Montana Installs New Wildlife Towers to Track Bats

The state's new Motus tracking towers follow a migratory bat from Utah through public lands.

Updated on Oct. 30, 2026 in National Parks

Screen-print poster illustration of a radio tracking tower standing in a vast, rolling prairie, evoking conservation in the Montana landscape. — The Bureau of Land Management has activated new wildlife tracking towers in Montana’s Upper Missouri River Breaks to monitor bat migration patterns. AI Illustration. Upload story photo >

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The Bureau of Land Management installed two wildlife-tracking towers in the Upper Missouri River Breaks National Monument during late-summer 2026. On August 20, 2026, the station in the Bullwhacker area detected a northern hoary bat originally tagged in Utah.

Why it matters

The tracking network aims to monitor bat migration and habitat use to support conservation decisions related to the spread of White-Nose Syndrome. This data is critical for managing the health of bat populations as the disease continues to affect regional parks.

The Bureau of Land Management added two new Motus tracking stations in the Bullwhacker area and near 8-Mile Bench. These units are part of a larger plan by Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks to establish a network of 50 stations across the state.

The players

Bureau of Land Management

This federal agency is responsible for the stewardship of public lands and the implementation of wildlife monitoring infrastructure.

Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks

This state agency manages wildlife conservation, recreational access, and environmental research programs across Montana.

The details

Motus stations function by detecting signals from lightweight radio tags attached to animals, allowing researchers to document migration patterns. This information is uploaded to a shared database to inform land development and disease mitigation projects.

White-Nose Syndrome was first documented in Montana in 2020.
Two Motus towers were installed in the monument in late-summer 2026.
The Bullwhacker station detected a Utah-tagged hoary bat on Aug. 20, 2026.
White-Nose Syndrome was detected in Glacier and Yellowstone national parks in 2026.

Travel Outlook

This regional tracking project follows a pattern set by the initial 2020 arrival of White-Nose Syndrome in Montana. The effort seeks to provide granular data on wildlife movement as the syndrome continues to impact ecosystems within national park boundaries.

Visitors to the Upper Missouri River Breaks National Monument should be aware of conservation areas designated for wildlife research. These tracking initiatives help protect local ecosystems, ensuring that Montana's public lands remain viable habitats for diverse species.

The takeaway

Understanding migratory patterns is essential for wildlife management as environmental stressors like White-Nose Syndrome spread. Stakeholders and land managers use these data points to refine conservation strategies and limit the impact of disease on native populations.