RESCUE BIRDS LEVEL 16 GRASS GRASSLANDS FREE

“Often times grazing can be a better alternative for producers, especially on land that’s less profitable for farming,” said Daniel Sullins, an assistant professor of wildlife management at Kansas State University, and a lead author on the study. Plus, areas with lower-quality conditions for growing crops, like Schmidt’s land in Kansas, were four times more likely to remain in grass. (This average varied from 36-76 percent by state). This includes resources to help more landowners transition expiring CRP acres into profitable grazing land.Īccording to a study called “ Increasing durability of voluntary conservation through strategic implementation of the Conservation Reserve Program” published in Biological Conservation in July, 58 percent of the CRP-replanted fields remained in grasslands 10 years after the contracts expired. NRCS’s Working Lands for Wildlife Initiative recently released two frameworks for conservation action in the Great Plains Grasslands and Sagebrush biomes that prioritize incentives for landowners to maintain or restore America’s productive rangelands. These Farm Bill-funded conservation practices conserved 4.5 million birds. Maintaining healthy, diverse perennial plants also provides much-needed wildlife habitat.Ī recent study published in Conservation Biology, called “ Scaling up private land conservation to meet recovery goals for grassland birds,” found that private lands in the southern Great Plains enrolled in either CRP or NRCS grazing conservation programs increased the abundance of 16 species, including the at-risk lesser prairie-chicken and grassland-dependent songbirds. In addition, livestock grazing that maintains diverse grasses and shrubs provides greater drought resilience according to a recent report from the Lesser Prairie Chicken Initiative which helps wildlife and producers weather dry years. “When I’m running cattle, I buy feed, fuel, salt, and other supplies, which supports more people in my community who can make money off the land, too.” Schmidt likes that keeping his land working as grazing pastures also circulates money locally.

And we have more control of how we use the land.” “It’s been a good deal, and it’s a lot less work than farming,” Schmidt said. Now, Schmidt and his wife spend less time and money on their pastures and need less equipment to make a profit. Photo credit: Jeremy Roberts, Conservation Media NRCS helps producers find the conservation plan that makes the most sense for them and their land.Ī lesser prairie-chicken on intact grasslands in Kansas with cattle grazing in the background.

RESCUE BIRDS LEVEL 16 GRASS GRASSLANDS FREE

The Working Lands for Wildlife initiative and other NRCS programs offer landowners free technical support and financial assistance to build pasture fences, develop livestock watering systems, and create prescribed grazing plans. So, the USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) helped Schmidt turn his replanted grasslands into profitable grazing lands. When his CRP contracts expired, Schmidt wanted to keep the land in grass. “A lot of this land never should’ve been farmed anyway due to the poor soil and erosion,” Schmidt said. Farmers enrolled in the CRP take cropland out of production and then plant species that benefit wildlife, water, and soil in return for yearly rental payments. He’s had Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) contracts for a few pastures on his farm over the years, replanting 1,280 acres of wheat, milo, and cattle feed back into grass. Schmidt, like many other producers across the United States, wanted to invest in grass for the future of his family’s operation. Rex Schmidt and his wife have grazed cattle and farmed for 35 years near Greensburg, Kansas, where the hills break into prairie and birds are abundant in their green pastures.

Rescue birds level 16 grass grasslands