MOUNTAIN MISSION

Canada lynx and wolverines are secretive creatures, but dedicated scientists in Montana are tracking them to inform conservation

- ROB G GREEN

THE SOUND OF COLD STEEL against cold steel breaks the silence that typically accompanies winter this high up in the Mission Mountains. Luke Lamar readjusts the hammer in his hand, looks around as if he'll somehow spot the echo he's created, and then takes another swing at the nail that's pinning the deer leg against the tree trunk. It's -17°C, and he grunts as he drives the nail through frozen muscle until he's convinced it's secure.

It has to be. If he's going to collect DNA samples from the Canada lynx and wolverines he's studying, he has to make sure they'll struggle with the bait long enough to leave a trace. 

As conservation director for the Montana-based organisation Swan Valley Connections (SVC), part of Luke's job is to organise efforts to learn more about two of the most elusive species on the planet. He's responsible for planning and implementing a Rare Carnivore Monitoring Project that looks to collect lynx and wolverine data in an area of North America known as the Crown of the Continent, a Switzerland-sized expanse of national parks, ranches, forests, mountain ranges and communities that contains some of the most intact wildlife habitat on Earth.

Working specifically in the south-west portion of the Crown, Luke and his fellow researchers have spent the past 10 years collecting lynx and wolverine data across the roughly 600,000ha they survey. The data has given researchers a better idea of how many individuals are in the region, whether they're male or female, their movement patterns and even family genetics. This wealth of information can then be used to determine trends and activity hotspots, and in turn guide conservation efforts and forest management plans.