In 2003, a Montana family bought 57 acres along the Stillwater River; after cameras documented bears, wolves and mountain lions, they have permanently protected the property from development
A Montana family has permanently protected 57 acres of riverfront land along the Stillwater River after years of documenting the wildlife that moves through the property. The conservation effort was reported by the Flathead Beacon and Whitefish Pilot, while the Flathead Land Trust confirmed details of the newly established conservation easement. Sean and Melodye Rooney purchased the land with Sean’s parents in 2003 and eventually became its sole owners. Located west of Whitefish, the property stretches along nearly a mile of the Stillwater River and is now protected under a conservation easement held by Flathead Land Trust. The agreement permanently prevents subdivision and development while allowing the Rooneys to continue living on and using the property. More than 20 acres remain in hay production, while the rest includes riparian forest, shrubland and wetlands.
A wildlife corridor captured on camera
The property’s conservation value became increasingly clear through the family’s long-term wildlife monitoring. Camera traps placed around the land have recorded an impressive range of species, including grizzly and black bears, mountain lions, gray wolves, moose, river otters and bald eagles. The land is also an official study site for Snapshot USA, a nationwide camera-trapping project that tracks changes in mammal populations across the United States.The project is coordinated nationally by the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute and its partners. Brigit Rooney, Sean and Melodye’s daughter, serves as Snapshot USA’s survey coordinator. The programme uses standardized camera-trap surveys to study the distribution and long-term trends of mammals in relation to land use, habitat and climate.The Rooneys’ property therefore serves a purpose beyond private conservation, contributing observations to a wider scientific effort. Brigit Rooney is also a co-author of the 2026 Snapshot USA research covering the survey’s sixth year of coordinated national camera-trap data.
Nearly a mile of riverfront remains protected
The conservation easement also safeguards habitat along the Stillwater River, where wetlands and riverfront vegetation play an important role in maintaining the surrounding ecosystem.The property provides habitat for aquatic species including bull trout and westslope cutthroat trout, according to Flathead Land Trust. Its location also connects with two existing conservation easements and nearby U.S. Forest Service and Stillwater State Forest lands, creating a larger network of protected open space. The family has undertaken habitat work as well. In 2025, the Rooneys began a project aimed at restoring a ponded area and associated wetland habitat on the property.
From family land to long-term conservation
The Rooneys’ connection to the Flathead Valley predates their ownership of the Stillwater property. Sean’s grandfather homesteaded near Cut Bank before working for the Great Northern Railway in Whitefish, while his father later settled in the Flathead Valley and taught English and geology at Flathead Valley Community College.The new easement means the 57-acre tract will remain undeveloped even as surrounding areas change. It preserves a combination of wildlife habitat, wetlands, river frontage and working agricultural land, while keeping the property connected to other protected areas along the Stillwater River corridor.For a landscape where wildlife monitoring has revealed bears, wolves and mountain lions using the same trails as people, providing crucial evidence of their continued presence and shared use of this landscape, the conservation agreement turns years of observation into a permanent commitment to keeping the habitat intact.
