These river otters in Squaw Creek National Wildlife Reserve clearly don’t mind the cold! Posted by the US Department of the Interior, 2/10/14.
Snow is a great insulator. So is fur— something this red fox certainly must appreciate! This fox was photographed on the The Alaska Peninsula and Becharof National Wildlife Refuges, which were established to conserve fish and wildlife populations and habitats in their natural diversity, including brown bears, the Alaska Peninsula caribou herds, moose, sea otters and other marine mammals, salmon, shore birds and other migratory birds, and raptors, including bald eagles and peregrine falcons. Photo: Bob Dreeszen. Posted by the US Department of the Interior on Tumblr, 2/6/14.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service today proposed to remove the Oregon chub from the list of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife under the Endangered Species Act. If finalized, the chub would be the first fish delisted due to recovery. The Oregon chub, a small minnow found only in the Willamette River Basin in floodplain habitats with little or no water flow, was listed as endangered in 1993 and reclassified as threatened in 2010. The primary factors that threatened Oregon chub were loss of habitat and predation by nonnative fishes. These threats have been lessened over the last 20 years through collaborative partnerships to restore and acquire habitat, promote natural water flows, and conduct education and outreach to local landowners and residents; efforts that were accompanied by the reintroduction of chub into historical habitat. Posted by the US Department of the Interior on 2/4/14.
A Grizzly Bear crossing the Snake River at sunrise in the Grand Teton National Park. Photo: Donald Higgs. Posted by the US Department of the Interior on Tumblr, 1/15/14.
This shot by Steven Gifford is amazing because bobcats – Lynx rufus – are elusive, nocturnal, mostly solitary – and rarely seen by people. They first appeared about 1.8 million years ago. Today, the beautiful cat – about twice as big as an average housecat – is still found in most of its historic range from southern Canada to northern Mexico. Like most cats, the bobcat is territorial. Gifford took this photo at Patoka River National Wildlife Refuge, Indiana. Posted by the US Department of the Interior, 1/8/14. ________________________________________
Snow brings a special quiet to Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge. Photo credit: Cindy Souders. Posted by the US Department of the Interior, 12/30/13.
When temperatures Yellowstone National Park dropped below freezing last week, this bison woke up with a frost blanket. The bison’s heavy fur is perfectly adapted to winter conditions. Photo: Tim Townsend. Posted by the US Department of the Interior, 11/15/13.
Another stunning fall photo from America’s great outdoors. A Cottonwood tree and sandhill cranes at Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge in New Mexico. Photo: Robert Dunn. Posted by the US Department of the Interior, 11/3/13.