Mark Heinz
Mark Heinz covers the outdoors and wildlife for Cowboy State Daily.
He previously worked or freelanced for numerous newspapers and magazines across Wyoming, Idaho and Montana, covering all manner of news and feature stories. He has a strong background in topics related to wildlife, hunting, and wildlands conservation. He's written extensively since the 1990s about the controversies surrounding wolves, grizzly bears and mustangs.
He also enjoys people-centric stories with quirky edge of humor and has written several such pieces for Cowboy State Daily.
Mark lives in Laramie with his wife, Kendy, and the youngest of their five children.
Latest from Mark Heinz
Grizzly Habitat In Yellowstone Ecosystem Is Filling Up Fast, Biologist Says
Going just by the numbers, the grizzly population in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem is more than double the 500 bears designated as ârecovered,â a top bear biologist told the Wyoming Game and Fish Commission on Tuesday.
Mark HeinzJuly 16, 2024
Wyoming, Utah Call For No Limits On Flaming Gorge Lake Trout
The Wyoming Game and Fish Commission on Tuesday voted to eliminate the catch limit on most lake trout at Flaming Gorge Reservoir because they are diminishing the kokanee salmon population.
Mark HeinzJuly 16, 2024
As Grizzlies Fill In Corners Of Montana, Are They Closer To Mingling With Wyoming Bears?
Montana wildlife officials are telling people they should be prepared to run into grizzlies anywhere west of Billings â but it remains unclear whether a long expected mingling of Wyoming and Montana bears is imminent.Â
Mark HeinzJuly 15, 2024
Game Warden Involved In Wolf Torture Investigation Charged With DUI
Herbert âBubbaâ Haley, one of the game wardens who investigated the capture, torture and killing of a wolf in Sublette County was charged with driving under the influence, according to court records.Â
Mark Heinz & Clair McFarlandJuly 15, 2024
Rock Springs âDesert Ratsâ Know Wyomingâs Adobe Town Better Than Anybody
Three friends from Rock Springs who call themselves the desert rats know Wyomingâs Adobe Town better than anybody. Theyâve been exploring the huge, rugged expanses of southwest Wyoming for decades and say theyâve seen only a fraction of whatâs out there.
Mark HeinzJuly 14, 2024
A New Hobby? Wyoming Scientists Looking For People To Go Out And Collect Ticks
For those who can stomach the task, Wyoming scientists need volunteers to go out and pick up ticks. âWe need tick wranglers, please,â entomologist Mikenna Smith told Cowboy State Daily.
Mark HeinzJuly 14, 2024
Congress To Introduce Bipartisan Bill To Outlaw Killing Wildlife By Snowmobile
The high-profile case of a Wyoming wolf run down with a snowmobile, then tortured and killed, is now on the radar of Congress. A bipartisan bill called the Snowmobiles Arenât Weapons Act would ban the practice nationwide.
Mark HeinzJuly 13, 2024
Wyoming's Killpecker Sand Dunes: "Don't Drink The Water, It'll Kill Your Pecker"
The name for Wyomingâs famous Killpecker Sand Dunes is said to have originated with a soldierâs warning that the water there could have an undesirable effect upon a certain part of the male anatomy. Despite that side effect, it's a great place to visit.
Mark HeinzJuly 13, 2024
Traveling Wyoming: Adobe Town Is Like Another Planet In The Middle Of Nowhere
A visit to Adobe Town in southwest Wyomingâs Red Desert is like being on another planet. To get there, take the Point of Rocks exit off Interstate 80 west of Rock Springs, hit the gravel roads and keep going. And going and going.
Mark HeinzJuly 13, 2024
In Brief: Wildlife Groups Mad After Snubbed By Committee
Wildlife advocates said they were snubbed and not allowed to comment during a legislative meeting earlier this week. A co-chair of a Wyoming Legislature joint committee says it was just a technical glitch.
Mark HeinzJuly 13, 2024
Animal Activists Sue To Put Wolves Back On Endangered List In Wyoming
Environmental and animal welfare groups are suing to having wolves relisted as an endangered species in Wyoming. A retired federal wildlife manager in Cody says that probably wonât happen.
Mark HeinzJuly 12, 2024
Hunter Uses Handgun To Finish Off Angry, Charging 1,000-Pound Kodiak Bear
When Tyce Erickson was charged by an enraged 1,000-pound Kodiak bear, he dropped it with three shots from his Smith & Wesson handgun. He swears by the gun and told Cowboy State Daily heâll pack it in Wyoming for his upcoming elk hunt.
Mark HeinzJuly 08, 2024
Ammo Vending Machines Are A Thing: Would They Work In Wyoming?
Folks in Alabama and Oklahoma can now buy ammunition from vending machines in grocery stores. Wyomingites might not be ready for such a thing, especially if it cuts into sales for small businesses.
Mark HeinzJuly 08, 2024
Wyoming Game Wardens Target Bear Breaking Into Cabins In Snowies
A cabin owner in the Snowy Range is hopeful that a bear that has been breaking into cabins will leave the area because if game wardens catch it, they'll likely have to kill it. "That's the policy because it's a danger to humans," he said.
Mark HeinzJuly 05, 2024
Jackson Council Passes Resolution Recognizing 'The Rights Of Natureâ
A new resolution from the Jackson Town Council proclaims that nature has rights. But the town's ecosystem stewardship administrator said it's not legally binding and trees, soil and rivers won't have the same legal standing as humans.
Mark HeinzJuly 05, 2024
New Wyoming Game And Fish Director Announced On Friday, First Woman In Position
Gov. Mark Gordon announced Friday that Angi Bruce will be the new director of the Wyoming Game and Fish Department, Sheâs the first woman to head the agency and inherits a department that is financially stable but has plenty of challenges.
Mark HeinzJuly 05, 2024
Comedian Highlights The Differences Between Colorado And Wyoming On Fireworks
In Colorado, fireworks are limited to sparklers and that's about it. Cross the state line into Wyoming and almost anything goes. Comedian Taylor Calmus makes that distinction in a viral video he made showing the differences between the two states.
Mark HeinzJuly 03, 2024
In Brief: Pilot Accidentally Turns Off Fuel Switch, Flips Plane In Albany County
A pilot accidentally turned off the fuel switch mid-flight on his plane on Wednesday morning and crash landed in rural Albany County. He suffered minor injuries.
Mark HeinzJuly 03, 2024
Reporterâs Notebook: âStar Spangled Bannerâ On A Chainsaw A CSD Tradition
What started out as a way for outdoors writer to annoy his neighbors has become a patriotic Cowboy State Daily tradition. Mark Heinz comes in with his 2024 chainsaw rendition of âThe Star Spangled Banner.â
Mark HeinzJuly 03, 2024
Black Bears Moving Further East, Now Pushing To Black Hills & Northeast Wyoming
The Wyoming Game and Fish Department say there's been an uptick of black bear activity in northeast Wyoming. One bear that had been tagged in the Laramie Mountain Range had traveled more than 175 miles before it was shot near Newcastle.
Mark HeinzJuly 03, 2024
Like In Wyoming, Pelicans Gobble Down Prized Yellowstone Trout In Idaho
Much like what they've been doing at some premier trout fishing lakes west of Laramie, pelicans are eating up the Yellowstone cutthroat trout population at the Blackfoot Reservoir in Idaho. They have permission to haze and kill the pelicans too.
Mark HeinzJuly 03, 2024