Springtime in Greater Yellowstone
What could be a more common topic of discussion other than the weather? Throughout the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem it’s been a warm winter. What started out as a great snowpack has been melting and flowing into the streams and rivers. It’s tough to complain when the sun is shining and the air is warm, but with a declining snowpack we may lack streamflows later in the summer. In recent years “runoff” has been occurring early. So I begin to wonder, what else happens earlier? Will the elk lose their antlers earlier or will migratory birds return sooner? It’s important to keep in mind that different things influence these “springtime” events.
