The Bozeman Daily Bee

Wildlife

Montana's First Bird Flu Case of 2026 Traced to Chicken With No Travel History

By Chuck Troutman January 28, 2026

Montana’s first confirmed case of avian influenza in 2026 has been identified in a backyard chicken flock in Carbon County, according to the state Department of Livestock, raising alarm among poultry owners and mild confusion among the general public, many of whom did not realize Carbon County had backyard chickens.

The affected flock, belonging to a rural homestead south of Red Lodge, consisted of 14 hens and one rooster described by his owner as “not particularly social even before all this.”

Wolf Debate Reportedly Less Polarized Than Thanksgiving Dinner

By Chuck Troutman January 28, 2026

A new report from Explore Big Sky suggests that Montana’s long-running debate over wolf management may not be as bitterly divided as previously assumed, with ranchers and conservationists reportedly finding more common ground than anyone expected — or, in some cases, wanted.

“I don’t hate wolves,” said area rancher Vern Tillis, who has lost calves to predation in three of the last five years. “I just want to be able to manage the situation without someone in Missoula writing a letter about it.”

Two Dogs Rescued From Flathead Lake Immediately Attempt to Go Back

By Chuck Troutman January 27, 2026

POLSON — Two dogs were pulled from the icy waters of Flathead Lake Monday morning after venturing onto thin ice and falling through, prompting a multi-agency rescue effort that lasted approximately 40 minutes and was immediately undone when both dogs tried to run back onto the ice.

“We got them out. They were shivering. We wrapped them in blankets. And then the big one just — took off. Straight back toward the lake,” said Polson Rural Fire Captain Donna Jessup, who led the rescue operation. “I have never felt more disrespected in my professional career.”

Montana Photographers Now Required to Prove Elk Is Real

By Dr. Theodore Hypothesis January 27, 2026

A growing crisis in the Montana outdoor photography community has reached what experts are calling “an epistemological tipping point,” as artificial intelligence image generators become sophisticated enough to produce fake elk photos that are, by all measurable standards, indistinguishable from actual elk.

“We are now living in a post-elk-verification society,” said Dr. Randall Furman, associate professor of Visual Ecology at Montana State University, during a Thursday lecture attended by 11 people and one student who was clearly asleep. “If you cannot prove the elk is real, the elk may as well not exist. This is Descartes’ nightmare.”

Bear Applies for Costco Membership, Cites 'Unbeatable Bulk Salmon Prices'

By Chuck Troutman January 27, 2026

A 400-pound grizzly bear was observed entering the Bozeman Costco on North 19th Avenue Saturday morning, pausing briefly at the membership desk before proceeding directly to the seafood section.

“He walked right up to the counter, stood on his hind legs, and just sort of stared at the associate for about thirty seconds,” said witness and fellow shopper Brenda Kowalski, 43, of Belgrade. “Then he grabbed a sample of the rotisserie chicken and left.”