Geology museum gets boost

LARAMIE -- A second endowment fund has been created to support the University of Wyoming geological museum.

The university says the S.H. Knight Memorial Fund currently has $18,000.

The Friends of the S.H. Knight Geological Museum donated $8,000, and John and Susan Masterson donated $10,000.

UW officials say they'll use a state matching endowment fund to match donations past $50,000 and up to $750,000.

The university closed the museum in July as part of budget cuts. Public outcry prompted the university to reopen the museum on a part-time basis in August.

In September, the Anne C. and Brainerd Mears Jr. Excellence Fund for University of Wyoming Geological Museum was established with a $570,000 donation from the Mears.

Hunter bags deer, hungry lion

SHERIDAN -- Retired orthopedic surgeon Chris Smith thought his hunt was over when he bagged a white tail deer with a bow and arrow near Sheridan.

Because the light was fading, he decided to return the next day to recover the deer. But when he returned Wednesday morning, the carcass had been covered by grass and bush -- which is what mountain lions typically do.

Smith, who was unarmed, then saw the big cat about 25 yards away.

He backed away slowly and went to call the Wyoming Game and Fish Department. Officials said he had two choices -- return with friends, making noise to scare the animal away, or purchase a mountain lion hunting license.

He opted for the license, and dropped the lion in one shot.

Police investigate fatal shooting

CHEYENNE -- Cheyenne police say a 30-year-old man was shot and killed in a northeast Cheyenne neighborhood.

Officers were en route to a home on Thursday evening in response to a report of a burglary when they received a second report of gunshots at the home.

A Cheyenne Police Department media release says officers found the body of Milton Brown of Cheyenne about a block away from the home. He had been shot several times.

Investigators say Brown had returned to the home after being involved in a disturbance there earlier in the afternoon. Someone inside the home shot Brown as he stood at the front door.

Police have arrested one man and are seeking a second suspect. Formal charges are pending.

Police say the shooting took place in the 4600 block of Carmel Drive, and Brown was found in the 4800 block of Big Sur.

G&F monitors sauger population

LANDER -- Officials with Wyoming Game and Fish say the population of a native sportfish is on the decline.

Sauger like large, slow-moving rivers with warm, muddy water. But the department says sauger numbers have declined because of dams that block migration routes and because of competition with other species.

Department Fisheries Supervisor Kevin Johnson said the Wind River sauger population is one of the few wild populations left in the Missouri River drainage. The department is studying the population in an effort to learn how to protect it from impacts.