Yellowstone News and Information

Wyoming History: Yellowstone’s Place In The Last Stand Of The Nez Perce Almost Lost To History

Look for these animals in the snow at Yellowstone this winter

Montana unveils first wolf management plan update in 20 years  

  NEWS RELEASE Mule deer tests positive for chronic wasting disease in Yellowstone National Park Mule deer buck NPS / Neal Herbert   |  News Release Date:  November 14, 2023 Contact:   Morgan Warthin , 307-344-2015 MAMMOTH HOT SPRINGS, WY – Yellowstone National Park and the Wyoming Game and Fish Department (WGFD) recently confirmed the presence of  chronic wasting disease  (CWD) in the carcass of an adult mule deer buck found near Yellowstone Lake in the southeastern section of the park. This is the first confirmed positive detection of the disease in Yellowstone National Park. The  mule deer  buck was originally captured by WGFD staff near Cody, Wyoming, in March 2023 as part of a population dynamics study and fitted with a GPS collar. The collar signaled the animal died mid-October 2023. In coordination with Yellowstone staff, WGFD located the carcass on the Promontory, a landmass that separates the South and Southeast arms of Yellowst...

The Past 30 Years in Yellowstone, Part 3: Suzanne Lewis

  Group sues in attempt to block Absaroka-Beartooth trout poisoning, restoration project

  Yellowstone, Montana Officials Disagree on Bison Management

  Saving an ecosystem: How conservationists are protecting Whitebark Pine trees in Yellowstone National Park

  NEWS RELEASE Yellowstone visitation statistics for October 2023 Hikers cross the Hellroaring Creek Bridge NPS / Jacob W. Frank Subscribe    |  What is RSS News Release Date:  November 9, 2023 Contact:   Morgan Warthin , (307) 344-2015 MAMMOTH HOT SPRINGS, WY – Yellowstone National Park hosted 299,127 recreation visits in October 2023. This is a 26% increase from October 2022 (236,567 recreational visits). It is also a 75% increase from October 2019* (171,339 recreational visits) when several short-term, weather-related road closures likely impacted visitation.   So far in 2023, the park has hosted 4,446,509 recreation visits, up 37% from 2022 (3,241,761 recreation visits), and up 12% from 2019 (3,979,154 recreation visits). The list below shows the year-to-date trend for recreation visits over the last several years (through October):    2023 – 4,446,509 2022 – 3,241,761  (The park was closed June 13 through June 21. Three entrances opened on Ju...

The Past 30 Years in Yellowstone, Part 2: Dan Wenk

The Past 30 Years in Yellowstone, Part 1: Cameron Sholly

Ferdinand Hayden And The Founding Of Yellowstone National Park By  Yellowstone Volcano Observatory   October 30, 2023 Geologist Ferdinand Hayden directed the first scientific exploration of Yellowstone in 1871, leading directly to the founding of the world’s first national park in the following year. Hayden’s noteworthy achievements in science and conservation, however, are clouded by his views of indigenous people.     Yellowstone  Caldera  Chronicles is a weekly column written by scientists and collaborators of the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory. This week's contribution is from Cole Messa, Ph.D. student, and Ken Sims, Professor of Geology and Geophysics, both at the University of Wyoming. Yellowstone—the " land of the burning ground "—has been known to indigenous people for at least 11,000 years. In fact, in 1805 the  governor of Louisiana Territory described a map drawn on a bison hide by an indigenous American showing a “volcano” on the Yell...

  Most entrances and roads in Yellowstone National Park will be closed Nov. 1 Last day for visitors to enjoy most of the park will be Oct. 31 Bison breath on a cool morning NPS / Jacob W. Frank   News Release Date:  October 24, 2023 Contact:   Morgan Warthin , (307) 344-2015 MAMMOTH HOT SPRINGS, WY – The West, South and East entrances and nearly all roads in Yellowstone National Park will be closed to regular vehicle traffic Nov. 1. The park annually closes roads at this time of year to prepare them for the  winter season  and  snowmobile and snowcoach  travel, which will begin Dec. 15. The last day for visitors to drive most park roads will be Tuesday, Oct. 31.   The only roads open year-round are between the North Entrance in Gardiner, Montana, and the Northeast Entrance in Cooke City/Silver Gate, Montana (via Mammoth Hot Springs, Tower Junction and Lamar Valley). Visitors planning to  drive in the park during the fall and winter ...

  Yellowstone Grizzlies and the Controversy Over Food

  NEWS RELEASE Yellowstone visitation statistics for September 2023 Ranger Summer and visitors at Madison Information Station NPS / Jacob W. Frank   News Release Date:  October 18, 2023 Contact:   Morgan Warthin , (307) 344-2015 MAMMOTH HOT SPRINGS, WY – Yellowstone National Park hosted 838,458 recreation visits in September 2023. This is a 48% increase from September 2022 (567,587 recreational visits) and a 21% increase from September 2019* (693,118 recreational visits).   So far in 2023, the park has hosted 4,161,602 recreation visits, up 38% from 2022 (3,005,194 recreation visits), and up 9% from 2019 (3,807,815 recreation visits). The list below shows the year-to-date trend for recreation visits over the last several years (through September):    2023 – 4,161,602 2022 – 3,005,194  (The park was closed June 13 through June 21. Three entrances opened on June 22.) 2021 – 4,472,687   2020 – 3,393,642  (The park was closed March 24 through May...

  In Remote Yellowstone Wilderness, There’s Still A Working Pay Phone

  'Yellowstone's Birds': Former YNP wildlife biologist Doug Smith releases book about birds in the park

Which Is more Hazardous to Tourists? Wildlife or Hot Springs? Yellowstone  Caldera  Chronicles is a weekly column written by scientists and collaborators of the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory. This week's contribution is from Michael Poland, geophysicist with the U.S. Geological Survey and Scientist-in-Charge of the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory. Yellowstone National Park is home to an array of “charismatic megafauna”—for instance, elk, bears, bison, wolves, and other large mammals.  And as the term “wildlife” implies, these animals are, well, wild.  Yellowstone National Park requires all visitors to stay at least 100 yards (91 meters) away from bears and wolves, and at least 25 yards (23 meters) away from all other large animals, like bison and elk. Despite these well-publicized warnings, stories of people approaching too close to animals, and sometimes being injured, appear every year. Sources/Usage: Public Domain. Early visitors at Handkerchief Pool, Black Sand...

  Activists buy out gold mine claim at Yellowstone National Park

  How a looming government shutdown could hit national parks

  NEWS RELEASE National Park Service and American Forests partner to restore threatened whitebark pine as part of President Biden’s Investing in America agenda        Whitebark Pine direct seeding project with American Forests         NPS / Jacob W. Frank WASHINGTON (Sept. 26, 2023) – The National Park Service (NPS) and American Forests have signed a five-year agreement to help return threatened whitebark pine to its range in the western U.S. As part of President Biden’s Investing in America agenda, the partnership will support restoration activities in national parks where whitebark pine grows. Initial projects in Yellowstone, Glacier and Grand Teton National Parks are part of  $44 million  in funding from the Inflation Reduction Act, the largest climate and conservation investment in history.   Through the Investing in America agenda, the Dep...