Tobacco Root Mountains - Land Characteristics and Habitats

Land Characteristics and Habitats

The land is used mostly in livestock grazing and logging. Land stewardship in the North Tobacco Root Mountains and Foothills area is as follows:

• U.S. Federal Agencies: 32,309 acres (130.75 km2), or 14.4% of total area, which include:
• BLM: 17,544 acres (71.00 km2), or 7.8% of total area
• USFS: 14,765 acres (59.75 km2), or 6.6% of total area
• State Agencies: 20,695 acres (83.75 km2), or 9.2% of total area
• Private: 171,985 acres (696.00 km2), or 76.4% of total area

There are 244 terrestrial vertebrate species that are found within the North Tobacco Root Mountains and Foothills including whitetail and mule deer, elk, and black bears. The area is also habitat to a handful of "Tier I" species (Montana Fish Wildlife and Park's classification of nativie species with greatest need of conservation, including the Western Toad, Flaummulated Owl, Bald Eagle, Townsend's Big-eared Bat, Grizzly Bear, and Canada Lynx, who are all under threat of Habitat loss, degradation, and fragmentation, especially as a result of population growth/development .