The Nature Conservancy. Protecting nature. Preserving life.™

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Southwest Montana encompasses a mosaic of habitats that is simply unequalled anywhere in the world. At it's center lies the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, a natural wonderland that reaches far beyond the boundaries of the National Park.

This region provides essential migration routes and winter range for vast herds of elk, bison, and pronghorn antelope. It sustains the world's largest concentration of bighorn sheep and provides some of the last habitat for the continent's great predators including wolves, grizzlies, cougars and wolverines.

Our current efforts focus largely on the Centennial Valley, at the western reach of the Yellowstone system.

Just beyond the Greater Yellowstone lies the Big Hole Valley , another essential piece of this vast natural mosaic. It's also the site of an impressive story of partnership and restoration that beautifully illustrates our work throughout the state. The story is told in the award-winning short film "Fish and Cow".           

Threats

Rapid development here is threatening ranching, destroying wildlife habitat, disrupting wildlife migrations and compromising natural processes such as fire.

Goals and Strategy

The Conservancy's goal is to work in partnership with landowners, conservation groups and public agencies to the most ecologically important lands in this incomparable region. Our approach is to support voluntary, private land conservation and stewardship. Our tools include conservation easements, land acquisition, stewardship agreements, and weed abatement projects.

Science and restoration are also key elements of our work in the Yellowstone system. Our projects include the use of prescribed fire to restore balance to systems such as the rare Centennial Sandhills; re-vegetation of stream sides to improve habitat for Westslope cutthroat trout and Arctic Grayling; and experiments aimed at revitalizing aspen groves.

Preserves

The Centennial Sandhills Preserve shelters a community of shifting dunes that support a number or rare plants.