GLENDIVE, Mont. – Federal agencies say the best option for conserving the endangered pallid sturgeon is to provide a bypass channel to the Yellowstone Intake Dam. Opponents of the project not only disagree, they say that the option is a waste of money.

The final Environmental Impact Statement from the Army Corps of Engineers and Bureau of Reclamation said the bypass alternative balances fish recovery with farmers' irrigation needs. But Bruce Farling, executive director of Montana Trout Unlimited, said the bypass option is untested.

"Basically what they have done is, they have selected an experimental alternative assuming that pallid sturgeon will use a long, constructed, engineered bypass channel around a larger dam,” Farling said. "And there's no science available - zero - that says pallid sturgeon will use a bypass of this sort."

An independent review of the bypass, which would include improvements to the Intake Dam, said the project would cost $57 million. Farling said removing the dam, while costly, is the best option for the sturgeon, and could save money in the long run if the bypass doesn't work.

The Intake Dam is located near the confluence of the Missouri and Yellowstone rivers.There are only about 125 wild pallid sturgeon remaining in the Upper Missouri River basin.

Farling said his organization and other conservation groups have suggested removing the current river diversion and replacing it with a pumping system to irrigate surrounding farmland. He said it's a tried and true solution. But the agencies have already rejected that option.

"There have been instances where the Bureau of Reclamation, one of the agencies here, replaced irrigation dams on rivers and replaced them with pumping systems,” Farling said. "So, we weren't asking these guys to create a rocket to Mars."

The pallid sturgeon has been in trouble since dams went up on the Missouri River more than 50 years ago, according to Steve Forrest, a senior representative for the Rockies and Plains program at Defenders of Wildlife. And the fish haven't successfully reproduced since.

"We know now that those dams have disrupted the way that at least young, larval sturgeon mature. They don't have enough time to grow into swimming young,” Forrest said. "By the time they reach the next reservoir downstream, they sink to the bottom and suffocate and die. So, the clock is ticking."

After a review by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the agencies are allowed to make a final decision no sooner than 30 days after the impact statement is published in the Federal Register. That will happen on Oct. 21.



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An environmental group is suing the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to protect the Arkansas mudalia snail under the Endangered Species Act.

In Arkansas and Missouri, including along the North Fork River, mudalia are critically endangered freshwater snails.

Trisha Sharma, legal fellow at the Center for Biological Diversity, emphasized the need to save the snail from vanishing entirely. She said freshwater mollusks are the most endangered group of animals in North America, and snails are the most endangered mollusks.

"We've already lost more than 70 species of freshwater snails," Sharma pointed out. "The Endangered Species Act has a very high success rate. So if we can get it listed and protected under the ESA, it's highly likely that the species will survive and be able to continue playing its important role in the ecosystems where it's found."

Sharma noted areas where the Arkansas mudalia can be found have decreased by 90% and the main threat to the species is habitat degradation, primarily from dam construction and operation along the rivers.

Sharma emphasized mudalia is also threatened by habitat loss from grazing, logging and mining. She added climate change is also expected to threaten the species.

"Part of what can make a species more resilient to climate impacts is its ability to disperse as its habitat becomes unsuitable, and to essentially relocate to areas where it can survive," Sharma explained. "But snails have a pretty narrow set of habitat requirements and very limited dispersal capabilities."

Sharma said freshwater snails play a crucial role in managing nutrients by consuming detritus and plant matter, preventing their decay and subsequent disruption of water quality, and snails are vital for food webs, converting unusable food sources into usable ones for birds and turtles.


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Today is Earth Day, and one initiative in southern Arizona is helping build public gardens providing beneficial habitat for pollinators, from Monarch butterflies to bees and bats.

Emily Bishton, founder and coordinator of the Arivaca Pollinator Pathway Project, said the human population depends on these animals and insects, as many of our foods and plant-based products require pollination. But human activity and climate change have put pollinators in jeopardy and Bishton wants to increase awareness of how crucial they are.

"The best chance you have for attracting and nurturing pollinators is with the species that they've co-evolved with," Bishton explained. "They will instinctively know that is food for them, or a place they can lay their eggs. They also are more likely to be able to put up with the way our climate is now and the way it is changing."

Bishton pointed out one focus of the project is to get Arizonans to plant more native species like milkweed, which is especially critical for Monarch butterflies. She would also like people to reconsider the use of pesticides since they do kill pests but also other beneficial insects. She suggested contacting a local county extension service or master-gardener program for alternative methods.

Madian Romero, technical assistant supervisor for the Caviglia-Arivaca Library, has been responsible for getting teenagers in the area to participate in the Arivaca Pollinator Pathway Project. They not only help build garden spaces around town but grow their knowledge behind the importance of pollinators, as well as community building.

"The teens, they've come up with ideas on how to fundraise for the projects," Romero emphasized. "Each business that agrees to have a garden, it can be free."

Romero added the project has also been a character-building exercise for the young people of Arivaca, and hopes it is an experience they will cherish.

The state Department of Natural Resources and Iowa State University are looking for volunteers to help create a new Bumble Bee Atlas.

Bees are an important part of the ecosystem, and scientists are figuring out their habitats to help them thrive.

Iowa is home to at least 14 species of bumble bees that help pollinate native wildflowers and flowering crops in farm fields and backyard gardens.

Iowa State University University Professor of Sustainable Agriculture and plant pathologist Matt O'Neal said the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service recently listed several bee species as endangered.

"And that includes the Rusty Patch bumble bee," said O'Neal, "20% of what it used to be, and that includes parts of Iowa. There is also evidence that other bumble species are in decline and so, this survey will give us a chance to see where those bees are and how abundant they are."

With that information, O'Neal said scientists can work to protect the bees' habitats and create Iowa's Bumble Bee Atlas.

It's part of a larger project to map the bees and foster bee development nationwide. Sign up online to volunteer.

The national project is part of a collaboration with the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation.

Some 900 people have volunteered for the national atlas project, and counted more than 20,000 bumble bees - which O'Neal said face several major threats.

"Pesticide exposure, parasite and pathogens," said O'Neal, "and then the last 'P,' and probably the most important, is poor forage."

The researchers will work to alleviate those threats by knowing where the bees are.

Volunteers have discovered species thought to be gone from their states, contributed to new field guides, and improved scientists' understanding of bumble bee populations across the country.




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