The Hub Conservation Area - Montanans 4 Safe Wildlife Passage

Placid Creek to OvandoSpeciesGeographic BoundaryThis is a forested east-west orientedlinkage northeast of Missoula, MT.It stretches from the Flathead IndianReservation/Mission Mountains in thewest to east of Monture Creek (throughthe Cottonwood Creek drainage) in theSwan Range within the Lolo NationalForest. The linkage area boundaryextends south to Ovando and Highway200. The southern boundary runs southof the Blackfoot-Clearwater WildlifeManagement Area (WMA), and followsBlanchard Creek westward to theFlathead Reservation. The southern endof the Seeley-Swan Valley and SeeleyLake are within this linkage area.Importance of Linkage AreaThis linkage area is important forseasonal movement by ungulates, andfor movement of carnivores betweenseveral core habitat areas, including theMission and Swan Mountains, and theBlackfoot Clearwater WMA. Seeley Lakeis another key wildlife habitat area inthe approximate center of this linkage.Mountain ranges connected in thislinkage: Mission Mountains, Swan Range,Rattlesnake Mountains.Ecological SettingThis linkage includes the middleBlackfoot River above its intersectionwith the Clearwater River throughthe Horseshoe Hills and the BlackfootClearwater WMA, and the lowerClearwater River valley below SeeleyLake. A unique area of pothole wetlandsand small lakes surrounded by wetmeadows, grasslands, and sagebrush(Artemisia tridentata spp.) occupyglacial outwash at the mouth of MontureCreek above Clearwater. Forested areas145outside of river valleys have sustainedintensive and widespread timber harvestand roads are common throughoutthe linkage. South-facing slopes atlower elevations are sparsely forested.Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii) andponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa) arethe dominant species with scatteredpatches of lodgepole pine (P. contorta).Highways 83 and 200 and a major powerline corridor pass through the linkage.Scattered residential development occursalong both highways, along with thesmall communities of Greenough, Sunset,Clearwater, and Ovando. Elevations inthe linkage range from about 4,000 feetto about 7,000 feet.WildlifeThis area currently functions as amovement corridor for grizzly bear,wolves, wolverine, lynx, and elk. PlacidCreek to the crest of the Swan Mountainsmay be important for fisher.Grizzly: This entire linkage area isimportant for grizzly bear, particularlythe western half, which includes SeeleyLake, Placid Creek, Boles Creek, and thesouthern end of the Mission Mountains.Wolves: There are two to three packsliving within the Swan Range. Anotherexisting pack within the Squeezerdrainage moves both southwest towardsthe Bitterroot Valley and north towardsthe Seeley-Swan. They primarily prey onwhitetail deer in the region, which areassociated with mature forests.Wolverines: This area is great wolverinehabitat, particularly around the westernend of the linkage area, such as theSeeley Lake area. The spine of themountains, from Lolo Peak moving northinto the Cabinet Yaaks, is very importantfor wolverine connectivity because of the