The American bison has always been a powerful symbol of our nation's history. It has graced our currency, served as mascot and flown on our flags. That iconic image is a haunting reminder of what we've lost -- not only the massive bison herds that once stampeded across the Great...

From wildfires and drought to flooding and tornados, 2011 has been a record-setting year for extreme weather events. The economic pain to American communities unprepared for such radical shifts in natural weather systems has been tremendous. Already, drought in the south has cost the country $10 billion. And...

It's Halloween and Congress is eyeing some downright scary cuts to vital wildlife conservation programs as part of its budget cutting frenzy. But while these programs may seem like easy targets for cuts, there is a lot more to the story.

Hundreds of thousands of people have jobs because the...

Why save a lizard? Who cares about some little fly? What difference does it make if we kill off a few unwanted prairie dogs?

These are fair questions. At a time when nine percent of Americans are unemployed, another seven percent are marginally employed or working only part-time,...

The ashes of my good friend Mollie Beattie rode the winds before settling slowly beneath the surface of the crystal blue mountain lake in the heart of the Brooks Range in northern Alaska. A few tears were shed among the close friends and family members gathered along the shore, but...

When I began my career almost 30 years ago, peregrine falcons were in dire straits. For decades, these graceful birds of prey had been slowly poisoned by the widespread use of the harmful pesticide DDT, which altered their internal chemistry and made their egg shells thinner. As result, fewer eggs...

It's like a bad trivia game. "On this day in history ..." Except today we're not talking about a record-setting homerun or the birth of a world-famous writer, and no prize will be awarded to a correct response. That's because today marks not an anniversary, but a memorial, of something...

We've been hearing a lot from our leaders in Congress of late about the tough choices needed to get America's budget cut down to size. It's a compelling message and many House members have done a pretty convincing job of looking pained while proposing budget cuts in their Continuing Resolution...

My son Carson is eleven years old. And though at times he may think he's a grown up, he still has many years ahead of him before he's an adult. Like most parents, I want my child to have the same opportunities I had growing up -- which is why...

It's been six hard months for the Gulf region. And the tar balls that continue to wash up on the former white sandy beaches serve as a constant reminder that coastal communities are still struggling to regain economic footing, wildlife losses are climbing higher and higher and we still don't...

The case has been decided. Wolves in the Northern Rocky Mountain region will once again be federally protected under the Endangered Species Act.

But the recent ruling from a federal judge in Montana is a mixed blessing.

The court's decision to uphold the plain meaning of the ESA...

I have just returned from the Gulf of Mexico, where the growing disaster from the British Petroleum oil rig blowout threatens some of our most precious wildlife, fisheries and national wildlife refuges. Bearing witness to this epic environmental disaster as it slowly unfolds has been surreal to say the least....

As I've watched the growing environmental catastrophe in the aftermath of the tragic explosion and sinking of the Deepwater Horizon offshore oil rig, with the resulting ever-expanding oil slick now infiltrating Louisiana's marshes and bayous, I've come to one devastating conclusion: we may be looking at the destruction of some...

During the presidential election campaign, then-candidate Obama rightly said that the job of finding budget savings should be done with a scalpel, not a sledge-hammer. Now the reality of governing during these difficult economic times is upon him and he has taken the step of freezing some government spending. But...

"[T]oday, I've signed a memorandum that will help restore the scientific process to its rightful place at the heart of the Endangered Species Act, a process undermined by past administrations. ... For more than three decades, the Endangered Species Act has successfully protected our nation's most threatened wildlife, and we...