Aspen workshop August 10-12 in Pinedale
by Wyoming Game & Fish
July 29, 2015
PINEDALE- The Wyoming Game and Fish Department is inviting the public to attend a free community workshop focusing on aspen, August 10-12, in Pinedale. The workshop will begin with a short lecture series featuring aspen experts Dale Bartos, a retired Research Ecologist with the U.S. Forest Service in Logan Utah and Paul Rogers an Adjunct Assistant Professor at Utah State University and Director of the Western Aspen Alliance. The talks will take place from 6-9pm Monday, August 10, in the Lovatt Room at the Pinedale Library.
The following two days, Aug 11-12, will take attendees to the field with visits to select aspen stands in both the Wyoming and Wind River Ranges. Sites will include the Fontenelle Fire west of Big Piney, prescribed fires also in the northern Wyoming Range and mechanical aspen treatments conducted near Soda Lake north of Pinedale.
Aspen communities are extremely important for wildlife, and in Wyoming, are second only to wetland and riparian areas for the number of species they support. It is estimated that approximately half of the aspen in Wyoming have been lost due to fire suppression over the past century. The proliferation of aspen on the landscape is dependent upon periodic fire to set back the natural encroachment of conifer trees and sagebrush over time.
"Aspen are very unique and have great ecological value, especially for wildlife," says Pinedale Habitat Biologist Jill Randall. "We are very fortunate to have these aspen experts from the intermountain west and I encourage members of the public to come take advantage of this great learning opportunity."
Workshop sponsors also will be raffling off a new 2015 Stihl chainsaw during the speaker series on Monday evening. Tickets can be purchased for $20 each at Bucky’s Outdoors in Pinedale. For more information on the workshop or raffle tickets contact Jill Randall, Eric Maichak or Floyd Roadifer at the Pinedale Game and Fish office at 307-367-4353.
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