Wisdom River Ranch and Grayling Habitat Under Easement

By Lucia Stewart, 12-12-07

	Caption: Guy Peterson, left, and son Calvin on the ranch. photo courtesy of Rick Smith, Phlogiston Media.

A critical 2,600-acres in the Big Hole Valley that contain two crucial tributaries for the imperiled river-dwelling Artic grayling, is now covered under a Nature Conservancy conservation easement.

The Wisdom River Ranch, a working cattle ranch, is one of 30 other ranches in the Big Hole Valley who are a part of a major effort to improve the fisheries in the remaining 4 percent of grayling habitat. But with continued water shortages, landowners, guide businesses, management, municipalities and ranchers have strained to make collective efforts to maintain the lifeblood of the valley.

In a two-part film series titled, Fish and Cow, (Part 1 and Part 2), the Wisdom River Ranch and owner Guy Peterson, as well as other valley ranchers, discuss the previously hostile debate over the valley’s decreasing water, their livelihood raising cattle and hay, and the biological efforts to restore and maintain habitat for the artic grayling and other fish species.

After a massive fish kill occurred in 1994 due to record low water, controversy precipitated that appealed Montana Governor Marc Racicot’s involvement to set the ground rules for respectful communication and conversation under one roof.

The Big Hole River Drought Management Plan was then adopted in 2000 to assist in mitigating damage to the fisheries during dry years. And today, 30 landowners in the area have signed the ”Candidate Conservation Agreements with Assurances” with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Montana FWP. This protects the landowner from penalties from endangered species habitat degradation as long as steps to improve the habitat are taken, including planting native willow and fencing to restore and stabilize stream banks. Not all efforts have been successful, as the grayling continues to be rejected from being listed as an endangered species.

The Wisdom River ranch received significant tax benefits under the Pension Protection Act, which expires at the end of this year unless Congress extends it.

“With this easement, we could keep this a working cattle ranch and keep it in the family,” said one of the ranch owners, Arlene Winn, in a press release. “Plus the easement provided a good source of cash to help our ranch operation.” The ranch was first homesteaded in the late 1800’s by the owner’s great-grandfather.

The Wisdom River Ranch conservation easement brings the total number of acres under easement in the valley to about 41,600 acres.