Wilderness, Wildlife, and Ecological Values of the
Hyalite-Porcupine-Buffalo Horn Wilderness Study Area
This report is a review of existing data and literature that were available in 2015 pertaining to the Hyalite Porcupine Buffalo Horn Wilderness Study Area which is located in the Gallatin National Forest in the Gallatin Mountains of southcentral Montana.
This report is intended to provide a fairly comprehensive summary of the current ecological conditions of the Hyalite-Porcupine-Buffalo Horn Wilderness Study Area (HPBH WSA) and a discussion of how those conditions may change in the future. It was commissioned by trustees of the Lee and Donna Metcalf Foundation to address a perceived need to gather all the relevant science and data into one document, to facilitate planning, as the fate of the HPBH WSA is decided. Some of the decisions about the future of the HPBH WSA may be made during the Gallatin National Forest Plan Revision which will be a 4-year process beginning in early 2016. This document is not a part of this planning process – it is an independent look at some of the species and issues involved in forest plan revision – but it is hoped that much of the information provided herein will be useful to the Gallatin National Forest, and can save time and money, as that much more comprehensive planning revision proceeds.
This report is intended to provide a fairly comprehensive summary of the current ecological conditions of the Hyalite-Porcupine-Buffalo Horn Wilderness Study Area (HPBH WSA) and a discussion of how those conditions may change in the future. It was commissioned by trustees of the Lee and Donna Metcalf Foundation to address a perceived need to gather all the relevant science and data into one document, to facilitate planning, as the fate of the HPBH WSA is decided. Some of the decisions about the future of the HPBH WSA may be made during the Gallatin National Forest Plan Revision which will be a 4-year process beginning in early 2016. This document is not a part of this planning process – it is an independent look at some of the species and issues involved in forest plan revision – but it is hoped that much of the information provided herein will be useful to the Gallatin National Forest, and can save time and money, as that much more comprehensive planning revision proceeds.
The Full Report, Executive Summary, and Appendix can be downloaded here:
| executive_summary_hpbh_wsa.pdf |
| hpbh_wsa_report.pdf |
| final_appendix_for_report_.pdf |
A public presentation was made on September 28 in the Bozeman Public Library; a copy of that presentation can be downloaded here:
| sept_28_presentation_final.pdf |
Todd Wilkinson writes about our Wilderness Study Area Report and the need for safe refuges for wildlife.
http://www.jhnewsandguide.com/opinion/columnists/the_new_west_todd_wilkinson/wildlife-need-islands-of-safe-natural-habitat/article_951baf90-e845-5e30-9900-c79900361c02.html
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