The Montana special drawing status for Big Horn Sheep permits were released today and the Montana FWP website informed me that I was unsuccessful. Like many of you, I keep applying faithfully every year and each year I am always excited to check my status to see if I finally drew the most coveted hunting tag on the planet! Even though I was unsuccessful I am reminded that it is a true blessing that our wild sheep population is robust enough that I have an opportunity to apply. As a chapter we have many successes we can count in 2018/2019.

• Our Montana Wild Sheep Foundation (MTWSF) membership continues to grow with over 400 members and life members.
• MTWSF now has a voice with the Montana Department of Transportation (MDT) after a wildlife and transportation summit held last December. Many of our wild sheep are killed on Montana roads so having a voice on the MDT panel regarding road building and wildlife movement corridors can help mitigate wild sheep road kills in the future.
• Our 2019 Billings fundraiser was an overwhelming success. There were over 500 people in attendance over the two day event. The money we raised allows MTWSF to give out many thousands of dollars in grants each year for youth events, wild sheep studies, wild sheep captures, and critical habitat purchase or enhancement. Hopefully in the near future we’ll be able to help fund wild sheep transplants.
• MTWSF helped fund youth programs that reached over 500 area youth and helped fund scholarships to over 100 conservation and hunting camps in 2018 and 2019. There will be 3 MTWSF/”Montana Matters” youth camps this summer in the Selway Bitterroot wilderness corridor. Teaching youth about wild sheep issues will be growing our wild sheep conservation leaders for the future.
• MTWSF helped to fund a cheat grass control study on Wild Horse Island. The study was an enormous success and it shows the potential for revolutionary control of cheat grass on public and private land. You’ll see more information on that study in this newsletter.
• Thanks to Brian Solan writing a grant request, a $100,000 conservation easement grant was awarded to MTWSF to purchase the Garrity WMA addition near Anaconda. This is a very important piece of property for public access and is integral habitat for a big horn sheep migration corridor. The land will benefit all wildlife and sportsman access in perpetuity.
• MTWSF helped fund a multi-year habitat improvement project in the Petty Creek drainage west of Missoula. The area continues to yield excellent hunter opportunity for wild sheep as well as elk, deer, moose, turkeys, and more. The project is a multi-year, multi-organizational collaboration to reduce weeds and enhance habitat; as well as a forest management project to reduce wild fire danger and intensity.

There are many more projects and successes I can list. We’re still seeking more answers for wild sheep disease issues and continue to stress the utmost importance of wild sheep and domestic sheep separation. Our wild sheep population is still at risk, but as long as we continue to work towards finding a solution, we are winning the battle. Just like drawing a Big Horn Sheep tag, you can’t win if you don’t apply. In order to see our wild sheep herds restored to abundance we must continue to stay the course as an organization and one day we’ll see our wild sheep herds prosper in new areas throughout Montana and beyond.

Shane Clouse
Montana Wild Sheep Foundation President
shane@shaneclouse.com
(406) 370-4487

2019 Legislative Session Update: MTWSF’s Role

Story by: DJ Berg

The Montana Wild Sheep Foundation not only helps fund projects and programs, but it also has an advocacy role in state and national legislation. The Board of Directors frequently reviews legislation and offers positions for bills that affect sportsman and specifically, wild sheep. Executive Director Brian Solan is the voice of the chapter on the hill, and he consistently advocates for wild sheep during legislative sessions and FWP commission meetings. This session MTWSF advocated against a bill that would limit wild sheep permits to “once in a lifetime” and restrict youth under 18 from hunting wild sheep. The Board stayed neutral on a bill allowing the pickup of wild sheep horns that died of natural causes after a split vote. MTWSF also offers support and constructive criticism on policy affecting the Montana Fish Wildlife and Parks.

Read the whole article in the MWSF Newsletter Summer 2019

Cheating Habitat Part 2:  Bighorn Sheep, Wild Horse Island and Beyond?

Story by: Kurt Alt, WSF Conservation Director Montana and International Projects

The Fall 2018 Newsletter article, “Cheating Habitat – Bighorn Sheep, Wild Horse Island and Beyond”, describes a project to implement experimental treatments using micronutrient fertilizers to control invasive annual grass, including cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum). This is an update of that project.

In September 2018, experimental plots were established…

Read the whole article in our MWSF Newsletter Summer 2019