#iamthewest: Giving voice to the people that make up communities in the region.
Scientific research
Posted inJanuary 2026: Deep Time in the West
How pronghorn outran the ice age
Can they outrun an uncertain climate future?
Posted inJanuary 2026: Deep Time in the West
How geology not only shapes the world, it shapes us
A geologist’s daughter reflects on deep time and her father’s influence.
Posted inJanuary 2026: Deep Time in the West
What does ‘time immemorial’ really mean?
An overused phrase goes under the microscope.
Posted inJanuary 2026: Deep Time in the West
Meet the oldest rock in the West
Wyoming’s 3.5 billion-year-old geologic history reminds us that Earth is ever-changing.
Posted inArticles
Americans generally like wolves − except when reminded of politics
Recent studies found that attitudes toward wolves became more polarized when people’s political identities were activated.
Posted inJanuary 2026: Deep Time in the West
An age-old monument faces modern threats
Scientists say Grand Staircase-Escalante isn’t reaching its full research potential.
Posted inJanuary 2026: Deep Time in the West
How plate tectonics revolutionized our understanding of Earth
And how scientist Tanya Atwater was at the center of it all.
Posted inDecember 2025: Wild Harvest
Cascades frogs vanished from Lassen Volcanic National Park in 2007. Now, they’re back.
With careful site selection and antifungal baths, scientists are staging a frog comeback in the park.
Posted inArticles
Mexican wolves are rebounding, but are they ready for delisting?
A new bill from Arizona Rep. Paul Gosar looks to remove endangered species protections.
Posted inArticles
Washington approves over 99% of archaeological permits, records show
As tribes struggle to protect their heritage, the nation’s leading state archaeologist says she lacks the authority to stop development projects.
Posted inDecember 2025: Wild Harvest
How the gaming economy helps tribes navigate shifting policies
Tribal sovereignty and prosperity are tied to gaming’s sovereign source of income.
Posted inDecember 2025: Wild Harvest
Get to know the western spotted skunk
‘The stench kind of permeates everything’: What it takes to study a stinky, secretive skunk
Posted inDecember 2025: Wild Harvest
Congress made it easier to ignore grazing’s harm to public lands
Federal law requires agencies to review the environmental impacts of grazing, but government employees allege the system is riddled with loopholes.
Posted inArticles
The mystery of wildlife and a world beyond our understanding
Science is essential to managing wildlife populations, but there are limits to what we know.
Posted inArticles
The West’s vanishing porcupines
Scientists are racing to figure out why porcupines are disappearing from their former stomping grounds.
Posted inArticles
Will this threatened frog stop drilling near Denver?
Northern leopard frogs were found near the site of what would be one of state’s largest fossil fuel operations.
Posted inArticles
Yellowstone protects wolves. What happens when they leave the park?
Crossing what’s an arbitrary boundary for wildlife, an apex predator becomes prey.
Posted inNovember 2025: Precious Metalheads
In Mendocino, river restoration pays off for salmon
Coho love the newly ‘messy’ streams.
Posted inArticles
More than 2,000 jobs could be cut at Interior during shutdown
Research, wildlife and conservation are in the crosshairs.