The purpose of the sustaining prairie wildlife through conservation on the fort belknap reservation project is to implement conservation actions to advance recovery of black footed ferrets greater…

The purpose of the sustaining prairie wildlife through conservation on the fort belknap reservation project is to implement conservation actions to advance recovery of black footed ferrets greater sage grouse swift FOX and ungulate species such as white tailed deer mule deer ELK pronghorn antelope and moose on the fort belknap reservation in montana. These species are highlighted in fort belknap indian community fish and wildlife department five year conservation plan the U.S. Fish wildlife services black footed ferret recovery plan 2013 conservation assessment and strategy for swift FOX 2011 and montana state wildlife action plan 2015. Black footed ferrets are an endangered species and are culturally significant to the fort belknap tribes. Sage grouse are culturally significant to the fort belknap tribes and used to be a source of food for tribal members but have been in decline in recent years. Swift foxes are a native species and a species of concern in this region and recently reintroduced to the fort belknap reservation due to their tribal importance. Furthermore ungulates deer ELK pronghorn moose are an important source of food for fort belknap tribal members. The goals of this project are to improve wildlife management capacity at fort belknap protect and increase the black footed ferret population protect sage grouse populations monitor swift FOX populations and classify and estimate ungulate population numbers. To achieve these goals we will 1 maintain one tribal biologist and increase the technician from zero to one 2 increase the number of black footed ferret population 3 protect sage grouse LEK habitat in at least one range unit 4 monitor and produce knowledge on the newly established swift FOX population 5 conduct aerial ungulate population estimates of each species during the proposed project period october 1 2024 to september 30 2026. Goal 1 deliverables include one tribal wildlife biologist retained on staff within the fort belknap fish and wildlife department and one technician trained to support the biologist with wildlife surveys. Goal 2 deliverables include annual summary reports to the U.S. Fish and wildlife service outlining the number of breeding adult black footed ferrets documented the total number of black footed ferrets vaccinated acres of prairie DOG colonies mapped and an estimate of prairie DOG density in the black footed ferret recovery area. Goal 3 deliverables include annual report of LEK survey results and protection activities to the fort belknap tribal council. Goal 4 deliverables include map DEN sights from annual DEN searches mentor interns on swift FOX DEN searches and PUP estimates report findings to the swift FOX conservation team and fort belknap tribal council. The expected outcomes are increased personnel capacity to protect and increase black footed ferret populations reduce threats to sage grouse an assessment of swift FOX population persistence informing harvest quotas for ungulates. The intended beneficiaries of this project include the fort belknap fish and wildlife department fort belknap tribes aaniiih nakoda college students and interns and a fort belknap tribal member who will serve as a technician. Hitch aviation will likely serve as the pilot flying a fixed wing aircraft for ungulate surveys and an ecologist from smithsonian will assist with black footed ferret vaccinations.