Potato growers urged to unite

Potato pest experts from Scotland and New Zealand say Idaho growers will have to cooperate in order to combat a worm that’s been found in crops here, causing some countries to ban imports from the state.

“You must work together,” said John Marshall of New Zealand, a country that’s been hit by the potato cyst nematodes in the past. “The biggest concern is keeping the farmer in business.”

“The potato cyst nematode is new in Idaho and the United States,” said Keith Esplin, director of the Potato Growers of Idaho. “We have to show other countries and other parts of the United States that we can take care of it.”

LINCOLN, Neb.

Burns spent most per voter

Sen. Conrad Burns, R-Mont., spent the most money per voter in any U.S. Senate race in the nation this year, according to a study by the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

The analysis showed that Burns spent $10.68 for each registered voter and $7.35 per capita.

The nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics reported Burns spent $7.5 million in his losing campaign against Democratic Sen.-elect Jon Tester, who spent $3.8 million.

In total spending, the most expensive Senate race was in New York, where Democrat Hillary Clinton spent $30 million.

WISDOM, Mont.

Two wolves killed after calf’s death

Federal agents have killed two wolves in the Big Hole Valley following the recent death of a calf.

The calf was killed Nov. 9. The wolves were killed Nov. 15, the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks announced Friday.

“There is a lot of livestock production in the Big Hole Valley and there have been conflicts in the past,” said Carolyn Sime, FWP wolf program coordinator. Last winter, she said, the Battlefield Pack followed migrating big game out of the valley, and she expects that to happen again this winter.

FWP authorized Wildlife Services, a federal agency, to kill two wolves in the area as part of its “incremental approach” to dealing with wolf-livestock conflicts.