Fish & Wildlife - Region 7
Tuesday, June 02, 2020
Miles City — A public comment period has begun for a draft environmental assessment for the proposed W-Bar Conservation Easement on 6,751 deeded acres in Wibaux County. A public, in-person meeting is scheduled for Thursday, June 18 at the Wibaux County Courthouse, 203 Wibaux St., at 6:30 p.m. Public comments can be submitted at the meeting, or online, by mail or by email. The deadline to submit comments is Saturday, June 27 at 5 p.m.
Conservation easements are partnerships between FWP and willing private landowners to conserve important native wildlife habitats and provide public recreational access. Critical to the landowner, these agreements also allow the land to remain productive for agricultural and foresting activities.
The W-Bar Ranch is located about 10 miles northeast of Wibaux. In addition to the 6,751 acres under conservation easement, the landowners currently hold leases on 120 acres of Bureau of Land Management, for a total conservation footprint of 6,871 acres. The easement would provide protection, enhancement and public access to a unique combination of eastern Montana habitats including grasslands, wooded draws and riparian areas associated with Beaver Creek, Dry Creek and their tributaries.
The native range and riparian areas are excellent wildlife habitat and include important breeding, rearing and wintering habitats for a variety of wildlife (game and non-game), including some Species of Greatest Conservation Need. Big-game species supported by the W-Bar include mule and white-tailed deer, antelope and the occasional elk. It also provides quality upland game bird habitat for sharp-tailed grouse, wild turkey and Hungarian partridge. Furthermore, 11 miles of the Beaver Creek drainage winds through the land, providing valuable aquatic habitat for game fish species including catfish, sauger, northern pike, and walleye, and numerous native non-game fish species including the Iowa darter, several types of shiners, chubs and minnows.
The easement requires that the landowners provide a minimum of 400 hunter days, 200 fishing days and 75 wildlife watching days annually if demand exists.
The proposed three-pasture, rest-rotation grazing system is intended to improve species diversity, forage quality and palatability.
The easement will be purchased with Habitat Montana funds from the sale of hunting licenses and with Pittman-Robertson funds from a federal excise tax on firearms and ammunition.
A draft environmental assessment is available for review and public comment. The EA can be viewed on the FWP website at: http://fwp.mt.gov/news/publicNotices/conservationEasements/ or is available upon request from the FWP Region 7 office, 406-234-0900.
If you have any questions regarding this project or draft EA, please contact:
- Brandi Skone, FWP Wildlife Biologist at 406-853-2620 or bskone@mt.gov or
- Melissa Foster, FWP Wildlife Biologist at 406-852-2032 or mfoster@mt.gov
Public comment is welcome and will be accepted until 5:00 p.m., Saturday, June 27, 2020. Written comments can be submitted at the public meeting, online, mailed or emailed to the address below:
W-Bar Conservation Easement EA Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks Brandi Skone, Wildlife Biologist P.O. Box 1630, Miles City, MT 59301 bskone@mt.gov
Region 7 media contact: Marla Prell, 406-234-0926, MPrell@mt.gov
