APPENDIX G 



SUMMARY OF HABITAT GUIDELINES FOR GRIZZLY BEARS 

 IN WESTERN MONTANA 



The management of habitat that grizzly bears in western Montana require for survival is dependent upon 

 the laws and regulations of both federal and state agencies. These laws and regulations provide the legal 

 basis for providing secure habitat, managing human/bear conflicts, limiting access where necessary, 

 controlling livestock grazing, and monitoring habitats. In addition, tribal designations and wildlife 

 management programs, coupled with corporate, individual and community based stewardship initiatives 

 form an integral part of grizzly bear habitat conservadon efforts by providing regional and local support. 

 Consequently, management direction, standards and guidelines for the grizzly bear in western Montana 

 are currently located in numerous documents. The following represents a synopsis of current habitat 

 direction for grizzly bears across the 17-county area of this management plan. Corporate, tribal, state and 

 federal plans and conservation strategies are compared in tabular form after the narrative. 



1. Private Lands 



American Wild lands (AWL) 



AWL is a regional conservation organization that advocates working with community residents, local 

 land trusts, agency biologists and county and transportation planners in an effort to create a network of 

 habitat linkage zones that allow for safer wildlife movement between core protected areas in the 

 Northern Rockies. Their Safe Passages project and Corridors of Life program employs Geographic 

 Information Systems (GIB) technology to identify potential wildlife corridors. This information is used to 

 promote the design of more wildlife friendly highways and construct animal crossings. 



Blackfoot Challenge (BC) 



The BC is a watershed-wide stewardship group whose mission is to coordinate efforts that will enhance, 

 conserve and protect the natural resources and rural lifestyle of Montana's Blackfoot River Valley for 

 present and future generations. In addition to engaging in voluntary' efforts to reduce grizzly bear- 

 human conflicts, the group has begun to coordinate management strategies for grizzly bears and 

 participate in the USGS Grizzly Bear DNA study. Work in the Blackfoot is monitored with help from 

 Montana FWP and data integrated into a GIS database to facilitate spatial monitoring for management 

 application. In addition, the BC has established a Conservation Strategies Committee which is currently 

 working with private landowners to conserve intact landscapes through voluntary conservation 

 easements. 



Blackfoot Community Project 



The Blackfoot Community Project is a land transaction program involving the Blackfoot Challenge, The 

 Nature Conservancy and Plum Creek Timber Company. This community-based effort provides an 

 opportunity for local residents to guide the future ownership and management of nearly 88,000 acres of 

 large, relatively intact landscapes with critical community, agricultural and biological values in the 

 Blackfoot Valley. Land will be purchased and re-sold according to a community-driven plan. 



In the first phase of the project, the Montana Nature Conservanc}' (TNC), on behalf of the Blackfoot 

 Community Project, acquired 42, 927 acres of former Plum Creek Timber Company lands and is in the 

 process of re-selling them to private buyers with conservation agreements and to public buyers, in 

 accordance with the community-developed plan. In 2005, TNC purchased an additional ILOOO acres 



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