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Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks and the Montana Department of Agriculture are
working together to expedite development of a prairie dog conservation plan that should make it unnecessary to list prairie dogs as a threatened species under the federal Endangered Species Act, according to FWP Director Patrick Graham.
Last October, the National Wildlife Federation petitioned the U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service to list the black-tailed prairie dog under the federal
Endangered Species Act. Montana FWP Director Pat Graham said at the time that
prairie dogs are not threatened with extinction in Montana. The USFWS recently
reopened the opportunity for public comment on the proposed listing of the
prairie dog, including comment on a draft of an 11-state conservation
assessment and strategy, and to consider other state-planning efforts geared to
conservation of the black-tailed prairie dog.
Comments on an early draft of the Montana plan will be taken through Oct. 22. A
draft plan will then be submitted to the USFWS by its Nov. 2 deadline.
Ralph Peck, director of the Montana Department of Agriculture, noted that the
Montana-based conservation plan for prairie dogs includes historical
information about prairie dogs and species associated with prairie dog towns in
Montana, outlines threats to the species and possible conservation-management
strategies and lists research and monitoring needs.
Meanwhile, the 11-state conservation assessment and strategy includes an
overview of the status of the black-tailed prairie dog in 11 states, Canada and
Mexico, and discusses risks, population goals, conservation activities and
research needs in a broad geographic area.
"One-third of the prairie dogs in Montana occur on private land, one-third on
Tribal lands, and one-third on public land," FWP Director Graham said. "To be
successful we need cooperation from all parties to ensure a secure future for
prairie dogs without creating unmanageable conditions for private landowners."
FWP and the Department of Agriculture have scheduled an open house on Oct. 15
at the Yogo Inn in Lewistown at 10 a.m. Both the draft multi-state conservation
plan and the draft conservation plan for Montana will be discussed. Landowners,
Tribal representatives, state and federal agencies and anyone else with an
interest in the issue are encouraged to participate and provide input. Comments
will be incorporated into the draft conservation plan for Montana.
Copies of the draft state plan and the draft multi-state plan can be obtained
from the Wildlife Division, P.O. Box 200701, Helena, MT 59620-0701 (phone:
406-444-2612).
Uploaded: 10/7/1999
Uploaded: 10/7/1999