Mountain Journal

06/03/2026

A legal effort by 22 young Americans to curb atmosphere-warming greenhouse gas emissions experienced a major setback Tuesday. The Ninth Circuit Court rejected a lawsuit seeking to reverse President Donald Trump’s efforts to expand fossil fuel development.

In a 10-page opinion, the Ninth Circuit wrote that the climate change-related injuries the plaintiffs reported in their litigation bear too tenuous a tie to a trio of executive orders they sought to reverse with the lawsuit.

In a 10-page opinion, the Ninth Circuit wrote that the climate change-related injuries plaintiffs reported in their litigation bear too tenuous a tie to a trio of executive orders they sought to reverse with the lawsuit. The decision marks a major setback for the young Americans seeking to reverse P...

06/02/2026

In our ongoing series called "Yellowstone's Supporting Cast," MoJo looks beyond bison, bears and wolves to spotlight Yellowstone’s often-overlooked wildlife. Today, we bring you the ecosystem engineer: the North American Beaver.

Beavers have long been known for their industrious behavior — it can get them in trouble if misplaced in front of a ranchland culvert or on the trunk of a beloved fruit tree — but lately, this species is having a renaissance, earning praise for its skill in ecosystem engineering.

Like some humans, beavers prefer lodges — big ones. They also need a pond. And if they don’t have one, they make one. Driven by an intense instinctual drive to create quiet, still water, they get to work building elaborate, watertight dams in flowing freshwater streams and rivers. Read more about this keystone species below.

Diligent keystone species integral to drought-resistant and fire-tolerant landscapes

06/01/2026

More than 1,000 cows and sheep died when the 2024 Re*****on Fire scorched almost 200,000 acres in south-central Montana. If proposed federal grazing policies become law, those livestock could be considered firefighters instead of fire victims.

Under federal proposals floated by both Congress and cabinet agencies this spring, livestock could become major players in wildfire suppression efforts by literally eating the fuel before it burns.

However, the debate rarely gets at a central question: Are firefighters asking for ranchers’ help to reduce grass fires, or are ranchers asking for more grass by claiming that grazing could be a wildfire suppression tool? At stake are millions of acres of public grassland and forest that currently have little or no livestock accessibility.

Changes in federal grazing policy would open millions of public land acres to livestock for hazardous fuels management, but critics say claims lack science.

05/29/2026

Full house last night in Bozeman for Mountain Journal Book Club’s first pick: "Roam: Wild Animals and the Race to Repair Our Fractured World."

"Roam" author and environmental journalist Hillary Rosner spoke about her new book with MoJo Managing Editor Joseph T. O’Connor, Center for Large Landscape Conservation's Deb Davidson, and Yellowstone to Yukon Conservation Initiative's Daniel Anderson about what it means to build and maintain connectivity for wild creatures in Greater Yellowstone and across the globe.

Tip of the cap to Country Bookshelf for hosting an illuminating event. Missed it last night? Come to Elk River Books in Livingston for night two tonight at 7 p.m.!

Photo by Emily O'Connor

05/28/2026

Award-winning journalist and author Hillary Rosner of the new book ROAM, a MoJo Book Club Pick, will be in conversation with our managing editor Joe O'Connor tonight at Country Bookshelf in Bozeman. Learn more here: https://bit.ly/4vaBFtb

05/27/2026

TONIGHT: The ROAM Montana Book Tour kicks off in Missoula. Author Hillary Rosner will be in conversation with Christoper Preston about her MoJo Book Club pick at Shakespeare & Co. starting at 7pm. An audience Q&A and book signing will follow.

Find more details here: https://bit.ly/4vd5qJR

05/23/2026

PHOTO OF THE WEEK: "It was so great to see the Yellowstone National Park grizzly known as the Phantom sow out with her two Cubs of the Year on Saturday, May 2," writes POW contributor Scott Brovsky. "These are the first COY seen in Yellowstone this year. I saw them the night before as well but it was too dark for photos."

Photo Credit: Scott Brovsky

Have a photo or short video from Greater Yellowstone you want to share? Submit it here https://bit.ly/474vE8m for a chance to be featured at MoJo!

05/20/2026

Welcome aboard!

Mountain Journal and Montana Free Press, in collaboration with Grist.org and High Country News, are thrilled to announce that Ellis Juhlin and Nick Mott are joining our newsrooms as Report for America corps members to cover how climate change and environmental issues are impacting the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem and beyond.

Read more about our new hires below!

In collaboration with Grist and High Country News, journalists Ellis Juhlin and Nick Mott to join Mountain Journal in July.

05/19/2026

The U.S. Senate narrowly voted to approve Steve Pearce’s nomination to lead the Bureau of Land Management. Pearce, a 78-year-old Republican, has deep ties to the oil and gas industry and a record of supporting federal land sales.

With a 46-43 vote along party lines, the former U.S. Representative from New Mexico has been cleared to lead the country’s largest management agency. As head of the BLM, Pearce will oversee 245 million acres of public land and 700 million acres of its subsurface mineral estate.

More than 80 conservation and public land access groups wary of Pearce’s record on public land sales and environmental protection opposed his nomination in a January letter to the Senate Energy Committee.

Montana Sens. Steve Daines and Tim Sheehy both voted to support Pearce’s nomination.

The Senate approved Steve Pearce’s nomination to lead the Bureau of Land Management in a 46-43 vote Monday evening.

05/18/2026

Join award-winning science journalist Hillary Rosner on her western Montana book tour for a lively conversation with MoJo Managing Editor Joseph T. O’Connor about her book, “ROAM: Wild Animals and the Race to Repair Our Fractured World.” The new book tells the inspiring story of reconnecting ecosystems, restoring wildlife corridors and reimagining a future where humans and animals can thrive together. “ROAM” is a MoJo Book Club pick.

Events in Missoula, Bozeman and Livingston will be held May 27 - 29. The tour is sponsored by Center for Large Landscape Conservation.

🔗 Get more information here: https://bit.ly/4tGkNJC