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Ninth Circuit narrows wolf trapping ban in Montana griz territory

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Ninth Circuit narrows wolf trapping ban in Montana griz territory


Alanna Mayham

(CN) — An order limiting wolf trapping and snaring in Montana’s grizzly bear territory survived the scrutiny of a Ninth Circuit panel Tuesday, but the question of how much land a federal judge can restrict to protect the state’s threatened grizzlies from wolf traps remains.

In January, a three-judge panel took a skeptical view of a 2023 injunction that prohibited wolf trapping in a broad swath of western Montana outside of the narrow timeframe of Jan. 1 to Feb. 15 annually, or when grizzlies are most likely to be hibernating in dens.

U.S. District Judge Donald Molloy’s preliminary injunction was aimed at protecting grizzlies from wolf traps — an issue opponents say is becoming more common because the warming climate is pushing bears to forage later into the winter and even earlier in the spring.

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But Molloy’s order prohibited trapping in a much larger part of Montana than what conservation groups requested and did not follow the state’s scientific determination of where grizzly bears live.

On Tuesday, two-thirds of the panel affirmed Molloy’s injunction because the plaintiff organizations — Flathead-Lolo-Bitterroot Citizen Task Force and WildEarth Guardians — demonstrated that Montana’s recreational wolf trapping and snaring regulations would harm grizzly bears in violation of the Endangered Species Act.

“Under our limited and deferential standard of review, we affirm the district court’s grant of injunctive relief,” wrote U.S. Circuit Judge Mark J. Bennet, a Donald Trump appointee, with the concurrence of U.S. District Judge Robert S. Lasnik, a Bill Clinton appointee.

Senior U.S. Circuit Judge Richard C. Tallman partially dissented, explaining that he would have vacated the entire injunction because the plaintiffs’ evidence falls short of proving that irreparable harm is likely — not just possible.

“While I agree with the majority that plaintiffs established a serious question on the merits, the evidence of record establishes that plaintiffs failed to show a reasonably certain threat of imminent harm to grizzly bears should Montana’s wolf regulations remain in force,” the Clinton appointee wrote.

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Tallman also argued that the plaintiffs’ evidence is too speculative to warrant an injunction, particularly regarding how climate change affects grizzly denning habits and the plaintiffs’ lack of verified reports of grizzly bears getting caught in recreational wolf traps after 2013.

The other judges disagreed.

“As the district court pointed out, one of plaintiffs’ experts declared that ‘only 12% of unpermitted grizzly bear killings are actually reported,’ and that the ‘data shows that trappers who find grizzly bears in their traps are highly unlikely to call a government agent,’” Lasnik wrote.

Lasnik added how Montana’s evidence showed that over 25% of grizzly bear killings go unreported, suggesting that verified reports are not the best indicator of how often grizzlies are trapped.

All three judges could agree that the injunction is geographically overbroad.

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“The district court enjoined wolf trapping and snaring ‘in all areas included in wolf regions one through five, plus Hill, Blaine and Phillips counties,’” Lasnik wrote. “That comprises what appears to be more than half of the entire state of Montana and includes expansive areas outside the occupied grizzly range and even some areas east of Billings — areas that plaintiffs did not even ask to be covered by the injunction.”

The panel also took up Montana’s argument of how the injunction prohibits state researchers from trapping and snaring wolves in the summer for scientific purposes — even though the injunction never prevented that.

On March 19, Montana filed an unopposed motion to modify the injunction so it could allow the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks and other management agencies to trap wolves for scientific and livestock conflict management purposes. Molloy denied the request on March 25, explaining that such agencies already had the authority to perform research trapping and they were unaffected by the injunction.

“Apparently the Ninth Circuit wasn’t aware of that,” said Mike Bader of Flathead-Lolo-Bitterroot in an interview.

Bader also noted how Tallman in his dissent did not acknowledge a permanent injunction from U.S. Magistrate Judge Candy Dale in March that banned all wolf trapping and snaring in Idaho’s panhandle, Clearwater, Salmon and Upper Snake regions between March 1 and Nov. 30 — the grizzly bear’s non-denning season.

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“She actually cited the Molloy injunction ruling as an influence on her ruling, so we hope we can get a permanent injunction because then we would have common law in the Ninth Circuit from both Idaho and Montana,” Bader said.

And that hope might not be far from reality, especially since Molloy’s injunction will stay in place until he adjusts the geographic scope of the order. Bader said a final ruling on the plaintiffs’ motion for summary judgment could arrive within the next few months and that a favorable outcome would also prohibit coyote traps in grizzly territories.

“I think the big issue is climate change,” Bader said, adding how states rely on outdated data for grizzly denning behaviors.

“Especially this past winter, we had reports of females with cubs out in January and a lot of bears out well into December and even past Christmas,” Bader said. “So, the old dates really don’t apply because of the change.”





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Montana

Gasoline prices in Montana have risen over 6¢ per gallon in the last week

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Gasoline prices in Montana have risen over 6¢ per gallon in the last week


MISSOULA — Gas prices are continuing to rise in Montana.

GasBuddy.com reports that average gasoline prices in Montana rose 6.1¢ per gallon in the last week and are averaging $3.14 per gallon as of Monday, March 10, 2025.

Gas prices are now 13.9¢ higher in Montana than a month ago but are 23.4¢ per gallon lower than a year ago.

The national average price of gasoline has dipped 0.6¢ per gallon over the last week to $3.03 per gallon, which is 8.9¢ lower than a month ago.

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GasBuddy.com reports the cheapest gas in Montana was at $2.94 per gallon on Sunday, while the most expensive was $3.69 per gallon.





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Windy conditions continue with cooler temperatures on the way

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Windy conditions continue with cooler temperatures on the way


WEATHER DISCUSSION: It was another mild day temperature-wise in North Central Montana. High temperatures peaked in the 50’s and 60’s today across the region with increasing cloudy cover headed into the overnight hours. Expect low temperatures tonight in the 30’s and 40’s with partly cloudy to mostly cloudy skies.

Stormtracker Weather

Broad upper-level ridging has resulted in continued strong winds that will be enhanced tonight through tomorrow by a Pacific shortwave/cold front. The strong winds will spread further onto the plains and adjacent areas. The strongest wind gusts could top out at 75 mph around the Browning/Cutbank area tonight. Surface winds begin to diminish late Monday morning across western areas, with eastern areas seeing winds fall off later in the afternoon.

Meanwhile, moisture associated with the Pacific shortwave/cold front will result in a period of snow along the Rocky Mountain Front, (mainly above pass level) late tonight into Monday. Although a few inches of snow will be possible in these locations, daytime warming today and warmer temperatures tonight will result in melting of some of that snow accumulation, so NWS has not issued any Winter Weather Advisories at this time.

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030925 Highs Tomorrow

Stormtracker Weather

Because of the cold front, expect a cooler day on Monday with temperatures staying in the 40’s. Temperatures trend warmer again Tuesday and Wednesday across the region ahead of the next system set to arrive. A potent trough will then swoop in, pushing a mix of rain and snow at lower elevations and mountain snow late Wednesday night through Friday. Temperatures will then trend cooler into next weekend.

030925 GF 7 day

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030925 Helena 7 day

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030925 Havre 7 day

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Montana State women hammer Northern Colorado, cruise into Big Sky semifinals

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Montana State women hammer Northern Colorado, cruise into Big Sky semifinals


BOISE, Idaho — The cardinal rule to beating Montana State this season? Don’t turn the ball over.

Easier said than done, obviously. Northern Colorado was the latest to fall victim to MSU’s pressure Sunday at the Big Sky Conference women’s basketball tournament at Idaho Central Arena.

The Bobcats, who rank No. 1 in Division I in steals per game and No. 5 in forced turnovers per game, scored 37 points off 26 UNC giveaways in a 92-60 quarterfinal victory.

Photos: Montana State women defeat Northern Colorado at Big Sky Conference tournament

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With a quick start, top-seeded Montana State (28-3) advanced to the tournament semifinals where it will face either Weber State or Idaho State on Tuesday at noon.

“We’re so excited for our team,” said MSU freshman Taylee Chirrick, who again helped lead the defensive charge. “To get a fast start just makes us want to continue that and keep it rolling, because it makes it super fun.”

Bobcat postgame: Coach Tricia Binford, players discuss quarterfinal win over UNC

A 3-pointer by Natalie Picton at the 3:48 mark of the first quarter put the Bobcats ahead 19-0 and MSU was well on its way.

Northern Colorado scored its first points on a free throw by Aniah Hall at 3:11 of the first, and the Bears’ first field goal didn’t come until London Gamble converted a layup at the 2:02 mark.

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MSU led 29-7 at the end of the first after Big Sky MVP Esmeralda Morales beat the buzzer with a 3-pointer, a hole far too great for the Bears to climb out of.

“We just didn’t value the basketball and it got out of control pretty quickly,” Northern Colorado coach Kristen Mattio said.

Still, the Bears crawled within 11 points at 36-25 on a 3 by Gamble midway through the second as the Cats got a little too sloppy with the ball. But Montana State stabilized and went into halftime with a 20-point advantage, 48-28.

MSU’s lead grew to as much as 37 points in the second half, and the Bobcats mitigated 24 turnovers of their own by proving again to be too fast and too efficient for an opponent.

The Cats put five players in double figures, led by Katelynn Martin’s 16 points. Picton and Taylor Janssen each had 14.

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Chirrick added 12 points and seven steals. Morales finished with 10 points and seven assists. The Bobcats shot a sizzling 64% from the field.

Northern Colorado, which topped Portland State 53-50 in the first round on Saturday, exits the tournament with a 14-17 overall record. The Bears last won the Big Sky tourney in 2018.

The Bobcats are seeking their first tournament championship since 2022 and are chasing the fourth tourney crown in program history. MSU’s 28 wins are an extension of its single-season school record.

“I’m really proud of how we came out start to finish,” said Montana State coach Tricia Binford. “Our energy, our defense … this team does not (care) who we’re rotating.

“Everybody has been ready to give us a huge impact. We had five kids in double digits. Just really proud of this group. We came ready to go today.”

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