The billionaire blocking off Montana’s wildlife: ‘Like fencing people out of Walmart’

The fences Joe Ricketts erected around his ranch in the middle of the Blackfeet reservation are a deadly hazard for wildlife

Almost immediately after their new billionaire neighbor put up miles of 5ft fences around his Montana ranch, complaints started coming in to the Blackfeet tribe.

In photos and videos captured by Blackfeet tribal members and reviewed by the Guardian, animals such as elk, deer, moose and grizzly bears can be seen struggling to navigate around or over the fences as they follow a historical migration path. Sometimes, they are trapped in corners of the fences, or wounded and limping after failed attempts to jump over the barriers. On numerous occasions, mother moose have been seen separated from their young.