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  3. Mount Rainier offers hope for whitebark pine woes

Mount Rainier offers hope for whitebark pine woes

Dying whitebark pine needles are seen near Daisy Pass, Mont. U.S. Fish and Wildlife officials said Monday that the trees could be extinct within 120 years.
Dying whitebark pine needles are seen near Daisy Pass, Mont. U.S. Fish and Wildlife officials said Monday that the trees could be extinct within 120 years.

NATURE -- The whitebark pine is making news as a potential candidate for Endangered Species protections, and the domino impacts on species ranging from Clark's nutcrackers to grizzly bears.

The whitebark pine, a high-elevation tree, is on the decline in the West, brought down by drought, bugs and warmer temperatures, but scientists say the pines on Washington state's Mount Rainier could provide seeds for a healthier, surviving species.

Get the details in this story by Craig Welch of the Seattle Times.
 

Outdoors blog

Rich Landers writes and photographs stories and columns for a wide range of outdoors coverage, including Outdoors feature sections on Sunday and Thursday.

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