"The wildlife sightings are excellent. I spy snow-white coyotes scouring plains for prey and a red squirrel scampering along a path clutching an acorn in its mouth-a Disney-worthy scene that delights me to my core. In Hayden Valley, around 100 bison graze against a backdrop of open plains, steaming plumes from a nearby hot spring rising in the distance. We get stuck in a traffic jam while a group lumbers leisurely across the road; a couple of bald eagles circle overhead."
"Amid all the spectacle, there's fragility. As we drive, swathes of dead pine trees appear. Some have fallen to forest fires, but many are victims of the mountain pine beetle-a virulently invasive insect that's been thriving due to warmer temperatures linked to climate change, Emma explains. Millions of trees have been lost. Learning about a global warming-induced scourge of tree-eating beetles was not something I expected today. It's a stark reminder of how humans can throw off the balance of the ecosystem in unusual ways."
Snow-white coyotes, a red squirrel clutching an acorn, about 100 bison grazing in Hayden Valley, and bald eagles circling overhead illustrate abundant wildlife. Swathes of dead pine trees result largely from mountain pine beetle infestations that have proliferated due to warmer temperatures linked to climate change, causing millions of tree deaths. Conservation measures have reduced invasive lake trout and allowed native cutthroat trout to recover, with policies preventing caught lake trout from being returned alive. The park added 50 new rangers this year. Plans to sell public land in Montana and Wyoming were scrapped after overwhelming local opposition. A serotinous lodgepole pine cone remains tightly sealed until triggered.
Read at Conde Nast Traveler
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