Fostering science-based land management on the High Plains of the Western United States
About
The Ucross High Plains Stewardship Initiative, or UHPSI, is a science-based research program focused on land stewardship in the American West. At its core, UHPSI seeks to support research and management practices that embrace our ever changing ecological, social, and political landscapes with strength and resiliency.
UHPSI is housed at the Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies (FES) in New Haven, Connecticut with a field office in Ucross, Wyoming.
OUR TEAM
charlie bettigole, ms
Michelle Downey, MS
Sabrina Szeto, MF
chad oliver, phd
Kris Covey, PHD
Raymond Plank
Current Students
Latest news
Predators and Prey — Adam Eichenwald
Pretend for a moment that you’re a seal. You’re swimming along, minding your own business, when you hear a killer whale vocalizing nearby. Killer whales eat seals like you! So what do you do? You swim away as fast as you can, right? You’d be right, normally. But there’s something more: killer whales don’t always Read more about Predators and Prey — Adam Eichenwald[…]
Trout Fishing in America — Franklin Eccher
Trout have a storied and complicated history in America’s conservation history. Ever since the early days of hatchery breeding – a monumental and often daring effort by Livingstone Stone in California – nonnative invasive trout have grown to dominate nearly every recreational fishery in the country. America’s collective memory has gone so far as to Read more about Trout Fishing in America — Franklin Eccher[…]
Musings on Montana — Emma Crow-Willard
Emma Crow-Willard is working on a film set in Montana. Follow along with her and learn about life in a small town. 1/6/18 I landed in Kalispell tonight. Despite spending my entire summer here, I’d never flown into the airport. Looking down from the plane, I could see patches of snow lit up by sparse Read more about Musings on Montana — Emma Crow-Willard[…]
Plant ID with the Ranch Crew — Katie Panek
During the first week of Ranch Crew, we discovered the joys of Plant ID – or should I say, what is joyful to some (looking at you, Rachel Renne), and painful to others. Our first task was to gather grass from a roadside in the Bighorn Mountains just thirty minutes northwest of Sheridan, WY. The Read more about Plant ID with the Ranch Crew — Katie Panek[…]
Interactive Map — Ross Donihue
INTERACTIVE MAP GOES LIVE I’m happy to share that my summer fellowship researching human-wildlife conflict has been featured on the Yellowstone to Yukon (Y2Y) website. My research this summer examined strategies for reducing conflict betweeen humans and wildlife in the intermountain west. This work cuminated in an interactive map showcasing 20 innovative strategies to reduce Read more about Interactive Map — Ross Donihue[…]
Finding Errors in Data — Adam Eichenwald
The coolest part of science is when we make mistakes. Seems counterintuitive, right? Why would a mistake be the cool part of science? The thing is, science is designed to catch mistakes. First, “cool” data is automatically suspect. We go over it a million times before ever attempting to publish it, ironing out everything and Read more about Finding Errors in Data — Adam Eichenwald[…]
Writing the Rapid Assessment — Jordan Skovgard
Making the plan Leading up to our rapid assessment, our team had the opportunity to sit down and talk to many professionals with varying focuses in range management. We participated in classes over varying topics. After learning from so many people we sat down to develop a plan for our rapid assessment. To develop this Read more about Writing the Rapid Assessment — Jordan Skovgard[…]
More Than One Way to Ranch — Jaycie Arndt
There’s more than one way to skin a cat, but as it turns out there is also more than one way to run a successful ranch. During the first week of Ranch Crew, a majority of time was spent indoors learning concepts and ideas from the esteemed Dr. Brian Mealor at the University of Wyoming Read more about More Than One Way to Ranch — Jaycie Arndt[…]
A lesson about invasive species — Lydia Mendoza
During the first week of ranch crew, we all hopped in the van to visit a ranch not far from Sheridan College. Brian Mealor, a professor at the University of Wyoming and the director of the Sheridan Research and Extension Center, walked us out into the field and spent less than a minute searching the Read more about A lesson about invasive species — Lydia Mendoza[…]
From Classroom to Field: A Trip to Red Canyon Ranch — Jessica Swindon
After spending a week in Sheridan, the crew took off towards Red Canyon Ranch in south central Wyoming. Iron rich, red valleys appropriately give Red Canyon Ranch its name. Owned by The Nature Conservancy, the ranch is used for testing best conservation grazing practices and research. In addition to cattle, the area is home to Read more about From Classroom to Field: A Trip to Red Canyon Ranch — Jessica Swindon[…]
Ranch Crew Introduction — Jeremy Menkhaus
Summer 2017 marked the inaugural Ranch Crew course and, despite the course’s nascency, it felt like anything but Ranch Crew’s first rodeo (although in its future form, hopefully its actual first rodeo event will be incorporated). Ranch Crew is a two-week rangeland practicum in August held across the state of Wyoming. Divided into two primary Read more about Ranch Crew Introduction — Jeremy Menkhaus[…]
Further Reflections on RALLY! — Ben Williamson
“If you’re not at the table, you’re on the menu.” –Ethan Winter, New York Senior Program Manager for the Land Trust Alliance. Over the last weekend of October, I attended the annual Land Trust Alliance Rally in Denver. Besides soaking in the dry air I grew up in, I spent a whirlwind of a weekend, Read more about Further Reflections on RALLY! — Ben Williamson[…]
Wind and the Landscape of Fear — Adam Eichenwald
So I ran into a problem. If you’ve been reading my blog, you know that I’m looking into gyrfalcon predation of ptarmigan in Alaska. So far, my data successfully shows that ptarmigan are avoiding locations where gyrfalcons are densely packed – which makes sense; you wouldn’t beeline to set up camp in a lion’s den. Read more about Wind and the Landscape of Fear — Adam Eichenwald[…]
Summer 2018 Opportunities
Western Research Fellowship The Western Research Fellowship (WRF) is awarded annually to applicants interested in issues pertinent to land management in the Rocky Mountain West. Ideal proposals target high-impact biophysical or social questions with management implications for private land management. In addition to a financial award, fellows are given access to a broad network of Read more about Summer 2018 Opportunities[…]