What does it take to keep livestock safe in grizzly and wolf country? Sometimes, the answer is as simple - and as complicated - as having someone out on the range.
In this episode, we meet range rider Will Munger to explore how an age-old ranching practice is being adapted to reduce conflicts between livestock and large predators.
From horseback to high-tech tools like virtual fencing and wildlife cameras, we look at how range riders protect livestock, monitor wildlife, and care for the land - and why human presence remains one of the most important tools in the conflict reduction toolbox.
Want to learn more? Check out the Range Riding Producer Toolkit.
Show notes
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Topics discussed: Range riding, Centennial Valley Association, livestock-predator conflict reduction, grizzly bears and wolves, adaptive grazing management, livestock health and monitoring, virtual fencing and emerging technology, wildlife cameras and predator tracking, communication and collaboration, carcass management, bear safety, rangeland stewardship, funding and training for range riders, NRCS conservation programs
Featuring: Will Munger (former range rider for J Bar L Ranch in Montana's Centennial Valley)
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Cover image: Linnaea Elzinga moves the herd of yearlings through dense forest on Alderspring Ranch in southern Idaho. Photo by Melanie Elzinga.
Working Wild University is a production of Western Landowners Alliance and Dr. Jared Beaver of Montana State University Extension, and a proud part of the Natural Resources University podcast network.
Hosted by Hallie Mahowald and Jared Beaver; Produced by Matt Collins and Zach Altman; Editing by Kathleen Shannon and Zach Altman; Executive producers: Louis Wertz, Jared Beaver, Hallie Mahowald and Erik Kalsta.
