Can you imagine a moose living inyour bedroom and having a bowl ofcereal for breakfast in the morning?Well, if you and a moose had thesame habitat, it could happen.Habitat is the food, water, shelterand space needed for you and foranimals to live. Your habitat isdifferent from a moose’s. A moose

needs habitatwith a lot of

willows to eat,water to drink,open spaces toroam and a denseforest to hide and

sleep. What is yourhabitat?

Changes occur in wildlife habitateach season. In autumn, or fall, thedays start getting shorter, the leavesstart changing colors, and animals

are getting ready for winter, which is just aroundthe corner. Differentanimals prepare forthese changes indifferent ways.

Beavers live in streams near aspen trees and are busyworking on their dams and lodges in the fall. They

use aspen trees to build these structures. Usingtheir teeth, they cut down trees and then stripoff and eat the bark. Smaller trees are cut intomoveable pieces and dragged into the waterfor repairing dams and lodges. Beavers workextra hard in the fall because they want tomake sure there are no leaks in their lodgesbefore winter. Beavers also work to store bark-

covered sticks underwater near their lodges,which they use for food.

Migratory birds, birds that fly south for the winter,might begin flying toward warmer

places to live before it gets coldand snowy in Wyoming.The yellow-headed black-

bird travels to southernMexico to avoid the snow.

HABITAT CONNECTION:WHAT IS YOUR HABITAT?

Aspen trees areimportant for beavers.

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A Free Publication of the Wyoming Game & Fish Department Autumn 2005Lu

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Field Wildlife Journal . . . . . . . 2 Our Wildlife Heritage . . . . . . . 5 Outdoor Classroom . . . . . . . . 7 Learning Links . . . . . . 8Wildlife Profiles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Around Wyoming . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Test Your Knowledge . . . . . . 8InSide:

In autumn, the yellow-headed

blackbird flies south to a

warmer climate.

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In autumn, beaversmake sure their lodges

are ready for winter.

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2 • Wyoming Wildlife’s Wild Times

GAMEWARDENIrah Leonetti is the East Rawlinsgame warden. It is his job tomake sure people are respectingwildlife by following the laws.

On a typical fall day, he leaveshis house early and gets back late.

“I spend long hours in the fieldduring hunting seasons, becauseI need to protect the wildlifefrom poachers,”

says Warden Leonetti. “Poachers are peoplewho illegally shoot wildlife. They either don’t buy a hunting license, harvest too manyanimals, or they shoot the wrong kind of animal.” Poaching hurts wildlife and impactsthe Wyoming Game and Fish Department’sability to manage, or take care of, wildlife. It is like stealing.

Those who choose to hunt must be very respon-sible. They must learn laws and regulations, learnhow to correctly identify wildlife and buy correctlicenses at the correct times. “Most of the people I talk to are good, responsible hunters, so I get totalk to them about their hunting experiences. I really enjoy that.”

One case Warden Leonetti worked on involved a man whodid lots of things wrong.He shot a moose that he didn’t have a licensefor, he killed too manydeer, and he used a spot-light to sneak up on theseanimals when it was dark.All of these things are illegal. He was arrestedand pled guilty. Because

he didn’t follow the law, he lost his right to hunt for 10years. They also took away his guns so he couldn’t poachagain and fined him $5,000. T

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Although game wardens are busy checking hunters in thefall, they do other things, too. During fishing season, theycheck fisherman. They might be on a horse near a back-country lake checking your luck with the fish. Or maybe in a boat, making sure you are safe. Wherever and wheneveryou are out in Wyoming, whether on foot, horseback, boator snowmobile, you might run into a game warden. And if you do, make sure to say hello. They love to hear youroutdoor experiences!

Game wardens work to make sure people arerespecting the wildlife.

A game warden talks with peoplewho are hunting.

Hunters take ahunter educationcourse to teachthem to be safeand ethical inthe field.

Like most hunters in Wyoming, these people are ethical hunters.

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Wyoming Wildlife’s Wild Times • 3

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INTERMOUNTAIN WANDERINGGARTERSNAKEThamnophis elegans vagrans; literally meaning wanderingpretty brushsnake

Size: up to 30 inchesEats: small animals such as insects, fish, frogs, mice and toadsLives in: all kinds of habitats, but usually found near water

If you’ve ever spent much time outdoors in Wyoming, chancesare you have seen a snake or two. If you’ve seen two snakes,one of them was probably an Intermountain Wandering Garter-snake. These snakes have three stripes down their backs: onein the middle and one on each side. In the old days, people usedstriped garters to hold up their socks. Because of the similarityof the stripes, these snakes are called garter snakes. Althoughthere is some dispute as to why they are said to be wandering,they have a large distribution. These snakes range from the plainsto the west coast, north to Canada and from about 4,000 feetto 13,000 feet elevation. The most common snake in Wyoming,these medium-sized snakes are usually found around water.Did you know in the autumn these gartersnakes prepare forwinter by coming together in large numbers in a hibernaculumor den? Although snakes are “cold-blooded,” their metabolismsdo give off some heat. By overwintering together, they are ableto generate enough heat to survive the cold.

BLUE GROUSE Dendragapus obscurus

Size: up to 20 inches tall with a wingspan of 26 inches;weighing around 2.3 poundsEats: In winter this grouse feeds exclusively on conifer (or pine)needles; its summer diet consists of insects, seeds and berries.Lives in: Uplands - open coniferous (or pine tree forest) andmixed forests and nearby brush.

While some birds like to fly high, blue grouse are well adaptedto live on land. When flying, grouse are able to turn and dodgesharply in flight, but return to the ground rather quickly. Theyhave a crop located at the base of their necks. A crop is an areathey store food in while they are feeding, then when they returnto their roost, the food begins to steadily advance to the stomachfor digestion while they rest. Did you know in the autumn bluegrouse are hunted? People with retrievers or pointers oftenhunt these birds. In the spring, the deep booming hoots of acourting male blue grouse are audible for many yards, butbecause they are so low in pitch, the bird itself can be extremelydifficult to find. It is worth the effort, however, because as hehoots, the male fans his tail over his back, spreads the featherson his neck to reveal the patch of brightly colored skin anderects the combs over the eyes, producing a striking display.

BLACK BEARUrsus americanus

Size: large males can weigh more than 300 poundsEats: all kinds of things like berries, grass, insects and nutsLives in: forests

Black bears are not always black. Their fur can be a variety ofcolors like cinnamon, brown and even blond! They have pooreyesight, moderate hearing and a sense of smell that is good.Black bears are very strong. They can tear rotten logs apartwhen looking for honey or insects. Did you know in the fall, ablack bear gets ready for winter by putting on a good supplyof fat? Then they hole up in a sheltered place. They use placeslike a cave, crevice, hollow tree or log, under the roots of afallen tree, or even a den that the bear digs out itself. Don’tforget, black bears can climb trees!

BROOK TROUT Salvelinus fontinalis

Size: varies, average size of adults 10 to 12 inches and up to 10 pounds. In Wyoming, the largest brook trout ever caught by a fisherman was 24 inches long and weighed 9 pounds, 11ounces. Can you find something in your classroom that weighsabout 10 pounds? What a whopper!Eats: worms, leeches, insects that live in the water and land,spiders, mollusks, crustaceans, salamanders, frogs, rodentsand fishesLives in: lakes, beaver ponds, streams and rivers in Wyoming

Did you know brook trout spawn in the autumn? Spawning iswhat fish do to make more fish. Using their tails, a female brooktrout makes a shallow depression in stream gravel, called a redd.This is where she lays her eggs. After a male fertilizes the eggs,the female covers them with gravel. The eggs will stay in thegravel through the winter and hatch in the early spring. Thesefish can multiply very quickly and overpopulate an area. Thisoften makes them smaller in size. Brook trout came from theeast coast of the United States and were planted all over theRocky Mountains. They really like to live in beaver ponds.

If you have ever caught a brook trout, write a story tellingyour “tail” and send it to WILD TIMES!

4 • Wyoming Wildlife’s Wild Times

BY CHRIS COLLIGAN

WGFD Brucellosis Information and Education Specialist

In much of Wyoming,elk live in two differentareas during the year.These areas are theirsummer range and theirwinter range. It is neces-sary for elk to move, or migrate, from theirsummer range to winterrange to survive thelong, harsh winters inelk country. Elk havemany adaptations that

allow them to travel long distances over a rugged landscape.There are also many human impacts that endanger theseanimals. Educating people on why elk migrate and whichhabitat is most important to elk will help wildlife biologistsprotect the routes they travel.

Elk live in herds, or largegroups of animals. Theysocialize with each otherwith chirps, barks and bugles.These calls warn other elk of approaching predators orsignal to the herd when it’stime to move. Elk have long,strong legs so they can travelthrough deep snow and onsteep slopes. Sharp hooves letthem paw through hard snowto get at food that is buried.

The areas where elk live aredifferent during different seasons.Elk prefer areas high in the mountains where there is lushgreen grass during the summer. This food is very nutritional,allowing the animals to store fat for the winter. When snowstarts to fall in the autumn elk move to lower elevations,where there is more food. This is also the rutting, or mating,period for elk. Bull elk will stay with a group of cows, knownas a harem. Bull elk are very vocal during the rut with loud,deep bugles and show their dominance over younger, smallerbulls by fighting with their antlers.

Wyoming Wildlife’s Wild Times • 5

Autumn is also the time of the year for elk hunting season.Hunters play an important role for wildlife managers. Huntingis used as a tool to harvest the surplus elk produced eachyear, keeping herds stable and minimizing losses from winterstarvation.

As fall turns to winter, elk form larger herds and beginmigrating to lower elevations. This is the most difficult periodof the year, because they run into many obstacles. Areas thatelk used in the 1800s, called the traditional winter range, havebeen developed into highways, houses or energy developments.One problem this causes is elk are around cattle that live atranches in mountain valleys. Elk can be very destructive to haystored for feeding cattle through the winter and can evenspread diseases such as brucellosis. To try to fix these problems,areas in northwestern Wyoming have feedgrounds to supplyelk with winter feed and stop them from migrating fartherdown country where there will only be more problems forelk as they encounter people and cattle. While feeding elk has

some benefits, there are also negativethings that happen. When largenumbers of elk are in one place andare fed in small areas, disease caneasily be spread from one animalto another.

As winter loosens its grip onWyoming and the first signs ofspring appear, elk go where thegrass is green. Elk will then breakinto smaller family groups as thecow elk, or female elk, prepareto have calves. Bulls will breakapart from the herd, formingbachelor groups, where they willspend the summer together

until fall arrives once again. Aspen stands and high alpineareas provide elk with food, cool temperatures and seclusionthroughout the summer.

The Wyoming Game and Fish Department’s wildlife biologistsmust manage elk herds. There are many costs and benefitsof having large elk herds in Wyoming. Elk provide big gamehunters with excellent hunting and give wildlife viewers areason to visit Wyoming. It’s important that we protect habitatfor elk and other animals. Most important is traditionalwinter range that elk must have to survive. This will allowelk to continue their annual migrations into the future.

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Elk communicate with each otherby bugling or barking.

Elk feedgrounds help the animals survive in the winter, but

disease can be spread by lots of animals in a small space.

Black-tailed jackrabbit’sfur changes from brownto white during the fall.

People help theWyoming Game and

Fish Departmentmanage wildlife

by hunting.

CHANGING WARDROBESIn autumn, when the days get shorter, the coats of someanimals change color. Many animals will begin to growthicker and lighter-colored coats that eventually becomecompletely white. Can you think of any animals that you see change colors?

HUNTINGSEASONS INAUTUMN

Why is hunting season importantto wildlife management?In the fall, you might notice people

walking the prairie or forest wearingblaze orange clothing. That is because

it is hunting season. Hunting seasons areneeded to help manage the populations

of wildlife like pronghorn, deer and elk. In the 1800s, therewere no restrictions on the numbers of wildlife people couldhunt, and some people took large numbers of wildlife. Peoplealso cleared trees and brush for planting crops so there was less space for the remaining wild animals. Because of thisunrestricted hunting and loss of habitat, many wild animalpopulations decreased rapidly. Today, wildlife managementinvolves scientific study to determine the carrying capacity, orthe number of animals an area can support. Hunting seasonshelp maintain the wildlife population at a level that the habitatsupports so they can make it through the winter.

Hunting not only helps the Wyoming Game and FishDepartment manage wildlife herds, but it also funds theagency. Nearly all the money the department gets is fromthe sales of hunting and fishing licenses. Without money,we couldn’t manage wildlife or help improve their habitats.

6 • Wyoming Wildlife’s Wild Times

Black-tailed jackrabbit in summer.

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A WYOMING AUTUMNBY NATHAN HOLCOMB

Jackson Hole Middle School, Jackson, WY

A mist-covered meadow,A herd of elk walks through the golden aspens.

A distant bugle is heard from a wandering bull.The lead bull, brown and muddy,

Answers back with a spine-tingling bugle.

Out of the silver mists comes a bald eagle.Just as soon as it came, the eagle vanishes back into the

mists.

In a distance a lone howl is heard.Suddenly many more howls light up the silent valley.A pack of wolves wanders through a distant meadow.

A group of migrating geese flies above,Their triangular formation pierces the fog like an arrow,

Their honks can be heard at a distance,The hypnotic sound fades into the distance.

The wandering bull bugles again,Asking for a challenge.

The lead bull responds again with a bugle,Followed by a deep grunt.

Peace, Serenity,A Wyoming Autumn

This fall, look around you for signs of animals. Whatthings do you see?

You might notice cone cuttings on stumps or rocks wherethe squirrels live. In the fall, they are finishing filling alltheir caches, or places they store their food. Some cachescan be as large as 15 to 18 feet wide and three feet deep—now that’s a lot of food! Because the young leave their momsshortly after they are born, they have to feed themselvestheir first winter. This means that they have to be successfulat gathering and storing a winter's supply of food. Whatother animals store their food in caches?

We’ve already learned that migratory birds fly southfor the winter. Have you seen any strange birds inyour area that may be passing through? How aboutthe numbers of birds you are seeing…are there fewer?

WHY DO LEAVESCHANGE COLOR?

This fall before the leaves turn colors, find adeciduous tree near your school yard. A deciduoustree is one that loses its leaves in the fall. Find leaveson the tree that receive bright sunlight and coverpart of them with foil or heavy paper and tape.See what happens to each side of the leaf.

As summer ends and autumn comes, the daysget shorter and shorter. This is when the trees“know” to begin getting ready for winter. Winterdays are short and dry, so many plants stopmaking food in the fall. The chlorophyll, orpigment that makes the plants green, goes away.We can then see the orange and yellow colors.These colors were in the leaves all summer, butthe green covered them up!

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Hummingbirds travel toMexico.

Wyoming’s State bird, the meadowlark, flies

to central Mexico for the winter.

Squirrels store food for the winter in

caches.

Do you know why leaves change color in the fall?

Wyoming Wildlife’s Wild Times • 7

Greg Bergquist

Wyoming Wildlife’s Wild Times •

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8 • Wyoming Wildlife’s Wild Times

The Wyoming Game and Fish Department receives federal financial assistance from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Title II of theAmericans with Disabilities Act of 1990, the Age Discrimination Act of 1975, Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, and the U.S. Department of Interior and its bureaus, discrimination is prohibited on the basis of race,color, national origin, age, disability or sex (in educational programs). If you believe you have been discriminated against in any program, activity or facility, or if you desire information, please write to: U.S. Fish and WildlifeService, Office of Diversity and Civil Rights Programs-External Programs, 4040 North Fairfax Drive, Suite 30, Arlington, VA 22203.

Volume 4, No. 1Autumn 2005Editor: Janet MilekAssistant Editor: Ty StocktonContributors: Chris Colligan, Irah Leonetti,

Bill Turner, Michelle ZitekGraphic Design: Black Dog Design

Wyoming Wildlife’s Wild Times is published four times during the school year (October,December, February and April). Please direct inquiries and changes of address to WildTimes, Education Branch, 5400 Bishop Blvd., Cheyenne, WY 82006; (307) 777-4538.

Printed in the USA. Copyright 2003 by the Wyoming Game and Fish Department. All rights reserved.

WEB SITES:Learn about all different animals at: www.enature.com

EXPLORE THE LIBRARY:Do some exploring in the nature section of your school or public library.A whole world is there at your fingertips, waiting to be discovered in thepages of books.

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(1-C; 2-A; 3-B)

MATCH THE WORDS

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Find the best match in column A with column BColumn A Column B 1. Hibernaculum A. brook trout2. Redd B. green-tailed towhee3. Migratory bird C. Intermoutain wandering gartersnake

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VOCABULARYDo you know what each of these words mean?

HabitatNativeSpawningMigrateAdaptations