Sustainable Grazing Network
Grassland conservation remains at the core of Bird Conservancy’s work from science to stewardship to partnerships. This is a biome in peril with some species of grassland birds having declined by 70-90% over the last three decades. Approximately 85% of these migratory grassland birds rely almost exclusively on the Chihuahuan desert grasslands during the non-breeding season. These grasslands are rapidly disappearing due threats from conversion to agriculture, woody plant encroachment, poor grazing management and the increased frequency of drought. Given these pervasive threats and the high concentration of grassland birds in the Chihuahuan desert, habitat conservation in this geography is critical.
Bird Conservancy of the Rockies, alongside our partners in Mexico and the U.S., is working to conserve Chihuahuan Desert grasslands and the birds that depend on them. In parallel with our US Stewardship conservation delivery efforts, Bird Conservancy also partners with private landowners in the Chihuahuan desert to implement habitat improvement efforts for grassland birds. The “Sustainable Grazing Network” in Mexico engages cattle ranchers and other producers that support a mosaic of grassland conditions to benefit a range of priority species with differing habitat needs. Through rotational grazing, invasive shrub removal, prescribed grazing and other techniques, we are restoring habitat conditions needed in winter by species such as Sprague’s Pipit, Chestnut-collared Longspur and Baird’s Sparrow. By working with ranchers and ejidos, we sustain grass-based economic livelihoods while simultaneously increasing habitat quality for birds.
