Conservation Project Aims To Keep Species Off T&E Lists

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A draft of Montana’s contribution to a nationwide assessment of America’s fish and wildlife was released today for public review by Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks.

Once complete, Montana’s Comprehensive Fish and Wildlife Conservation Strategy (CFWCS) will bring the state a step closer to securing long-term federal funding needed to conserve and manage hundreds of species that fall in the conservation gap between the state’s major game animals and those that are threatened or endangered.

“This statewide assessment identifies Montana’s critical wildlife habitats and the animals that need special attention,” said T.O. Smith, who coordinated the project for FWP. “The goal is to keep species from becoming threatened or endangered and to keep fish and wildlife management decisions in the hands of Montana citizens."

Montana’s 600-page draft document identifies 636 species of birds, mammals, fish, reptiles, amphibians, crayfish and mussels. It represents two years of work to compile and develop fish, wildlife and habitat conservation needs identified by government agencies, private groups, universities and others in the state.

"This has been a collaborative effort to bring together valuable species and habitat information," said Smith. "We sifted through all the existing information, compiled it for the first time, and then attempted to determine Montana’s greatest conservation needs."

The federal government is requiring states to develop these documents to ensure that State Wildlife Grant (SWG) funds are being used efficiently and for the states to remain eligible for future SWG allocations. Montana, like other states, must submit its effort to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service by Oct. 1. All the states hope the work leads to long-term commitment of federal funds to contribute to the states’ conservation resource pool.

SWG, the pilot federal funding source created by Congress in 2001, is currently the nation’s core program to fund fish and wildlife programs for species in the greatest need of conservation—those for which biological information is lacking, whose populations are in decline, or that are at risk of decline . The money, which must be matched dollar-for-dollar with nonfederal funds, is intended to enable state fish and wildlife agencies to broaden their focus to include species of greatest conservation need to better prevent or reverse population declines without exclusively tapping into traditional funding sources.

Since 2002, Montana has received more than $5 million in SWG funds for fish and wildlife conservation programs, including prairie-stream surveys; native Arctic grayling and cutthroat trout restoration; loon research; wolf and grizzly bear management planning; and inventories of small mammals and reptiles.

Montana’s draft assessment has four main components based on geography, fish and wildlife communities, species in the greatest need of conservation, and species that need to be inventoried. Those components were subsequently placed into tiers of conservation need, from those in greatest need to those with fewer needs for additional conservation efforts. The assessment identifies 60 species of greatest conservation need and the habitats they rely on. Species include:

* one mussel: the western pearlshell

* three amphibians: the boreal toad, Coeur d’Alene salamander, and the northern leopard frog

* five reptiles: the milk snake, smooth green snake, snapping turtle, spiny softshell turtle, and western hognose snake

* 19 birds, including the burrowing owl and long-billed curlew

* 15 mammals, including the lynx and spotted bat

* 17 fish, including the Yellowstone cutthroat trout and the endangered pallid sturgeon.

Of the 60 species, 22 have previously developed conservation plans and 11 are listed as threatened or endangered species, Smith said. He stressed , however, that Montana’s   assessment is not a regulatory plan. "It simply points to areas where species are doing well and to areas that need attention and, most important, it lays the groundwork for developing affordable conservation partnerships in the future."

Anyone interested in commenting or learning more about the CFWCS can attend one of seven scheduled community gatherings set for July and August at FWP Regional Offices:

July 12 - Billings, 2300 Lake Elmo Dr, 6:30-8:00 pm.

July 13 – Glasgow, Route 1-4210, 7-9 pm.

July 14 – Miles City, Industrial Site West, 6-8 pm.

July 18 – Missoula, 3201 Spurgin Rd, 6:30-8:30 pm.

July 19 – Great Falls, 4600 Giant Springs Rd, 7-9 pm.

July 20 – Bozeman, 1400 S.19 th Ave, 7-9 pm.

Aug. 3 - Kalispell, 490 North Meridian Rd, 6-8 pm.

The draft document is available and comments can be submitted online by clicking on "Draft CFWCS " link under Hot Topics at fwp.mt.gov. Hard copies will also be available at state libraries, FWP regional offices, and at the FWP Butte, Havre, and Lewistown resource offices beginning July 15.

Written comments will be accepted through Aug. 14 and can be addressed to: Comprehensive Fish and Wildlife Conservation Strategy; Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks, P.O. Box 200701; Helena, MT 59620-0701. For information, call 406-444-3889.

After public review of Montana’s Comprehensive Fish and Wildlife Conservation Strategy, the final document must be submitted to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service by Oct. 1. For information, call 406-444-3889 or your nearest FWP office.