“Matthew Bowers, a research scientist with Wyoming Game and Fish, turned his back to the small helicopter as its quick blades kicked up dust, grass and debris from nearby shrubs. Cedar Hincke stepped behind the white trailer connected to his truck to avoid the cloud. Hincke, as soon as the small helicopter landed in the dirt clearing, stepped around the trailer and began refueling and collecting tangled nets from the aircraft.

The two men were in the hills about 12 miles down an unpaved road near Jeffery City late last week.

They had been waiting for the helicopter for about an hour. After quickly refueling, removing a large tangle of nets from the back and giving the pilot more deer collars, the helicopter would leave and Bowers and Hincke would wait another hour or so before it would return again.”

This piece looks into the research of mule deer health and migration across Wyoming. It highlights ongoing scientific research practices and their impact on understanding a decline in mule deer populations across the state, including new elements of the study aimed at a better understanding of when deer stop nursing their young.

This article was reported and published for the Riverton Ranger and Lander Journal. The full article can be accessed here.

Published: Jan. 22, 2026

My Role: Reporter & Photographer