Knowing Yellowstone

Knowing Yellowstone Science in America’s First National Park Jerry Johnson, Editor Cover Photo: A Storm Ripping Through the Valley, Trey Ratcliff DESIGN/LAYOUT/PRODUCTION – Monica Chodkiewicz ISBN 978-1-58979-522-8 Published by Taylor Trade Publishing An imprint of The Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group, Inc. 4501 Forbes Boulevard, Suite 200, Lanham, Maryland 20706 http://www.rlpgtrade.com Estover Road, Plymouth PL6 7PY, United Kingdom Distributed by National Book Network Copyright © 2010 by Jerry Johnson All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the publisher, except by a reviewer who may quote passages in a review. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Information Available Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of American National Standard for Information Sciences—Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992. Printed in the United States of America Knowing Yellowstone Science in America’s First National Park Jerry Johnson, Editor iv Knowing Yellowstone: Science in America’s First National Park Acknowledgments: Many people are involved in the evolution and eventual publication of a book. The authors of the chapters that follow willingly took time from busy field seasons and research programs to deliver their highly technical work in a format accessible to those who are not immersed in the world of doing science. I thank them for their good work. Several individuals supported this project from the start. John Peters is the director of the Thermal Biology Institute at Montana State University and deserves special thanks for his continued institutional and financial support. The Institute conducts and promotes research and education focused on the biology and interrelated physical and chemical processes of geothermal environments in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. In addition to doing important science, the center has an outstanding record of educational outreach from K-12 and beyond. John’s support for this project began with a TBI “University of the Yellowstone” award and continued through to publication. John Varley is the former director of the Yellowstone Center for Resources at Yellowstone National Park as well as the former director of the MSU Big Sky Institute; he has been immersed in Yellowstone science for over four decades. John not only provided institutional and financial support through BSI, he was a my sounding board for ideas about the book, introduced me to some of the authors, and was always available to teach me something about the history and politics of the Park. He is an understated and gracious guy and I consider him a friend. Trey Ratcliff generously made his collection of spectacular photographs of Yellowstone available. The cover photo is his as are several photos that appear at the beginning of chapters. Trey sees the natural world differently from most of us. His eye combined with his unique artistic expression make him one of my favorite amateur photographers. Check out his website at: stuckincustoms.com and his new book “A World in HDR”. Two other photographers deserve special mention - thanks to Ken McElroy and Steve Hinch for the generous donations of their photographs. A sincere thank-you goes out to Gerry and Wright Ohrstrom. The two Monicas – Monica Chodkiewicz, responsible for the beautiful layout of the book, and Monica Brelsford, helped me through numerous parts of the project, were a joy to work with. I benefited from their experience producing education materials for TBI. My wife Barbara, Heather Rauser at TBI, and Professor David Parker, a colleague of mine at MSU, read the manuscript and provided me with many constructive suggestions. I value their contributions and thank them. My editor at Taylor-Trade, Rick Rinehart, brought many years of interest and experience to a book on Yellowstone. Thanks. My parents immersed us kids into the world of nature and science when we could walk. This book is dedicated to them. Finally, thanks to all the researchers – professional and amateur alike, who have spent many decades exploring the nuances of the world’s first national park. They make the Yellowstone a richer and more stimulating place for all of us. Foreward : Knowing Yellowstone: Science in America’s First National Park v vi Knowing Yellowstone: Science in America’s First National Park Foreword John W. Peters & John D. Varley Yellowstone National Park represents many things to many people. For a select and lucky few, the Park is a place to do important and complex science. The government-sponsored and comprehensive Hayden Expedition of 1871 began a tradition of research in Yellowstone and within the first decade of the Park’s existence, mechanisms were already being put in place for the management and regulation of all human endeavor in Yellowstone, including scientific work. In the early days few people were allowed direct access to park resources for scientific research –most likely because there were few scientists--but today, NPS staff issue and monitor over 200 research permits each year which makes Yellowstone one of the most studied parcels of ground in the world. Except for brief periods when a few scientists took advantage of their privileges, the commitment of the National Park Service to research in Yellowstone has been unwavering. Even in the summer of 1988, as wildfires were still burning, scientists began designing research protocols and collecting data on burn patterns and fire behavior, impacts on park wildlife, and forest regeneration and many of those studies continue today. Today’s challenge for the park service and for researchers is not much different than it has been throughout Yellowstone’s history: how to balance access to sites of scientific interest and structuring studies to be informative while avoiding ecological impact. Both sides also increasingly recognize the importance of passing on what is learned to enhance the public’s understanding and experience. Park managers know that good science can enrich a visit to Yellowstone and most visitors have a strong fascination with what science can tell them about the Park. And they should. Many of the “hot-button” issues in wildlife management, bioprospecting and intellectual property rights, biotechnology, renewable energy, and global climate change are rooted in the Park and fuels lively public discourse. Montana State University has factored strongly in the makeup of Yellowstone-centric research across all disciplines of science. The close proximity of the Park to MSU’s home in Bozeman attracts world-class investigators to join our faculty and the renowned centers of excellence that have been established. The Thermal Biology Institute and Big Sky Institute are two such centers and as directors, we are proud of the role our affiliations play in Yellowstone science and policy. A recent study conducted by MSU ecology professor Dave Roberts showed that MSU received more than five times as many competitively awarded grants and at least three times as many publications on Yellowstone as its nearest competitor. The enthusiasm of the MSU faculty for Yellowstone has been infectious making it even more exciting to be involved in catalyzing the publication of “Knowing Yellowstone”. The work embraces the true breadth of contemporary science in the world’s first national park. We hope it is a resource that will be cherished by those interested in Yellowstone for many years to come. Foreward : Knowing Yellowstone: Science in America’s First National Park vii viii Knowing Yellowstone: Science in America’s First National Park Contents v/ ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS vii/ FOREWARD / John W. Peters, John D. Varley xi/ INTRODUCTION / Jerry Johnson 1/ CHAPTER 1 Thinking Big About the Greater Yellowstone / Andy Hansen 17/ CHAPTER 2 Mapping the Last Frontier in Yellowstone National Park: Yellowstone Lake / Lisa A. Morgan, W.C. Pat Shanks 33/ CHAPTER 3 Using Yellowstone’s Past to Understand the Future / Cathy Whitlock 49/ CHAPTER 4 Understanding Grizzlies: Science of the Interagency Grizzly Bear Study Team / Charles C. Schwartz, Mark A. Haroldson, Kerry A. Gunther 65/ CHAPTER 5 Interactions Between Wolves and Elk in the Yellowstone Ecosystem / Scott Creel 81/ CHAPTER 6 Brucellosis in Cattle, Bison, and Elk: Management Conflicts in a Society with Diverse Values / Paul C. Cross, Mike R. Ebinger, Victoria Patrek, Rick Wallen 95/ CHAPTER 7 Fisheries Science and Management in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem: Ensuring Good Fishing by Preserving Healthy Ecosystems / Alexander V. Zale 113/ CHAPTER 8 If You Can’t Measure It, You Can’t Manage It: An Ecological Approach to Weed Management / Bruce D. Maxwell, Lisa J. Rew 127/ CHAPTER 9 Yellowstone Extremeophiles: The Life of Heat-Loving Microbes / Mark Young, Jennifer S. Fulton 141/ CHAPTER 10 The Science of Storytelling: Policy Marketing and Wicked Problems in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem / Elizabeth Shanahan, Mark McBeth Contents: Knowing Yellowstone: Science in America’s First National Park ix The national park is the best idea America ever had. - James Bryce, Britain’s Ambassador to the U.S. 1912 x Knowing Yellowstone: Science in America’s First National Park Introduction Modern science writers take us into the world of the research is dangerous and spectacular – trapping particle physics through experiments in the Large and

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