Resources
Bison
Wes Olson: The Ecological Buffalo A book talk. Based on Wes’s 35 years of working intimately with bison — and featuring Johane’s stunning photography — The Ecological Buffalo takes a journey through the myriad connections this keystone species has with the Great Plains.
A study published in Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution found that widespread restoration of bison to Tribal lands throughout the Northern Great Plains can help restore the prairie ecosystem while improving the long-running issue of food insecurity and food sovereignty for Native Nations, and may help to mitigate adverse impacts to traditional agricultural systems due to climate change.
The Ecological Buffalo, University of Regina Press
A new study published in Scientific Reports has revealed the strongest evidence to date that all bison in North America carry multiple small, but clearly identifiable, regions of DNA that
originated from domestic cattle.
A new study published in the journal Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution finds that widespread restoration of bison to Tribal lands throughout the Northern Great Plains can help restore the prairie ecosystem while improving the long-running issue of food insecurity and food sovereignty for Native Nations, and may help to mitigate adverse impacts to traditional agricultural systems due to climate change.
Department of the Interior Bison Conservation Initiative 2020
What America Lost When it Lost Its Bison – The Atlantic (2019)
Bringing Bison Back to the Badlands – A PERC Case Study
Wild bison as ecological indicators of the effectiveness of management practices to increase forage quality on open rangeland Dustin H. Ranglacka, Johan T. du Toitb
Information on Bison and Brucellosis from Enhancing Montana’s Wildlife and Habitat website
Bison Conservation Management: Guidelines for Herd Managers
IUCN American Bison Status Survey and Conservation Guidelines 2010
Prairie Dogs and Ferrets
(New) Prairie Dog Action Packet: this document offers resources for advocates who want to help protect prairie dog colonies under threat.
(New) Creating Prairie Dog Management Plans: A Guide for Local Governments and Stakeholders: this document offers background and resources for communities that want to protect prairie dogs via the creation of humane management plans
National Public Radio story on reestablishing Black Footed Ferrets in Montana
Black-footed Ferret reintroduction tool
Homes on the Range watch the GPCN webinar here
Large Landscape Level Conservation Projects
Curtis Freese lecture Back from the Collapse
North Central Climate Adaptation Science Centre has released two new reports (May 2023) as part of the Grasslands Synthesis Project. Synthesis of Climate and Ecological Science to Support Grassland Management Priorities in the North Central Region and Grassland Management Priorities. The findings and next steps webinar is available here.
Ocean of Grass: A Conservation Assessment for the Northern Great Plains (11mb)
The report “American Prairie Reserve: Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation through Large-Scale Grassland Conservation” discusses the effects of climate change on grassland ecosystems and the effect of land use in the Great Plains on green house gas emissions.
WWF Threats Assessment NGP Report December 2012
Wind Development and Low-Impact Areas to Wildlife, a 2012 report by The Nature Conservancy and WWF
An Ecological Risk Assessment of Wind Energy Development in Montana, 2009 study by The Nature Conservancy
Colorado’s Conservation Data Explorer (CODEX) — a one stop shop for synthesizing conservation data from the Colorado Natural Heritage Program, Colorado Parks and Wildlife, Bird Conservancy of the Rockies, US Fish and WIldlife, NatureServe and many other sources.
NatureServe: The Map of Biodiversity Importance
Great Plains Grassland Initiative on Cattlemen to Cattlemen show, the show explains why woody encroachment is such a detriment to grasslands, what ranchers and the NRCS are doing to combat this major threat, and why fighting back against invading trees is important to ranchers, wildlife, and anyone who appreciates the Great Plains grasslands.
Riparian Habitat
WWF’s Riverine Analysis identifies riverine conservation priority areas for the US portion of the Northern Great Plains
Grasslands
Bringing Back America’s Serengeti – Rewilding Earth (2019)
American Serengeti, by Dan Flores – University Press of Kansas
Trees Are Overrated – The Atlantic (2022)
Carbon Sequestration and Climate Change
The Southern Plains Land Trust has enrolled their two largest preserves in the Climate Action Reserve’s Grassland Protocol.
The Southern Plains Land Trust is using Grassland Carbon to Benefit Prairie Wildlife Refuges.
Conferences and other proceedings
Transboundary Grassland Partnership–Global Vision, Local Action. October 19-21, 2021 (Northern Great Plains) — if you missed this workshop, most presentations were recorded and are at: Transboundary Grassland Partnership
The Central Grasslands Roadmap Summit was May 24-25 Click here for presentations.
Panel discussion on Grasslands and Savannahs at COP on Tuesday, November 9, 2021 Article and recording of the event available here.
Salazar Centre 2022 Symposium on Conservation Impacts
Links to Other Great Plains Conservation Organizations
Alberta’s Prairie Conservation Forum provides an excellent collection of resources and links to organizations in that province. The Prairie Conservation Action Plan serves the same purpose in Saskatchewan. Check their site for a wide range of contacts.
Badlands Conservation Alliance
Center for Great Plains Studies
North Dakota Chapter of The Wildlife Society
Wildlife Conservation Society Great Plains