Working to Protect Water, Wildlife and Working Lands!
Teton Regional Land Trust works with willing landowners in Eastern Idaho to conserve their property for farms and ranches and fish and wildlife habitat for future generations.
Thank You for Your Generous Support!!
Teton Regional Land Trust would like to thank you for your generous support during Idaho Gives. Our goal to was to raise awareness for our work, raise $1,000 and increase new member donations during the first year of Idaho Gives. Thanks to folks like you, Teton Regional Land Trust was able to raise over $4,000 from 28 donors on May 2nd! Your donations will help us continue to work with families in Eastern Idaho protect water, wildlife and working lands!Something to Trumpet About!
Swan Nesting Project Will Benefit Yellowstone Birds
Photo By Timothy C. Mayo
Trumpeter Swans are one of our region’s most iconic birds. They are the heaviest bird species in North America but their size seems less impressive when compared to their elegance and their charismatic nature. In the Yellowstone region, trumpeter swans can be seen and heard year round in ponds, rivers and streams. These beautiful birds were hunted almost into extinction in this region early in the 20th century but with careful management were brought back to stable and relatively healthy numbers. Unfortunately, the Greater Yellowstone trumpeter swan nesting population is struggling. Biologists are seeing fewer nesting trumpeter swan pairs in our region especially in Yellowstone National Park.
In an effort to increase the Greater Yellowstone population of trumpeter swans, Teton Regional Land Trust has teamed up with the Idaho Department of Fish and Game, Wyoming Wetlands Society, Trumpeter Swan Society and the US Fish and Wildlife Service to encourage additional trumpeter nesting in the Yellowstone Region and specifically in the Teton Valley.
This unique partnership, with support from the Pacific Flyway Council, seeks to continue protecting important nesting habitat and encourage young trumpeter swans to establish nesting sites in Teton Valley. In late August, a protected wetland on a conservation easement property in in Teton Valley will become home for 5 young trumpeter swans (called cygnets). A foster mother will also be released with the quintet of cygnets to help them learn to feed on their own and to keep them safe. The captive bred cygnets will join wild birds during the fall migration and, with a little luck, will return to their surrogate home in Teton Valley to raise their own young in the future.
Joselin Matkins - New Land Protection Director
The staff and board of Teton Regional Land Trust are proud to announce the recent hiring of Joselin Matkins as the new Land Protection Director. This added capacity comes at an important time for the Land Trust as it prepares to accommodate increased interest in conservation stemming from the expanded federal tax incentives and increases in available funds for purchasing easements. Matkins comes to the Teton Regional Land Trust after five years as the Executive Director of the Sagebrush Steppe Land Trust in Pocatello and has served as the Chair of the Idaho Coalition of Land Trusts since 2009.
Matkins will fill the role previously held by Babette Thorpe, who has transitioned to the role of Major Gifts Director for the Teton Regional Land Trust. This year, the Teton Regional Land Trust plans to surpass 30,000 acres of protected farms and ranches in Eastern Idaho.
“We are delighted that Joselin is joining our team,” Teton Regional Land Trust Executive Director Chet Work said, “We’ve partnered with her on numerous conservation efforts over the years and look forward to the experience and understanding she brings to the position.”