Livestock Producers Step Up For Sage Grouse

Photo to the right: Rancher Mike Byrne and Bridget Nielsen, USFWS, look for sage grouse together at the Clear Lake National Wildlife Refuge in California.

A new article in Western Livestock Journal by editor Traci Eatherton  features an outstanding story of ranchers and partners joining forces to conserve sage grouse in northern California, the result of a Sand County Foundation project that’s sharing new stories from the field demonstrating proactive conservation for the at-risk bird. The article also discusses why Interior Secretary Sally Jewell is “guardedly optimistic” that habitat plans developed and implemented by several states will keep the sage grouse off the Endangered Species List.

Over the past five years, we’ve learned time and again that what’s good for ranchlands is also good for sage grouse.  The Sage Grouse Initiative has partnered with 1,129 ranchers and 40 different organizations in 11 western states.  The results of these partnerships? Healthier landscapes that provide good forage for livestock and wildlife, and enhanced habitat that will help dwindling sage grouse populations survive in the sagebrush sea long into the future.

One reason the NRCS and other partners have invested over $425 million in proactive sage grouse conservation efforts is to prevent the need for listing the species under the Endangered Species Act, a decision slated for later this year.

Read the full story here.

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