Research
Flathead Reservation Pollinator Communities
Our student and staff research team will be spending the summer investigating native pollinator communities, searching for bumble bee species of concern, and exploring floral associations.
Intertribal Grassland Monitoring Plots
SKC partnered with CSKT to join the Intertribal Grassland Network, a collaboration between tribal communities, the Smithsonian, and other partners to document how bison affect the health of prairie ecosystems.The SKC students and staff to set up 20 long-term monitoring transects each equipped with an audio recorder for detecting birds and two remote cameras. Vegetation data was recorded and soil samples were collected along each transect. Bison scat samples were collected to test for microbial communities.
Mission Creek Wildlife
SKC continues to monitor animal behavior along Mission Creek using remote cameras and collected some additional scat samples.
Bat Communities
Bat detectors were used to learn more about bat communities and their habitat associations on the CSKT Bison Range.
Bison Range Management History
Historical photographs and reports to determine how range conditions and ungulate species densities varied with differences in management practices over time.
Pollinator Communities on the Flathead Reservation
This project added to baseline information on the native pollinators on the Flathead Reservation. Flowers were collected to detect flower visitors using eDNA and bumble bees were captured, photographed, and releasaed. Knowledge from this project will contribute to habitat restoration projects and the CSKT Pesticide Program’s Pollinator Plan.
Exploring Elk Behavior at the CSKT Bison Range
Our student and staff research is studying a unique phenomenom of elk feeding on aquatic plants on the CSKT Bison Range, exploring elk diets, and learning more about the influence of wildlife creek crossings on water quality and the macroinvertebrate communities within Mission Creek.