Across the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, eight ranches are leading the way in a new virtual fencing collaborative, each bringing unique landscapes, challenges and conservation opportunities to the table.
From Riverton, WY, where NL Land and Livestock is creating space for elk and deer to move freely while protecting waterways, to St. Anthony, ID, where Crapo Cattle Enterprises is reducing impacts to native trout streams, this work is rooted in place and purpose.
In Cokeville and Auburn, WY, 3D Ranch and XX Ranch are improving grazing practices, restoring habitat and removing barriers to wildlife movement. In Boulder and Savery, WY, Lucky 7 Angus and Ladder Ranch are enhancing rangeland health, forage quality and operational efficiency across large working landscapes.
Near Afton, WY, D Milliron and Slim Ranch are partnering with Trout Unlimited and Wyoming Game and Fish to protect critical fish and wildlife habitat, while in Ashton, ID, The Goat Guy is showcasing how virtual fencing can guide targeted goat grazing to tackle invasive species and reduce wildfire risk.
Together, these projects span Wyoming and Idaho, demonstrating how innovative tools can support wildlife, improve land health and keep working lands working. 🌿
#WorkingLands #ConservationInAction #GreaterYellowstone #VirtualFence
Powered by the sun, tracking the wild. ☀️
In 2026, the Ricketts Conservation Foundation and the University of Colorado expanded their Clark's Nutcracker study with solar-powered transmitters, allowing for longer-term, more detailed tracking. This transmitter is more accurate than the previous models and provides exact GPS coordinates of where the bird is, along with information on its health and movement.
This work builds on years of research focused on how these birds move, where they store seeds, and how they support the regeneration of whitebark pine.
Read more at the link in our bio or here: /2026/03/31/clarks-nutcracker-spring-2026/
Every band tells a story.
This Clark's Nutcracker is part of an ongoing research effort by the Ricketts Conservation Foundation and the University of Colorado to map movement patterns and long-term survival of the species. With unique color bands and backpack transmitters, researchers can identify individual birds across seasons and even years, helping them understand how nutcrackers return to key areas and continue their essential role in spreading whitebark pine seeds throughout the landscape.
This bird carried a transmitter for over two years before it stopped working. We were able to recapture her, remove the transmitter, and release her so she can continue the valuable work of planting whitebark pine seeds throughout the Yellowstone Ecosystem.
Read more at the link in our bio or here: /2026/03/31/clarks-nutcracker-spring-2026/
As part of a multi-year study led by the Ricketts Conservation Foundation in partnership with the University of Colorado, researchers are capturing and tagging Clark's Nutcrackers to better understand how they move across the Yellowstone Ecosystem. These birds play a critical role in dispersing whitebark pine seeds, making their behavior key to forest survival. Each transmitter fitted helps track where they go, how far they travel, and which habitats matter most.
Read more at the link in our bio or here: /2026/03/31/clarks-nutcracker-spring-2026/
The Ricketts Conservation Foundation and PERC are launching a $600,000 initiative to deploy virtual fencing technology across 8 working ranches spanning 366,000 acres in Wyoming and Idaho.
Virtual fencing uses GPS-enabled collars to help ranchers manage livestock with greater precision and flexibility—improving conservation outcomes while supporting working ranch operations.
Funding is being awarded now, with implementation beginning this spring.
Happy Earth Day. Full details at the link in bio.
#earthday #conservation #greateryellowstoneecosystem #virtualfencing #wildlife
Cassins Vireos are considered uncommon migrants in western Wyoming, which makes each one we catch during fall banding season a special find.
Thanks to the rich riparian habitat along the Hoback River, species like this have a place to rest and refuel on their long journey south.
Protecting these stopover habitats is key to supporting migration success.
#CassinsVireo #BirdMigration #WyomingWildlife #RiparianHabitat #ConservationMatters #SongbirdScience #HobackBasin
A local favorite with a big personality!
Canada Jays are year-round residents in the region, and while they're not easy to catch, they're always a highlight when we do. Intelligent, curious and full of character, these birds bring a little extra energy to the banding station.
Even among hundreds of migratory captures, it's the familiar faces like this that keep us grounded in the landscape we study.
#CanadaJay #LocalWildlife #BirdBanding #WyomingNature #HobackBasin #WildlifeMoments #RickettsConservation
A first for the Hoback Basin 🎉
This juvenile American Redstart made history as the first of its species ever documented in the Hoback Basin during our fall banding season.
These striking songbirds don't typically pass through western Wyoming, making this encounter a rare and exciting moment for our team. Likely traveling from northern breeding grounds to winter in Mexico, this little migrant reminds us just how connected these ecosystems really are.
You never know what might fly into the nets next 🍂
#AmericanRedstart #BirdMigration #FirstRecord #WyomingBirds #HobackBasin #ConservationInAction #Songbirds
This map shows the affected area of the Dollar Lake Fire.
The Dollar Lake Fire burned over 19,000 acres, but not evenly. It crossed grazing allotments, fences and natural boundaries, leaving a patchwork of burned and unburned land. For local producers, it created a real challenge: how to protect recovering habitat while continuing to manage livestock.
This is where Ricketts Conservation Foundation stepped in.
Through our Virtual Fencing Conservation Initiative, we're partnering with permittees, the Sublette County Conservation District and the U.S. Forest Service to implement an innovative solution: GPS-enabled collars that create "virtual" boundaries to keep cattle out of burned areas.
This approach allows for critical vegetation recovery while keeping working lands operational. It's a balance that's not always easy, but it's essential.
At RCF, we believe wildfire recovery is an opportunity to do things differently; to bring people together, test new ideas and build solutions that benefit both the land and those who depend on it.
Read more here: /2026/03/10/collaboration-on-the-dollar-lake-fire/
#WildfireRecovery #VirtualFencing #WorkingLands #ConservationInnovation #WyomingRanching #YellowstoneEcosystem #RickettsConservation
On August 21, 2025, a late-summer thunderstorm rolled across western Wyoming after months of dry conditions. That afternoon, as the Saving Yellowstone Conservation Summit was underway at Jackson Fork Ranch, emergency alerts began sounding, and lightning had sparked what would become the Dollar Lake Fire.
From just 28 miles away, we watched a plume of smoke rise and grow, hour by hour. Within a matter of hours, 600 acres had burned. By the end, more than 19,000 acres of the Bridger-Teton National Forest were impacted.
Moments like this reinforce why Ricketts Conservation Foundation exists. Wildfire is a natural part of this landscape, but how we respond, recover and adapt matters.
From that day forward, our team has been working alongside partners, land managers and local producers to support recovery efforts and explore solutions that balance ecosystem health with the realities of working lands.
This was not just a moment of impact; it was the beginning of a long-term commitment to restoration, collaboration and resilience.
Read more here: /2026/03/10/collaboration-on-the-dollar-lake-fire/
#DollarLakeFire #WyomingWildfire #BridgerTeton #HobackBasin #WildfireRecovery #RickettsConservation #ConservationInAction
Boreal Owls are one of the least understood owl species in North America, and right here in the Hoback Basin, we're working to change that. In 2025, our team banded 23 Boreal Owls during fall migration, helping us better understand their movements and survival.
While their numbers fluctuate year to year, each capture adds valuable insight into a species that remains largely a mystery.
Here's to the night shift 🌙
#BorealOwl #BirdBanding #WyomingWildlife #HobackBasin #RickettsConservation #OwlResearch #WildlifeScience
