The high divide headwaters is the land in between the iconic greater yellowstone and crown of the continent landscapes

Straddling the continental divide along the idaho montana border the high divide houses headwaters for the great missouri and columbia watersheds. The landscape is characterized by numerous high elevation mountains ranges expansive sage steppe and large productive valleys that provide a diversity of habitat and serve as a stronghold for wildlife that have disappeared from much of their historic range. The valleys are largely privately owned with livestock and HAY production being the primary land use. Land ownership is a mixture of private and public lands. The high divide also contains important habitat and migration corridors for native fish and wildlife species that need to be maintained across mixed landownership. Focus species identified in the montana partners for wildlife strategic plan within the high divide ecosystem include greater sage grouse arctic grayling westslope cutthroat trout trumpeter swans and grizzly bears. Enhancing habitat at a landscape level for these species will also improve habitat quality and connectivity for many other species. The primary goals of this project are to restore native upland stream and wetland habitats with projects focusing on restoring upland wetland riparian and instream habitats improving both water quality and quantity and improving connectivity across the landscape to support long term ecological resilience.