About The Natural Heritage Program

Introduction

The Montana Natural Heritage Program (MTNHP) is Montana’s source for reliable and objective information on Montana’s native species and habitats, emphasizing those of conservation concern. MTNHP was created by the Montana legislature in 1983 as part of the Natural Resource Information System (NRIS) at the Montana State Library (MSL). MTNHP is “a program of information acquisition, storage, and retrieval for data relating to the flora, fauna, and biological community types of Montana” (MCA 90-15-102). MTNHP’s activities are guided by statute as well as through ongoing interactions with, and feedback from, principal data source agencies such as Montana Fish, Wildlife, and Parks, Montana Department of Environmental Quality, Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation, Montana University System, US Forest Service, and US Bureau of Land Management. Since the first staff was hired in 1985, the Program has logged a long record of success, and developed into a highly respected, service-oriented program. Of the 60 natural heritage programs distributed across North America, MTNHP is recognized as one of the most advanced and effective programs.

Vision

Our vision is that public agencies, the private sector, the education sector, and the general public will trust and rely upon MTNHP as the source for information and expertise on Montana’s species and habitats, especially those of conservation concern. We strive to provide easy access to our information to help users to save time and money, speed environmental reviews, and make informed decisions.

Core Values

• We endeavor to be a single statewide source of accurate and up-to-date information on Montana’s plants, animals, and aquatic and terrestrial biological communities.
• We actively listen to our data users and work responsively to meet their information and training needs.
• We strive to provide neutral, trusted, timely, and equitable service to all of our information users.
• We make every effort to be transparent to our data users, in setting work priorities, and providing data products.

Confidentiality

All information requests made to the Montana Natural Heritage Program are considered library records and are protected from disclosure by the Montana Library Records Confidentiality Act (MCA 22-1-11).

Information Managed

The Montana Natural Heritage Program manages botanical, zoological, and ecological information. The information managed describes the distribution (e.g., observations, structured surveys, range polygons, predicted habitat suitability models), conservation status (e.g., global and state conservation status ranks, including trends and threats), and supporting documentation (e.g., accounts and references) on the biology and ecology of species and biological communities.