We all know that wildlife don’t follow jurisdictional boundaries. We’ve watched the effects of Climate Change impact the environment, regardless of whether the land is Tribal; State; Federally; or Privately owned. And while seeking food, a bear may be looking for a loaded serviceberry bush, but we know they won’t pass up on a household garbage can or an unsecured chicken coop.

In the wildlife and habitat conservation field, the issues we face are often complex and the scope lies beyond any single management boundary. We rely on effective coordination with one another, across jurisdictions and legal boundary lines, to make the greatest impact on wildlife and their habitats. By working together, we can pool resources, expertise, and funding to have a larger impact than any one entity could, alone. For example, regional research and monitoring efforts on Threatened and Endangered species like the North American Wolverine, or Canada Lynx. Data collected across a larger landscape, supplied by multiple State; Tribal; Federal; and Non-Profit agencies, can help researchers model more accurately and provide important insights into species recovery and conservation.

Coordinating habitat management between agencies can also improve landscape consistency. Coordinated burning schedules and water delivery, even weed spraying can increase the impact of any single effort. Wildlife agencies working with non-profit organizations have also helped to secure important habitats through conservation easements. This can help protect larger landscapes, by protecting important travel corridors and connecting already protected habitat complexes.

Another element of this collaboration that we can’t forget to highlight, are the wonderful people in the communities that we live in! They are the stakeholders that share the landscape with wildlife, who also enjoy a healthy ecosystem. They recreate, and are also the volunteers that help count birds and collect important data for programs like the Montana Bee Atlas! We know that our work doesn’t happen in a vacuum, and it takes careful coordination and collaboration to conserve wild spaces and their inhabitants.

In 2026, our Annual Conference of the Montana Chapter of The Wildlife Society will seek to honor one another and celebrate the incredible partnerships we have that enable us to achieve the great work that we all do! Keep up the great work!