Upper Snake Region

Biologists from Idaho Fish and Game will begin annual research trapping efforts for grizzly bears in the Upper Snake Region on May 31. To avoid conflicts with hunters, current operations will be confined to areas where hunting is prohibited. Larger scale operations will begin July 1, in the Caribou-Targhee National Forest within the caldera in Island Park, west of Highway 20 along the Centennial Mountain Range, and in the Cave Falls and Teton areas near the Wyoming border.

On the evening of May 23, a young male mountain lion was tranquilized by Fish and Game staff on the outskirts of Rexburg. The young lion had an injury on his right flank and was held overnight for observation. It was later determined that the injury was severe and the lion was euthanized. 

With spring black bear hunting season well underway, Idaho Department of Fish and Game reminds hunters that using bait comes with easy to follow rules. Yet each spring, some run afoul with the law when their blunders could easily be avoided.

A sow grizzly and her yearling cub were captured by Fish and Game staff Sunday, May 17, in the Yale Creek area of Island Park after the bears were seen getting into garbage.

On the morning of May 13, an adult male mountain lion was dispatched by a Fish and Game Conservation Officer on the LDS church grounds near 49th S. and Stanfield Lane in Idaho Falls.

Spring is here, and so is the peak of baby wildlife season. People are bound to see young wildlife when they venture outdoors during the spring and early summer, and there is a pretty good chance that they will see a baby animal that appears to be alone. Fish and Game officials have a simple suggestion to people who discover baby animals that appear to be abandoned: Just leave them be.

This edition of the Upper Snake Fisheries Newsletter features the 'Henrys Lake Spawn 2020' by Fisheries Biologist Jenn Vincent and 'Big Lost River Use and Harvest' by Fisheries Biologist John Heckel.