Flathead Land Trust is proud to announce the permanent conservation of a vital 57-acre tract along the Stillwater River, owned by Sean and Melodye Rooney. Flanked by two existing Flathead Land Trust easements to the north and nearby U.S. Forest Service and Stillwater State Forest lands, the newly conserved property strengthens an interconnected network of open space and high-quality habitat at a landscape scale.
From the beginning, the property’s value as a sanctuary for native wildlife was unmistakable. On his very first visit to the property, Land Protection Specialist, Ryan Hunter, spotted a bear swimming in the Stillwater River just below the house.
“Our family and friends have been fortunate to enjoy and learn from the wildlife and nature on our property, and we are pleased to know that this piece of the Stillwater River corridor will be protected from development through Flathead Land Trust,” said landowner Melodye Rooney.
Deep Local Roots and Wildlife Stewardship
The Rooney family’s connection to the Flathead Valley spans generations. Sean Rooney’s grandfather homesteaded near Cut Bank before working for the Great Northern Railway in Whitefish, and his father taught English and geology at Flathead Valley Community College. Sean and Melodye purchased the land alongside Sean’s parents in 2003 before eventually acquiring full ownership of the property, where they now reside year-round.
Over the years, the family has actively worked to augment the land’s ecological integrity, including initiating a habitat enhancement project in 2025 to restore a ponded area and associated wetland habitat.
The Stillwater River serves as a critical wildlife corridor, which the Rooney family has long documented, tracking the diverse species passing through their land using camera traps. The property serves as an official study area for Snapshot USA, a nationwide mammal survey coordinated annually by the Smithsonian Institution. Brigit Rooney, Sean and Melodye’s daughter, is the survey coordinator for the Snapshot program, which aims to track how wildlife populations respond to changes in land use, cover, and climate over time. Setting cameras on her family’s property on the Stillwater River, Brigit once recalled checking a memory card to find a photo of herself walking the grounds, followed just eight minutes later by a mountain lion.
Critical Habitat and Water Quality Protection
The 57-acre property features nearly a mile of Stillwater River frontage, offering prime wildlife habitat of riparian forest, shrubland and emergent wetlands, alongside over 20 acres of non-irrigated farmland currently in hay production. These diverse ecological features, permanently protected by the conservation easement, support a vast array of wildlife and aquatic species, including grizzly and black bears, mountain lions, gray wolves, moose, river otters and bald eagles. The property’s river frontage and wetlands help maintain the water quality and healthy function of the Stillwater River, providing habitat for bull trout and westslope cutthroat trout.
By keeping the land intact and preventing future subdivision and development, the conservation easement preserves vital open space and working agricultural lands along the Stillwater River corridor and Highway 93. Through this land protection agreement, the Rooney family ensures that this productive landscape will remain undeveloped for generations to come, allowing local agriculture and wildlife to thrive while their family continues to enjoy the land they call home.
Leave a Comment: