29/10/2026
In 1989, media mogul Ted Turner purchased the Flying D Ranch, a sprawling 113,613-acre property southwest of Bozeman, Montana. At the time, it was a working cattle ranch. Turner removed all the domestic cattle and introduced a managed herd of bison across the native grasslands.
He placed the land under a conservation easement held by The Nature Conservancy—one of the largest in Montana—ensuring it would never be subdivided or developed. The ranch now supports roughly 4,500 bison.
Then, something unexpected happened.
In 1995, federal wildlife officials reintroduced gray wolves to Yellowstone National Park. By 2002, dispersing packs had traveled beyond the park's boundaries and established new territories on the Flying D.
Turner had a choice. He could protect his bison herd by killing the wolves, as many ranchers in the West would have done. Instead, he gave his staff strict instructions: do not shoot the wolves. Even if they preyed on his livestock.
The wolves formed the Beartrap pack, which eventually grew into one of the largest wolf packs in the region. Researchers spent years studying the pack on Turner's land, gathering valuable data on how wild wolves interact with commercial bison herds.
Turner died in May 2026 at age 87. He left behind a ranch that proved something rare: a private, working agricultural operation could coexist with wild apex predators.
A billionaire. A cattle ranch. A pack of wolves. And an order that went against the grain of the American West.
SOURCES: Futura-Sciences | Turner Endangered Species Fund | Montana Free Press