Description
Project Description: The BLM, Montana/Dakotas Wildlife Program helps ensure self-sustaining populations and a natural abundance and diversity of wildlife on public lands for the enjoyment and use of present and future generations. The program is responsible for maintaining, restoring, and conserving species and their habitats in cooperation with the Federal and State wildlife agencies, and other partner organizations. BLM administered public lands are home to thousands of mammal, reptile, avian, amphibian, and invertebrate species over some of our nations most ecologically diverse and essential habitat. The BLM will work with partners and maintain close collaboration with States, Tribes, other Federal agencies, and other organizations in conserving and restoring wildlife habitats to support wildlife and wildlife uses under a shared conservation stewardship approach. The BLM uses the latest geospatial data technologies to share wildlife and wildlife data within BLM and with partners to work more efficiently. The Wildlife Program leverages funds with other BLM programs to address vegetation restoration that not only improves wildlife habitat, but also increases forage for livestock, improves water quality, removes invasive weed species, and reduces the threat of catastrophic wildfires. The BLM Montana/Dakotas is focusing work in areas to facilitate meeting the priorities of the Administration, Secretary, Congressional appropriations, and the BLM. This includes, but is not limited to, expanding hunting and wildlife viewing opportunities and identifying areas to increase access for these purposes; working with State agencies to meet State wildlife population objectives and working with rural communities to enhance economic opportunities related to wildlife; working to enhance habitat for upland game, waterfowl, big game and watchable wildlife species; providing consistent data to streamline energy and grazing permitting, and working with partners to provide data to streamline land use planning; and partnering with conservation stewardship organizations to increase habitat quality. Expected Outcomes: To expand hunting and other wildlife enjoyment opportunities through: 1. Restoring or improving acres of wildlife habitat or reducing threats to habitat or species; 2. Completing wildlife projects to further wildlife conservation (e.g., water developments, wildlife-friendly fence modifications, etc.); 3. Monitoring and inventorying wildlife populations and habitats; 4. Assessing wildlife habitat and verifying the achievement of resource management goals and objectives; 5. Performing outreach/education projects to facilitate wildlife stewardship and conservation; 6. Protecting, preserving, and restoring various wildlife populations residing on BLM in coordination and collaboration with state agencies and the FWS; 7. Increasing public knowledge of wildlife depending on BLM in some or all of their life cycle; 8. Increasing public awareness of the value of wildlife that depend on BLM managed public lands habitats; 9. Providing complete, current and accurate information on the distribution, abundance, and habitat of wildlife that depend on BLM managed public lands to increase professional and public knowledge and understanding of these resources; 10. Engaging citizen-scientists and students in monitoring and directed research of various BLM dependent species, and their habitats; 11. Collecting data and other information to assess threats to wildlife populations dependent on BLM public lands. 12. Improving how BLM uses and integrates wildlife data and new research into its decision-making processes. Public/BLM Benefits: 1. Provide support to coordinate, integrate, and focus financial and in-kind investments in landscape resiliency and connectivity projects, and in areas of big game winter range, migration corridors or other important seasonal habitats. 2. Provide support for Secretarial Order No. 3347: Conservation Stewardship and Outdoor Recreation; Advance conservation stewardship, improve game and habitat management, and increase outdoor recreation opportunities by identifying areas where hunting and wildlife viewing opportunities can be expanded. 3. Provide support for Secretarial Order No. 3353 (Greater Sage-Grouse Conservation and Cooperation with Western States); Through implementation of collaborative efforts with State and local partners and organizations critical to addressing challenges to habitat conservation, work on sage grouse and their habitats. The BLM will focus on: monitoring of priority habitat areas, maintaining data sets and geospatial information to meet the assessment & monitoring commitments made in the land use plans, providing information to State partners and the public, increasing transparency to ensure strategic implementation of restoration actions, travel and transportation planning, partnership development, and training. Work to promote habitat resiliency and connectivity, which is often conducted in cooperation with industry stakeholders, States, and other partners, will also be directed to highest priority areas where partners are available to leverage and increase capacity. 4. Provide support for Secretarial Order 3356, Hunting, Fishing, Recreational Shooting, and Wildlife Conservation Opportunities and Coordination with States, Tribes, and Territories; 5. Incorporate analysis of the impacts of Federal land and water actions on wildlife habitat, and thus, hunting opportunities in planning and decision making; and, collaborate with state wildlife agencies to attain or sustain wildlife population goals, particularly for wildlife that is hunted. 6. Provide support for Secretarial Order No. 3362 (Improving Habitat Quality in Western Big-Game Winter Range and Migration Corridors); work with state wildlife agencies to include habitat data, and habitat & population objectives to incorporate measurable outcomes into BLM management decisions; apply site-specific management activities that conserve, improve, or restore habitat necessary to sustain local and regional big game populations. 7. Provide support for S.O. 3366, Increasing Recreational Opportunities on Lands and Waters Managed by the U.S. Department of the Interior work with state, tribal, other Federal, and non-governmental organizational partners to inventory public lands for birds and other watchable wildlife species, and to enhance bird and other watchable wildlife habitat in order to increase birding and wildlife viewing opportunities. 8. Collaborate with State, Federal, and non-government organization partners to leverage technical expertise and financial resources (cost share) to effectively assess habitat and wildlife populations in need of conservation or enhancement. 9. Develop and share science-based strategies through professional workshops, meetings, and work groups and conduct essential conservation and restoration actions to maintain sustainable healthy biological communities and wildlife of local and regional importance for reasons such as aesthetics, education, and ecosystem services. 10. Increase the percentage of Bureau Sensitive Species meeting or exceeding established objectives in Resource Management Plans or other conservation plans; including State Fish and Wildlife Agency Wildlife Action Plans. 11. Identify, conserve, and restore priority habitats (those that are locally at risk, important to local or regional communities, and contribute to national conservation for species or groups of species) so that they include native plants and are resilient to environmental stressors, such as drought, wildland fire, other unusual weather events, and insects/disease. 12. Inventory and monitor species populations and habitat, as well as the success of actions, projects, and treatments in areas targeted for habitat conservation and restoration, and continue conversion of wildlife data to regional geospatial coverages in cooperation with partners, while ensuring consistent methodologies in delineating occupied habitat. 13. Coordinate wildlife related environmental education to stimulate public understanding of the BLM role in maintaining and enhancing viable populations of wildlife and wildlife habitat. 14. Support priority projects to primarily benefit wildlife resources. Benefitting wildlife, a public resource serves a public purpose. 15. Develop decision support tools and information to enhance wildlife conservation (in collaboration with all land management entities that need to address a species conservation issue regardless of jurisdictional boundaries).