Giant sturgeon, the only source of true caviar, were once abundant in America’s rivers. Two hundred years ago, the Hudson, Delaware and other eastern US rivers were the main suppliers of caviar for Europe. During those years, the Russian Czars maintained agents in New York to buy Hudson River caviar. 

Sturgeon were fished out by the late 1800s, and the Caspian Sea became the main source for caviar. The Russians and Iranians have now ruined that fishery by overfishing it as well. Since 2005, the US Fish and Wildlife Service has banned the importation of Caspian caviar to help protect remaining stocks of beluga sturgeon.

Meanwhile, thanks to reintroduction and conservation efforts, as reported above giant white sturgeon are again found in the Snake River.

As explained in the article below, deer culling does not improve deer genetics, therefore, it does not increase the antler size of the remaining bucks in the herd as many people believe—and desire.

Stated differently, culling, the most-employed practice of deer “management” for the last 40 years not only doesn’t work, but it actually harms deer genetics.

Mule deer, elk and other hooved mammals around the world depend on their ability to migrate between seasonal habitats. Sadly, human activities are impeding migrations and making them harder than ever. Many herds are struggling to migrate in the face of subdivisions, roads, fences, and all kinds of development. Yet, thanks to migration science and maps, we live in a hopeful time for conservation when more and more people are working together to find solutions to all these threats. Efforts like fence modifications, wildlife-road crossings, and conservation easements all make a difference.

Filled with incredible wildlife footage — some never-before-seen — BARRIERS captures the many challenges migrating big game animals encounter on their journeys, and the collaborative solutions that can keep migrations intact long into the future.

BARRIERS was produced by the Wyoming Migration Initiative at the University of Wyoming with support from Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, Knobloch Family Foundation, and George B. Storer Foundation. The Muley Fanatic Foundation Southeast Wyoming Chapter provided cameras to capture some of the amazing footage of big game interactions with fences.

Using an eroded gulley to recreate a wet meadow in the desert.