The first draft of the “community” proposal for the design of US 20 Ashton to SH 87 has been completed by the proposal committee (17 members of the community). In an effort to inform public about the contents of the proposal, Ken’s Korner is publishing sections of the proposal. It is hoped that you will provide feedback and offer your ideas to the committee so that the proposal can be improved. This week a portion of the section on wildlife is being published for your use. The committee proposed several innovative solutions for the highway design.
“Island Park is home for multiple species of wildlife. Wildlife are resident and transitory within this unique habitat. The Sand Creek Elk herd resides primarily on the west side of US 20, dispersing throughout the Island Park region and in the fall centralizing in and near Harriman State Park to stage to move to the lower desert for the winter season. There is some cross movement of animals near US 20, and rarely a longer journey animal will join a herd and enter Yellowstone, as evidenced in IDFG collar data…….. There is no ancient migratory Sand Hills Elk herd that must navigate across US 20 to complete a yearly migration. IDFG collar data will verify that the majority of the herd remains on the west side of US 20,….. Mule deer do migrate from the lower desert in spring, through Island Park and into the high country in the summer, and return the journey in the fall. The Ashton Hill area is the hotspot area for mule deer when they do this crossing during approximately 3 weeks in both spring and summer….. The following should be considered when looking at wildlife and vehicles:
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Making Sense of It All
This blog will help you make sense out of all the information on the website, how it affects IP, our history, and how efforts continue to put IP into various forms of conservation status. Archives
May 2023
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