Idaho Matters

(Eric Gay / AP) Every year rabid bats are found in Idaho. Last year alone, 27 bats with rabies were found in the Gem State. And while bats are very beneficial little mammals and shouldn’t be made into the bad guy , it is a good idea to protect yourself and your pets from coming into contact with a possibly rabid bat. Dr. Leslie Tengelsen, the State Public Health Veterinarian, joined Idaho Matters...

(Bruce Fingerhood / Flickr Creative Commons) Drivers in some parts of Idaho are finding the roads covered with bugs, Mormon crickets to be exact. And while these insects can be inconvenient for drivers, farmers and ranchers are in a different boat entirely. These long-horned grasshoppers can pose an extreme threat to the livelihood of those who rely on agriculture to make a living. The Idaho State...

Animal remains from the ancestral village and site called Paa'ko in north-central New Mexico, housed at the University of New Mexico. 
 
 The remains are a part of a study looking at the spread of horses in Indigenous societies across the West. (Emma Gibson / Mountain West News Bureau) When did horses become a part of Western indigenous communities? That's the focus of a recent stu...

(iStockphoto.com) One third of women in the U.S. who have tried to get birth control have had trouble getting a prescription when they need one. Getting into a doctor to get the prescription is a major barrier , especially in a state like Idaho where a growing lack of physicians can make getting an appointment anytime soon very difficult. Lack of insurance, finding a pharmacy and not speaking Engl...

Idaho's Latino Conservation Week kicked off on Saturday, July 15 at the Mk Nature Center. ( Traci Swift/TNC) Earlier this week, the 10th annual Latino Conservation Week kicked off. The celebration is nationwide and promotes access to the outdoors among the Latino community and recognition of their conservation efforts with a week full of activities geared towards protecting our environment and enj...

( Photo courtesy of Thomas Cuisine ) Up to 80 percent of cancer patients suffer from malnutrition while going through treatment, according to the Cancer Treatment Center of America. That's why Treasure Valley company Thomas Cuisine is partnering with a Mountain West cancer institute to help combat this issue. Alison Patt, President and CEO of Thomas Cuisine, joined Idaho Matters to talk more.

It's time to grab your fishing poles because late last week the Boise River got a little more crowded as nearly 300 Chinook salmon were released into the water. And Idaho Fish and Game will be adding even more . Brian Pearson, Southwest Regional Communications Manager and Matt O'Connell, Regional Conservation Officer for Idaho Fish and Game, joined Idaho Matters to talk more about the salmon and w...

(Purestock / Getty Images/Purestock) Parents of newborns like to keep their babies close using what’s known as body-worn baby carriers , but a new study coming out of Boise State’s Babi Lab says not all of those carriers are created equal and some may have troubling effects on your baby’s hips . Erin Mannen is an Assistant Professor of Mechanical and Biomedical Engineering at Boise State Universit...

(Benn Riis Ebbesen / Flickr) Farm and ranch lands across the West face many threats - like inflation and outside development. But the federal government is working with agricultural producers to preserve open space and the benefits it provides. The Mountain West News Bureau's Will Walkey Reports.

In a Landscape in Alvord Desert ( Zach Lewis) Imagine you’re sitting in a beautiful mountain setting surrounded by jagged peaks and tumbling waterfalls or resting alongside the Big Wood River in Sun Valley. Now imagine you can hear live classical music, directly in your ears using headphones, as you watch the beauty unfold around you. This is what happens every time classical pianist Hunter Noack...

“Idaho Did You Know?” collector cards. ( Photo courtesy of the Idaho State Museum) It was 75 years ago when "Geronimo the Parachuting Beaver" fell out of a plane over the Frank Church No Return Wilderness landed in the middle of nowhere and started building beaver dams. It was 30 years ago when "Lonesome Larry the Sockeye Salmon" was the only fish to make it back to Idaho's Redfish Lake from the P...

Citizens vote in an election. (Frederic J. Brown / AFP/Getty Images) A new voter registration law is facing pushback, Simplot is footing a big bill for environmental cleanup , geothermal energy is garnering support in the west, an update on Labrador's lawsuit against the State Board and wildfire season is here, but do we have enough experienced firefighters? It’s Friday, which means it's time for...

(Mike Mozart / Flickr) Last week seven Attorney's General from different states, including Idaho's Raúl Labrador, addressed a letter to the department store, Target warning that products sold as part of its Pride Month Campaign could violate state protection laws. The letter did not say in what ways the campaign overstepped these laws, but did propose that the corporation focus on a different kind...

Kris Komori, the chef of KIN in Boise, took home the James Beard award for Best Chef: Mountain region. (Screenshot / James Beard Awards) Earlier this summer, Idaho history was made as the first chef from the Gem State won a James Beard Award. Kris Komori, co-owner of KIN in Downtown Boise, was named best chef Mountain Region. He was among five finalists in the category, including the co-owner and...

(Tim Lindstedt / Flickr) When it comes to the northern lights, places like Iceland and Alaska are usually thought of as the best kind of spots to catch a glimpse of the famous Aurora Borealis. But Thursday night, several states in the continental United States might have the opportunity to see the natural phenomenon thanks to a particularly strong solar storm. Brian Jackson , Associate Professor f...

A micrograph shows red blood cells infected by the malaria parasite <em>Plasmodium falciparum</em>. (John C. Tan / AP) While COVID-19 ravaged the country, the United States has also been experiencing a number disease outbreaks that we don't normally see, like Dengue Fever, Monkeypox, Measles, Malaria and even polio. Why are we seeing these diseases now? And what can we do about them? D...

(CC2.0 / Pixabay / Creative Commons) As we get further into summer and temperatures continue to rise, so does the risk of heat stroke. Across the U.S., an average of 702 people die from heat related illness each year, according to the CDC. Here in Idaho we've already had our first heat -related death of 2023 . While heat stroke can be deadly, it is also preventable. So we invited Dr. Christine Hah...

Clark Corbin at the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro. ( Photo courtesy of Clark Corbin) Its was warm and balmy in early June in Idaho, but half a world away one Idaho reporter was freezing cold on the side of an African mountain. Clark Corbin with the Idaho Capital Sun has a habit of trekking to some very unique locations when he goes on vacation. Last year, he told us about his trip into the wilds of...

(Derek Bruff / Flickr) In a tiny town on a lonely stretch of western highway, a glowing neon drugstore sign beckons as cars and loaded semi-trucks thunder past. A few travelers stop - maybe they're wondering about the vintage soda fountain visible through the window. Inside, they find a time capsule over 100 years in the making. Jeff Whittington has this report for the Mountain West News Bureau.

(Chelsea Beck / NPR) More than 40 million Americans will have to start paying back their student loans after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled the Biden Administration’s loan forgiveness plan isn’t legal. Earlier this year, the Idaho Capital Sun reported that over 79,000 Idahoans could have seen some debt relief if the plan had gone ahead. The paper also found that half of Idahoans who have a federal l...

Money (Pictures of Money / Flickr) “Idaho is the only U.S. state where Blacks earn more than Whites and all other races.” That’s the conclusion of a new study that looks at the history of Blacks in Idaho and asks why the Blackcommunity has had such economic success here. The study is titled “ Idaho Blacks: Quiet Economic Triumph of Enduring Champions ” and it was written by Phillip Thompson, the D...

(iStockphoto.com) Here at Idaho Matters, it's no secret that we are true crime junkies. So when we found an all Idaho true crime podcast about Idaho murderers — we knew we had to have them on. The podcast is called " Ghosts and Garnets: Murder in Idaho " and it's a labor of love for two lifelong friends, who are also true crime junkies. The creators of the show, Whitney Rivera and Camden Schacher,...

( American Association for State and Local History) This September, history practitioners from all over will be coming to Idaho for the annual American Association for State and Local History Conference . The association is a noprofit that works to support those dedicated to preserving and connecting others with history in order to “make the past more meaningful to all people.” Liz Hobson, museum...

Could your clothes be making you sick? The new book " To Dye For: How Toxic Fashion Is Making Us Sick -- and How We Can Fight Back " by award winning journalist Alden Wicker answers this question.

American flags flap in the in the wind. (Lynne Gilbert / Getty Images) Parties are gearing up for the 2024 presidential caucus , federal wildland firefighters are facing a big issue , we take a look at the Idaho Health Data Exchange and the Fourth of July parade returned with some controversy. It’s Friday, which means it's time for our Reporter Roundtable when Idaho Matters gets you up-to-date on...