Montana Fish and Wildlife commissioners recently approved 19 projects aimed at restoring and improving wild fish habitat around the state.
The program aims to help rebuild critical aquatic habitats and protect sensitive fish species.
Arctic grayling, bull trout and mountain whitefish are just a handful of species that stand to benefit from the efforts.
The projects are part of the state’s Future Fisheries Improvement Program which provides funding and assistance to groups working to improve aquatic habitat.
Project Coordinator Michelle McGree says, “These habitat projects are important to support the fisheries not only recreationally, but also economically with people that are visiting Montana, visiting the communities, and wanting to have a good fishing experience.”
McGree says work includes improving fish passage through culvert replacements, installing riparian fencing and creating spawning habitat.
The approved projects will receive seven million dollars in program funding and are located in communities around the state including Butte, Missoula, Dillon and Glasgow.
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Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum announced a proposal Tuesday to return the federal management of grizzly bears to state governments.
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Since 2001, American Prairie has worked to create the largest wildlife reserve in the lower 48. That plan includes grazing 900 head of bison on state and federal lands. But legal seesawing between land managers, government agencies and American Prairie has put that plan into limbo. MTPR’s Victoria Traxler sat down with the Billings Gazette Outdoors Editor Brett French to learn where things currently stand for American Prairie bison, and what may come next.
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Heavily trafficked roads act just like a giant wall, blocking wildlife from safely moving across. Highways can cause fatal collisions for people and animals, and present conservation challenges as well.That’s a problem when you’re trying to get separate populations of grizzly bears to connect. Now, new research is identifying high-traffic roads that can make it impossible for bears to cross.
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Grassland ecosystems are one of the most threatened in the world. Some of the last largest grasslands in North America, can be found here in Montana. Now, researchers are studying the birds that rely on these habitats to better understand their declines.
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Missoula is the first, and only, city in Montana to manage parks without the use of pesticides. While the city has piloted this approach in several parks, some residents would like to see the efforts expand.
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Montana has some of the largest intact grassland ecosystems in North America. And that same land is also cattle country. Collaborations and innovative techniques that try to bring biodiversity back – from the soil to the sky – are on the rise in Montana, finding a way to try to balance running cattle, saving birds, and maintaining the last of the prairie.