Resources
Bison
Department of the Interior Bison Conservation Initiative 2020
The Buffalo: A Treaty of Cooperation, Renewal and Restoration
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
National Public Radio story on reestablishing Black Footed Ferrets in Montana
Large Landscape Level Conservation Projects
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.
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
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.
Other Species of Concern
In an effort to keep the greater sage-grouse off the endangered species list, in part by protecting its habitat, the USFWS has developed a mitigation framework that includes recommendations and standards. The Greater Sage-Grouse Range-Wide Mitigation Framework aims to “communicate some of the factors the Service is likely to consider in evaluating the efficacy of mitigation practices and programs in reducing threats to sage-grouse.”
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