TWIN BRIDGES – Brian Wheeler has spent a fair bit of the last six years wearing waders in the middle of the Big Hole River documenting river conditions and collecting samples of macroinvertebrates.

Put simply, the river guide and conservationist has spent a lot of time scrubbing rocks and collecting bugs in small sections of the Big Hole River. Their relative abundance helps show river health, he said in late September while crouched over his sampling gear at a site near Twin Bridges.

Fish populations have been declining in some of Montana’s most famous rivers, and Wheeler is part of a growing number of people trying to figure out why. The undammed Big Hole River is one of Montana’s precious gems, known for its renowned fishing and breathtaking beauty.

“If we’ve learned anything across

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