PRELIMINARY MANAGEMENT PLAN 



for the 



BECKMAN WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT AREA 



INTRODUCTION 



LeRoy Byron Beckman's Last Will and Testament established the RBB Deer Lands Trust 

 Fund to acquire "WINTER-SUMMER range lands PRIMARILY FOR DEER, as a Public 

 Hunting Ground". Mr. Beckman's Will then instructs the RBB Deer Lands Trust Fund to 

 transfer the title and management of the land to the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife 

 and Parks (MFWP). 



Because of the 1987 Wildlife Habitat Acquisition Act (House Bill 526) the Montana Fish, 

 Wildlife and Parks Commission adopted rules which specify that a Preliminary Manage- 

 ment Plan be written before any final action shall be taken on newly acquired lands. This 

 Preliminary Management Plan is intended to give an immediate general analysis and to 

 provide the basis for public comment. 



The Preliminary Management Plan identifies MFWP's management goals for the property. 

 More specific work activities will be formulated for the final Management Plan after proper 

 inventories have been made, compliance requirements met, and after public comments 

 have been reviewed. The final Management Plan will be available for public review prior 

 to being approved by the Commission. Once the final Management Plan is in place, it will 

 be reviewed periodically and necessary adjustments incorporated. 



After the Steiners' Trail's End Ranch is purchased and given to MFWP it will become the 

 Beckman Wildlife Management Area (BWMA). The BWMA will be managed by MFWP. 

 primanly, for mule and white-tailed deer and upland game birds. Agricultural practices, 

 such as producing hay and grazing livestock, will be used as necessary to meet habitat 

 objectives for the primary wildlife species, and for other wildlife species when appropriate. 



AREA DESCRIPTION 



Location and Physiographic Characteristics: 



The Steiners' ranch is 2,565 acres located in the Judith River breaks, Fergus County, 12 

 miles northeast of Denton. Montana (see map Appendix 1 ). The Judith River flows from 

 the southwest to the northeast across 3.6 miles of the property. Along the river are almost 

 1000 acres of bottom lands The remaining acres are classified as river breaks. They 

 consist of steep-sided coulees with ridges and benches that drain into the bottoms. There 

 are 12 coulees that run water intermittently, in which there are 7 perennial springs. The 



Imp 



