HELENA – Can you believe it? Watercraft inspection season is about to begin. March 7 marks the opening of aquatic invasive species (AIS) inspection stations in Dillon, Ravalli and Anaconda.
FWP contracts with tribes, conservation districts and counties for watercraft inspection station operations and works with partners state-wide, such as Trout Unlimited and Walleyes Unlimited, to expand AIS early detection survey and AIS outreach.
The FWP AIS team recently posted the AIS Early Detection, Monitoring, and Control Annual Report and the AIS Prevention Report online. One of the biggest take-aways from this year's reports is the risk posed by Montana residents bringing in AIS from other states. These are residents that either have homes out of state or travel out of state and then bring AIS back home.
"If you know snowbirds who are bringing a boat home, be sure they get their boat inspected before they put it in the water," said FWP AIS Bureau Chief Tom Woolf. "Also, if you or someone you know buys a boat from out of state, be sure to get it inspected."
And as mussel populations get closer to Montana, inspection teams see more traffic from mussel-impacted waters.
"We are being effective at holding the line against AIS," Woolf said. "The movement of AIS is a human-caused problem, therefore it is preventable."
All boats entering the state are required to be inspected before launching in Montana waters to ensure they are free of AIS and Clean Drained and Dry.
To view the 2025 Annual AIS Early Detection, Monitoring, and Control Annual Report and the AIS Prevention Report, go to fwp.mt.gov/conservation/aquatic-invasive-species/reports.