Presettlement Wildlife and Habitat of Montana:
An Overview
Annotation Of Expeditions And Individuals Recording Natural History Notes
Northern Boundary Commission, 1873-1874:
The Northern Boundary Commission survey charted the United States/Canadian border from the Red River in North Dakota to the Continental Divide in Montana. Ornithologist Dr. Elliott Coues was surgeon/naturalist for the expedition both years. In 1873, Coues confined his work to the 49th parallel between the Red and Souris Rivers in North Dakota. The following year he left from Fort Buford, at the mouth of the Yellowstone River, and traveled northwesterly to the 49th parallel, reaching it at Frenchman River around 4 July 1874 (Figure 23). The remainder of the summer he collected and observed wildlife as he traveled west along the 49th parallel up to Waterton Lake, at which point he turned southeast to Fort Benton, and then down the Missouri River. Coues' ability to observe and record aspects of natural history were unsurpassed and his observations of this region are extremely valuable.
Bibliography:
Coues, E. 1874. Birds of the Northwest. [Does not include specific
information on Montana, but gives excellent habitat and life history
information on specific bird species in 1874.]
Coues, E. 1874. On the nesting of certain hawks, etc. Amer. Nat.
8:596-603. [Observations on the nesting of the ferruginous hawk, and
prairie and peregrine falcons along the Milk River.]
Coues, E. 1875. On breeding of certain birds. Amer. Nat. 9:75-78.
Coues. E. 1875. The prairie gopher. Amer. Nat. 9:147-156. [This paper
deals with the Richardson's ground squirrel in Montana. Among other
things, Coues notes that they scavenged extensively on bison
carcasses.]
Coues, E. 1877. Fur bearing animals: a monograph of North American
Mustelidae. Dept. of Interior. USGS Misc. Publ. 8:149-153. [Reports
on a ferret taken along the Milk River.]
Coues, E. 1878. Field notes on birds observed in Dakota and Montana
along the forty-ninth parallel during the seasons of 1873 and 1874.
Article XXV. Pages 545-661 in Bull. of the U.S. Geological and
Geographical Survey Vol. IV. U.S. Govt. Print. Off., Washington.
Dawson, G.M. 1875. Report on the geology and resources of the region in
the vicinity of the forty-ninth parallel, from the Lake of the Woods
to the Rocky Mountains with lists of plants and animals collected and
notes on the fossils. North American Boundary Commission. 1872-1875.
Jordan, D.S. 1891. Report on the collection of fishes made by Dr.
Elliott Coues U.S.A. in Dakota and Montana during the seasons of 1873
and 1874. Bull. U.S. Geol. and Geog. Surv. of the Territories (F.V.
Hayden in charge), 4(4):777-799.
Twinning, W.J. 1877. Survey of the northern boundary of the United
States form the Lake of the Woods to the summit of the Rocky
Mountains. Senate Ex. Doc. 41, 44th Congress, 2nd session.
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