Vore will be the area management biologist in Kalispell for the Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks. He’ll cover the area of the South and Middle Forks of the Flathead River as well as the Swan River basin.

In 2001, Vore transferred from the Kalispell area. So, in a way, he’s going home.

But it’s not without sadness he leaves the Bitterroot Valley.

“A lot of things I was involved with here are going to be getting to fruition in the very near future,” Vore said.

One of the most important efforts he took on as wildlife biologist was championing wildlife habitat up and down the valley. The biggest threat to habitat is simple – development, Vore said.

Uncontrolled development has fragmented wildlife habitat in the Bitterroot and other places in western Montana. Big game animals, such as elk and mule deer, are particularly susceptible to pressures from development, he said. In many places, what makes good winter range for these animals is also attractive to developers.

“About 70 percent of elk winter range is private land and this is the stuff that’s seeing a lot of pressure from development,” Vore said.

While in the valley, Vore served on the Bitter Root Land Trust’s lands committee. In this capacity, he was able to help the land trust identify important places for wildlife, said Land Trust board president, John Ormiston.

“I thought he was a real asset to the wildlife resources and land conservation efforts in the Bitterroot Valley while he was here and we’ll miss him,” Ormiston said.

Vore also was selected as a member of the Ravalli County Open Lands Board. While on the board, Vore led an effort to draft criteria for which the board would review open lands projects.

Ormiston also served on the Open Lands Board with Vore.

From his research, Vore knew what lands were important to elk and mule deer, where the animals wintered and what specific land was in need of protection, Ormiston said.

“That’s the kind of knowledge that he brought to the open lands project,” he said.

Of all his work in the Bitterroot, the conservation efforts are what Vore is most proud of.

And as the county continues with the countywide zoning project, Vore is encouraged because zoning will help wildlife.

“We have a fantastic opportunity in the Bitterroot Valley if we do zoning right, it’s going to be a definite plus and benefit for everybody,” Vore said.

Maybe the busiest time of the year for Vore was hunting season. Many valley hunters talked to Vore as they stopped at the Darby hunter’s check station. Some of the fondest moments for him were visiting with young hunters who were bringing home their first animal, usually an elk or a deer.

“They’re so proud of it,” Vore said with his well-worn smile. “That’s pretty special, I’m happy to have been in some way just a small part of that for them.”

Vore’s replacement will hopefully be in place by the summer, said FWP regional director Mack Long.

“John’s a great guy. I wish him the best and I hate to seem him go,” Long said.

Turkey season to kick-off in the Bitterroot - by Greg Lemon

The gobble of a tom as he struts his plumage for willing hens is now a tell-tale sign of spring in the Bitterroot Valley.

Turkey hunting used to be a sport for hunters east of the Mississippi or in the southwest, but not anymore. Now turkey hunting is one of the fastest growing hunting sports in Montana, said Chris Fortune, regional director for National Wild Turkey Federation.

The Bitterroot Valley holds one of the healthiest populations of wild turkeys in western Montana, Fortune said.

A decade ago, turkeys were rare in the valley. But through reintroductions, the population has not only stabilized, but blossomed.

“It’s been a tremendous success story, to be honest with you,” he said.

Turkey season kicks off April 12 and runs through May 18. Ravalli County is one of the few places in western Montana where hunters can buy over-the-counter turkey tags.

“There hasn’t been many cases where we’ve gone from no hunting permits to basically – five or six years later – selling them over the counter,” Fortune said.

The bird’s success in the Bitterroot is encapsulated in one word – habitat, said John Vore, wildlife biologist with Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks.

The west side of the valley has prime habitat for Merriam turkeys, which are the subspecies of turkeys most prevalent in the valley. These birds thrive in ponderosa pine stands, Vore said.

Most of the birds are located on private land, though as the snow melts, they often follow it up the hillsides on to the national forest, feeding on pinecones buried all winter, Fortune said.

In some places, flocks of 100 birds or more have been reported, Vore said.

Since some of the best hunting is on private land, both Fortune and Vore encourage hunters to ask around for hunting permission. Turkeys can be harvested with archery equipment or a shotgun.

Like hunting rutting elk, successful turkey hunters usually call in their prey, Fortune said.

Turkeys mate in the spring and during the mating season, toms, or male turkeys, actively pursue and tempt the hens. This includes impressive displays of plumage, some battling with other toms, and mating calls to locate mates.

The toms’ focus on mating leaves them vulnerable to hunters skilled with turkey calls. Montana regulations allow hunters only to shoot male turkeys.

Turkey calls can vary from box calls and slate calls to diaphragm calls, Fortune said. The box call is the simplest to use and hunters can master it in a day.

Even though turkeys will come to a call, they also can be very wary. Turkeys have excellent hearing and phenomenal eyesight, he said.

“Researchers say a turkey can see a human blink (his or her) eye at 50 yards,” Fortune said.

For this reason, stealth is required for successful hunters.

Sometime locating turkeys can be difficult. For this, Fortune suggests some form of predator call. While turkeys are roosting at night, they are always wary of predators, like owls, coyotes or foxes.

Sometimes while it’s still dark and turkeys are roosting in trees, hunters can use a coyote call or owl call, which will prompt turkeys to respond.

“The gobblers will actually gobble to what they feel is a threat,” he said.

One of the good things about turkey hunting is the ability to hunt close to home without hiking into the backcountry. This also makes it a great way to introduce kids to hunting, Fortune said.

“I’ve taken a lot of kids out and everyone of them has had a great experience,” he said.

Over the past few years as turkey hunting has gained popularity in the Bitterroot, more private landowners have been willing to allow hunters on their land, Fortune said.

Both Fortune and Vore caution landowners against feeding turkeys. A landowner might enjoy feeding five or six turkeys, but the flock can quickly turn into 50 or 60 and then they become a nuisance.

Hunters can harvest a total of two turkeys in Montana each year, but only one in the spring in western Montana. Hunters will have another chance with the fall turkey season.

In western Montana, outside of Ravalli County, hunters must draw for tags. In eastern Montana, tags may also be purchased over the counter.

For more information, look at the Web at: fwp.mt.gov.

Florence Park Board places levy on ballot

The Florence Park District has passed a resolution to increase the mill levy for the District, which encompasses the Florence-Carlton School District, to approximately 6.39 mills in order to raise $39,247 per year to pay for increased building, maintenance and land needs. This mill levy increase will have no durational limit. If passed, a home with a taxable value of $100,000 would see an increase of $12.70 in annual taxes. A home with a taxable value of $200,000 would see an increase of $25.39 annually. Florence Park District Chairman John Cornish said that research indicates that the average taxable value of a home in the District is about $250,000. In that case the increased taxes would amount to about $30 per year.

The park district is still paying off the land that is used for the Florence Park. It will cost about $7,000 per year for the next five years. There are also plans for building a heavy equipment storage shed to house park mowers and protect them from the weather and vandalism. The District also plans to restore the tennis court. According to Cornish, the increased mill levy will also help keep user’s fees for the park at a minimum so that all children can participate in park activities such as ball games.

“We are hoping the community will support us in this endeavor,” said Cornish. He said that not a month goes by during the year that the park playground is not used

Along with care and maintenance of the Florence Park, the District has also taken on care of the highway improvements installed along Highway 93. The District inherited those responsibilities from the Florence Civic Club, which helped negotiate the improvements with the state highway department. Those responsibilities include maintaining the lighting system along the trail which stretches from the Missoula County line to Bass Creek. It includes electrical bills for the lights and watering system, snow removal, maintenance and use of the irrigation system and upkeep of the plant life in the median.

Cornish said that the park and the Highway trail are the two most used things in the Florence community and he hopes everyone in the district will see the need for the mill levy increase.

School Board Candidates - Elections May 6

Darby School District – one seat open with 3-year term

Don Ray

Coby Smith

Hamilton School district – 2 seats open with 3-year terms

Jim Shea

Kelly Rogers

Corvallis School district – 4 seats open

Joel Peden (1-year term)

Ginny Hoffman (3-year term)

Stephen M. Short (3-year term)

Dan Wolsky (3-year term)

Flroence School District – 2 seats open with 3-year terms

Vickie Cornish

Rita Cruise

Renee Nichols

Dorothy Rhodes

Duane Zeiler

Stevensville School District – 3 seats open with 3-year terms

Jim Cloud

Roger Bardsley

Kirk Thompson

Gary Burgett

Victor School District – 2 seats open

with 3-year terms

Marci Smith

Chris Bishop

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