previously hidden stand of trees on the Beartooth Plateau in northwest Wyoming, which is part of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. The whitebark pines were lying flat but had been preserved in good condition, suggesting they were rapidly enveloped by ice.

The trees were recently exposed when the ice patch began melting due to hotter temperatures related to human-caused climate change, reports New Scientist’s Taylor Mitchell Brown. In the same area, receding ice patches have also revealed fragments of wooden hunting weapons, including one that was more than 10,000 years old.

“The plateau seems to have been the perfect place to allow for ice patches to establish and persist for thousands of years, recording important information on past climate, human activity and environmental change,” says study lead author Greg Pederson, a paleoclimatologist for the United States Geological Survey, in a statement.

Large patch of ice with people standing on it — The ice patch has previously revealed fragments of wooden hunting weapons.
Joe McConnell / Desert Research Institute

The trees are located 10,140 feet above sea level, which is roughly 590 feet higher than the region’s current tree line. (The tree line, also known as timberline, marks the edge of a high-elevation habitat that can support trees. Above this invisible marker, the conditions are too harsh for trees to grow.) This suggests the region’s climate was once warmer than it is today.

By studying the trees’ rings and using radiocarbon dating techniques, researchers were able to determine that they lived 5,950 to 5,440 years ago. Then, they looked at data from Arctic ice core samples to understand what the climate was like during that time, a period known as the mid-Holocene.

The trees were alive during an era of falling temperatures, which have been linked with ongoing volcanic eruptions. As volcanoes in the Northern Hemisphere erupted, they spewed so much debris into the air that they blocked sunlight from reaching the surface, which caused temperatures to drop.

Eventually, around 5,100 years ago, it seemingly became so cold that the trees at that high elevation could no longer survive. The chilly weather also caused a nearby ice patch to expand and engulf the whitebark pines.

The trees are “a valuable ‘time capsule’ that tells us not only about these mountain forests 6,000 years ago, but about the climate conditions that allowed them to exist,” says Kevin Anchukaitis, a paleoclimatologist at the University of Arizona who was not involved with the research, to New Scientist.

By learning more about the region’s past climate, scientists say they can more accurately predict the future. If global temperatures continue to rise, for example, they expect trees to start growing at higher elevations, so long as they have enough moisture.

“Year-over-year records, as well as decadal records and even century-level records are exceedingly important,” study co-author Craig Lee, a researcher of environmental archaeology at Montana State University, tells the Billings Gazette’s Brett French. “They provide comparative data points for allowing us to contextualize our more nuanced observations of the current climate that we experience today.”

Today, the whitebark pine is considered “threatened” under the Endangered Species Act. These trees face several stressors, including rising temperatures, drought and wildfires. They’re also battling a pest called the mountain pine beetle and a deadly invasive fungus called white pine blister rust.

Healthy whitebark pines can live for hundreds of years—and sometimes survive up to 1,000 years. They grow at high elevations throughout the western United States and Canada, providing food for red squirrels, grizzly bears, Clark’s nutcrackers and many other creatures. They also play an important role in their high-elevation ecosystems, as they provide shade that helps keep snow cold and stable.

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Wyoming

University of Wyoming sues former energy research partner for $2.5M – WyoFile

Published

7 hours ago

December 17, 2025

Press Room

University of Wyoming sues former energy research partner for .5M – WyoFile

The University of Wyoming filed a lawsuit this week seeking $2.5 million from an energy company it partnered with to research enhanced oil recovery.

The university in 2024 signed a contract with Houston-based ACU Energy to advance research at the university’s Center of Innovation for Flow Through Porous Media, according to the university’s complaint filed Monday in Wyoming’s U.S. District Court. ACU Energy agreed to pay the university $15 million over the six-year research period. The company, according to the complaint, was to pay the university $2.5 million annually with two payments each year.

While the university kept up its end of the bargain — by assembling a research team, training research members and incurring costs to modify laboratory space — ACU Energy “failed to pay the University even a cent owed under the Agreement, leaving $2,500,000 outstanding in unpaid invoices,” the complaint alleges.

ACU Energy did not respond to a WyoFile request for comment before publication.

Old Main, the University of Wyoming’s oldest building, is home to administrative offices. (Tennessee Watson/WyoFile)

The company notified the university in February that it was terminating the contract, and the university notified ACU Energy in May of its breach of contract, according to court filings. The university asked the court for a jury trial.

Enhanced oil recovery refers to methods used to squeeze more crude from reservoirs that have already been tapped for primary production, extending the life of an oilfield.

The university commonly accepts money from private businesses in return for lending resources and expertise to advance research. The Center of Innovation for Flow Through Porous Media is part of the university’s Research Centers of Excellence in the College of Engineering and Physical Sciences.

The Center of Innovation for Flow Through Porous Media, led by Mohammad Piri, a professor of petroleum engineering, bills itself as “the most advanced oil and gas research facility in the world.” The center conducts research at the university’s High Bay Research facility, which “is funded by $37.2 million in state dollars and $16.3 million in private contributions, with an additional $9.2 million in private gifts for research equipment,” according to the center’s website.

The center has received donations from oil industry heavyweights like ExxonMobil, Halliburton and Baker Hughes.

Piri was tapped to serve as “principal investigator” for the UW-ACU Energy partnership, according to the university’s complaint. As of press time, ACU Energy had not filed a response to the lawsuit.

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Wyoming

Search for fugitive wanted for child-sex crimes leaves Wyoming town on alert

Published

19 hours ago

December 16, 2025

Press Room

Search for fugitive wanted for child-sex crimes leaves Wyoming town on alert

With a population under 600, Byron, Wyo., is generally a quiet town. In recent weeks, streets have been even quieter as both local and federal law enforcement search for 39-year-old fugitive Anthony Pease, who is wanted for six counts of sexual assault involving a minor.

Authorities have been searching the area for weeks, and a reward for information leading to an arrest now sits at $2,000.

See how the search impacts the town:

Search for fugitive wanted for child sex crimes leaves Wyoming town on alert

Saturday morning, law enforcement shared there was a confirmed sighting of Pease near town and reminded residents to remain vigilant by locking their doors and reporting suspicious activity. According to Wyoming’s Big Horn County Sheriff’s Office, before the weekend sighting, Pease hasn’t been seen since Nov. 1.

The Big Horn County Schools Superintendent, Matt Davidson, told MTN News a school resource officer on staff stays up to date with the latest on search efforts, and some parents say they’ve been keeping their kids indoors when they’re not at school.

As the search continues, the mayor as well as some residents, say they are taking law enforcement’s advice while keeping a watchful eye.

“I never used to lock my house during the day. I didn’t even lock my vehicles at night. In fact, a lot of the time I’d leave the keys in them. I’ve talked to other people and there is quite a few people that are nervous. I would hope that a lot of us are nervous because this is a bad thing,” said Byron Mayor Allan Clark.

In fact, investigators could be seen around Byron knocking on doors and scanning land outside of town.

“There’s just so much area and a low population, so much area for him to hide and seek shelter,” Clark said.

With so many wide-open spaces and abandoned buildings in the area, Clark understands why the search has gone on so long.

According to the US Marshals Service, Pease is 5 feet 11 inches tall and may also be going by the name Abraham. They also ask that anyone nearby who has a collection of silver dollars to ensure they are still there, and if not, to report to authorities.

Marshals say Pease is considered dangerous, and the public is told to not approach him and instead call 9-1-1. As the search has stretched over six weeks, many residents hope a capture will bring life back to normal.

“I hope that they capture him soon, and I hope that us as community members and around the area keep our eyes open and report anything suspicious,” said Clark.

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