BILLINGS, Mont. After scattering like wildfire in a gust of wind, 49 bighorn sheep have settled in to their new home in the Little Belt Mountains. “One ewe went 24 miles north on the day of the release, turned around and came back,” said Jay Kolbe, wildlife biologist for the Montana Department of Fish, […]
BRETT FRENCH
After scattering like wildfire in a gust of wind, 49 bighorn sheep have settled in to their new home in the Little Belt Mountains.
âOne ewe went 24 miles north on the day of the release, turned around and came back,â said Jay Kolbe, wildlife biologist for the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife & Parks in White Sulphur Springs.
Kolbe was able to see the large movement because the animals are wearing GPS collars that reveal their location twice a day for as long as five years. One of the five rams trapped and relocated traveled about 10 miles east to the Judith Gap area after release before traveling back to the Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest.
Billings Gazette
Volunteer trappers working in concert with Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks have captured 18 marten since early December for relocation to the Little Belt Mountains. They are the cutest little things, but they are really feisty, said Claire Gower, an FWP wildlife biologist based in Bozeman.
They are in super good condition, she added, except for one older male that had lost an eye, had a ripped ear and a grizzled face. He was a real bruiser.
Marten, a cat-sized member of the weasel family, were historically present in central Montanaâs mountain ranges, including the Little Belts. However, at some point within the last 100 years â possibly due to poisoning or unregulated trapping â the animals disappeared from the region.
Two large conservation easements approved by the Fish and Wildlife Commission last Thursday drew fire for different reasons. This points to the difficulties of negotiating large agreements that benefit public access as well as landowners.
Such agreements in the future will be in the hands of a new Fish, Wildlife & Parks director and fresh leadership in the governorâs office and Legislature.
Whatâs more, the terms of three members of the Fish and Wildlife Commission expire at the end of the year and one member resigned this fall. Glasgow resident Andrew McKean was appointed to fill Logan Brower s term. McKean will face Senate confirmation. That means Gov.-elect Greg Gianforte can name three â possibly four if McKean s nomination is rejected â people to the five-member board.Â