Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte, as well as all four members of the state’s federal delegation signed on to a letter last month claiming American Prairie’s bison restoration project is at odds with the state’s economy. The five men sent the letter to Department of Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, the former governor of North Dakota. The […]| Daily Montanan
As Montana’s general rifle season for deer and elk kicks off this weekend, state wildlife managers have made some changes to deer licenses in the state in response to localized disease outbreaks. Every year in Montana small pockets of game animals, usually white-tailed deer, succumb to diseases. A family hemorrhagic diseases that includes epizootic hemorrhagic […]| Daily Montanan
The Montana Land Board voted 4-1 to approve a conservation easement across a more than 50,000-acre swath of land spanning three counties in northwest Montana, permanently providing public access and protecting wildlife habitat. Phase Two of the Montana Great Outdoors Conservation Easement Project will more than double the protected land in the Cabinet Mountains between […]| Daily Montanan
Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks and the department’s Fish and Wildlife Commission are named defendants in two lawsuits arguing, from opposite sides, that the latest wolf hunting regulations violate the state constitution. First, a pair of Republican lawmakers and the Outdoor Heritage Coalition filed a lawsuit in Sanders County District Court alleging that the Fish […]| Daily Montanan
Gov. Greg Gianforte ceremonially signed two fire-related bills from Rep. Llew Jones, R-Conrad, on Wednesday, which also ended his annual tour of all 56 Montana counties. Gianforte signed House Bill 127, which increases funding in the state’s fire suppression fund. It also mandates the Department of Natural Resources and Conservation submit a report on expenditures […]| Daily Montanan
Investigations into two separate poaching cases by Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks have led to recent charges against four men, the department said in a series of press releases last week. A special prosecutor filed charges against three Big Horn County men in Montana’s 22nd Judicial District Court alleging the unlawful killing of several bull […]| Daily Montanan
It’s easy to watch Brad Pitt’s flyline unfurl in a perfect ‘S’ curve over the Gallatin River and know that image has helped feed into Montana’s status as an angling destination. It’s more difficult to determine exactly what kind of impact the fishing world has on the Treasure State. But that’s what the 2023 Legislature […]| Daily Montanan
Part of the Big Hole River closed to anglers due to low streamflows has been reopened by Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks. Section 2 of the river — from the North Fork of the Big Hole River to Dickie Bridge — was lifted on Wednesday. It is the only section of the river currently open […]| Daily Montanan
The shutdown of the federal government, which began Wednesday, could have a more visible presence in Montana due to the outsized impact the National Park system has on Montana’s economy. According to a report released Monday by the National Park Service, the state is a top-15 benefactor of national parks in terms of visitor spending, […]| Daily Montanan
Glacier National Park remains open to visitors during the federal government shutdown, which a former superintendent said could lead to trash pileup, a lack of communication for visitors and limited emergency response operations. Last month, former Glacier National Park Superintendent Jeff Mow joined more than 40 former national park superintendents in signing a letter urging […]| Daily Montanan
TWIN BRIDGES – Brian Wheeler has spent a fair bit of the last six years wearing waders in the middle of the Big Hole River documenting river conditions and collecting samples of macroinvertebrates. Put simply, the river guide and conservationist has spent a lot of time scrubbing rocks and collecting bugs in small sections of […]| Daily Montanan
During the past two years, nonresident tourists visiting Montana spent an estimated $5.28 billion in the Treasure State annually, a roughly 9% decrease from the previous two years but one of the highest estimates on record. That’s according to a new report by the Institute for Tourism and Recreation Research (ITRR) at the University of […]| Daily Montanan
LOLO – Reaction time during a bear encounter is the focus of a new effort from Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks to better educate the public about grizzlies and black bears. And it involves a bear on wheels that can reach about the same top speed as a grizzly can — more than 30 mph. […]| Daily Montanan
Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks officials suspect a hemorrhagic disease is the culprit behind several dozen white-tailed deer deaths in northwest Montana, and the department is also following reports of localized outbreaks in deer and antelope in the southeast part of the state. The department received reports of roughly two dozen dead deer near Eureka […]| Daily Montanan
A federal judge in Missoula this week found that the U.S. Forest Service violated the law when authorizing expanded commercial livestock grazing leases north of Yellowstone National Park. In an order handed down Wednesday, U.S. District Court Judge Donald Molloy found that an Environmental Assessment conducted by the Forest Service was insufficient, as it did […]| Daily Montanan
A federal judge has directed the U.S. Department of the Interior and an irrigation corporation to stop diverting water from the Upper Clark Fork River near Deer Lodge to prevent harm to endangered bull trout. U.S. District Court Judge Brian Morris on Wednesday issued a temporary restraining order in a suit brought by two organizations, […]| Daily Montanan
A hiker who suffered serious but non-life threatening injuries from a bear in Yellowstone National Park has been released from the hospital, a press release from the park said. National Park Service workers investigated the incident and found a carcass near where the hiker was attacked and confirmed grizzly tracks. The man discharged bear spray […]| Daily Montanan
MISSOULA — For the second time in two years a youth-led lawsuit challenging the government’s role in climate change is seeing the inside of a Montana courtroom — this time with more plaintiffs and Democratic political consultant John Podesta as a key witness. Twenty-two youth are suing the Trump administration over the president’s executive orders […]| Daily Montanan