Data Descriptions

Animal Observations Animal point observations in TRACKER come from sources that vary from incidental observations made by interested private citizens to formal structured surveys conducted by professional biologists. When observations are added to the databases they are marked as pending final review. Once they have been reviewed by a zoologist at the Montana Natural Heritage Program, the pending status is removed. All vertebrate species documented in the state are depicted. However, only a portion of the invertebrate species in Montana are depicted and these are usually those deemed to be Species of Concern.

Plant Observations Plant point observations in TRACKER are derived from documented mapped occurences of plant populations managed by the Montana Natural Heritage Program. Only plant Species of Concern are depicted in TRACKER.

Species of Concern Species of Concern are native taxa that are at-risk due to declining population trends, threats to their habitats, restricted distribution, and/or other factors. The term also encompasses species that have a special designation by organizations or land management agencies in Montana, including: Bureau of Land Management Special Status and Watch species; U.S. Forest Service Sensitive and Watch species; and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Threatened, Endangered and Candidate species. Designation of a species as a Montana Animal Species of Concern or Potential Animal Species of Concern is not a statutory or regulatory classification. Instead, these designations provide a basis for resource managers and decision-makers to direct limited resources to priority data collection needs and address conservation needs proactively. See links on the Natural Heritage Program home page for the latest plant and animal species of concern reports.

Range Maps Range maps are provided for some animal species. These maps were created by the Natural Heritage Program from it's databases, including observations submitted to and managed in TRACKER.

Amphibian Inventory Photographs These photographs are a collection of georeferenced digital photos of wetlands that were surveyed for lentic breeding amphibians between 2000 and 2007. Amphibian observation data associated with these surveys can be viewed by filtering out various amphibian species in the TRACKER application.   Read more about the Amphibian Inventory project.