Chapter 5 - The Wildlife Crossing on the Flathead Indian Reservation in Montana, USA: Respecting the Spirit of Place

Summary

The section of U.S. Highway 93 North that runs through the Flathead Indian Reservation in western Montana spans approximately 56 miles, from about Evaro, MT, in the south, to Polson, MT, in the north. This north-south stretch of U.S. 93 Highway cuts right through one of Montana's primary east-west wildlife migration corridors and, in doing so, “runs through large expanses of wildlife habitat, including the Mission Mountains, the Bob Marshall Wilderness Complex, and the Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness Area,” thus fragmenting these habitats and making improved connectivity a priority in this area. Recent infrastructure and corridor-related work along this stretch of highway has helped to restore connectivity in this area and has benefited ecosystems, people, and wildlife in the process.

Just outside of the Evaro area, near Arlee, along Highway 93, travelers will come across what is known as the “Animals’ Trail,” or a 197-foot-wide vegetated bridge, which allows wildlife to safely cross over the highway. The overpass itself is most visible along this stretch of highway; however, it is but one of many wildlife crossings along Highway 93. In short, the wildlife-friendly structures in this area represent the joint efforts of the Montana Department of Transportation (MDT), Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes (CSKT), and Federal Highways Administration (FHWA), which worked together to build this infrastructure not only to reduce human-wildlife traffic accidents but also to protect wildlife migration routes. The project was first proposed in 1989 by the MDT, which wanted to expand this section of U.S. 93 into a four-lane highway. The expansion, however, would have extended into the Flathead Indian Reservation, home to the CSKT. Eventually, the FHWA, MDT, and CSKT convened and “established a tri-governmental team to reach an agreement. From that process came a radical idea: instead of focusing on how the road will impact the land, focus on how the land should shape the road. The team called this approach a ‘Spirit of Place.’” These groups worked together productively to improve connectivity in ways that not only increased human safety but were also sensitive to the needs of wildlife, in particular by incorporating traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) and respect for the land, through its focus on the “spirit of place,” which “takes into account the surrounding mountains, plains, hills, forests, valleys, and sky.