Sage Spirit

Since publishing Sage Spirit, The American West At A Crossroads with Braided River (2015), Dave has presented extensively in the west and stretching to both coasts, bringing a story of the beautiful, wild, and imperiled Sage-grouse and sagebrush ecosystem to a range of audiences. On assignment for Audubon Magazine in 2019, Dave photographed a 5 year community science study of sagebrush obligate songbirds in eastern Washington state's fragmented sagebrush landscape. The political landscape has tilted significantly since then Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell announced a range wide collaborative conservation plan for Greater Sage-grouse; quickly cancelled by the incoming Trump administration. While millions of acres of once protected core Sage-grouse habitat are being leased for oil and gas development, Greater Sage-grouse have declined by 44% across their range in the last three years. Gunnison Sage-grouse have dipped to an unsustainable global population of 1,800 individuals. What hasn't changed is alongside partners Audubon Rockies, The Wilderness Society, and Sierra Club Wyoming, we continue to advocate for our public lands, sagebrush habitat, and Sage-grouse. The Sagebrush Sea is the fabric that holds the western landscape mosaic together, and home to 350 species, including humans. Habitat destruction for energy extraction remains the number one threat to the sagebrush ecosystem and stabilizing Sage-grouse populations.

Dave continues to photograph, write, and present the dynamic Sage Spirit story wherever there's an audience. The Sage Spirit book is available on this site by clicking "Books" in the header, from Braided River, Amazon, and some Indy stores in the west.