Yesterday, Montana’s House and the Senate voted through the below bills related to wolves and bears.⁣ There’s a link in my bio to a series of resources from press releases and how to contact Montana’s Governor and state politicians. These bills affect bison, bears (black and grizzly), wolves and the health of landscapes as a whole.⁣ These bills come from small private special interest groups in Montana and are not based upon science-based wildlife management. Hunters, anglers, wildlife watchers and citizens of Montana should be deeply concerned. ⁣ ⁣ SB 314⁣ Bill passed 64-36 on a mostly party line vote. Three Republicans broke ranks (Greef, Nave, and Putnam) to vote against the bill. ⁣ ⁣ Synopsis: Establishes the intent of wolf hunting and trapping seasons that could reduce Montana’s wolf population to a minimum of 15 breeding pairs. Would also allow FWP to authorize a single individual to kill an unlimited number of wolves. Finally, it allows night hunting on private lands with the use of artificial light or night vision scopes.⁣ ⁣ HB 468⁣ Bill passed 28-22. Three Republicans broke ranks (Molnar, Weborn, and Saloman) and voted against the bill. Brad Molnar (Billings) spoke out against the bill arguing that it could lead to the delisting of the Grizzly Bear b/c the hunt will be held in the Spring and cubs could easily die without their mothers. ⁣ ⁣ Synopsis: Authorizes the use of dogs while hunting black bears and establishes a training season from end of spring until June 15 of that year. ⁣ ⁣ SB 337⁣ Bill passed 67-33 on a straight party line vote. ⁣ ⁣ Synopsis: Establishes that the FWP can respond to any bear that is 'causing conflict outside of a federal recovery zone.' Additionally, 'If the bear is to be relocated the department may not relocate the bear.' Which, in our reading, means the bear must be killed.⁣ ⁣ SJ 18⁣ Bill passed 68-32 Rep. Fielder offered an amendment that would extend the resolution to the entire state instead of concentrating on areas that 'meet the criteria.' The amendment also states that the management of Montana's grizzly bears would exempt the delisting of grizzly bear populations from judicial review. ⁣ Link in my bio for info