The latest research — published in this month’s special issue of SRM’s Rangeland Ecology & Management science journal — shows the benefits of removing conifers for grouse, wildlife, and people living in sagebrush and prairie ecosystems.

Frederick B. Pierson, C. Jason Williams and Peter R. Robichaud | This fact sheet provides an overview of the hydrologic impacts of fire, as well as the effectiveness of different types of treatments that reduce runoff and erosion post-fire.

By: Douglas J. Shinneman, Anne S. Halford, Cheri Howell, Kevin D. Krasnow, and Eva K. Strand | This fact sheet provides information to help identify different aspen types, assess the condition of stands, and prioritize restoration.

Landowners on the East Coast brought about a major success today with their voluntary conservation efforts for the New England cottontail. Partners announced that foresters and farmers have helped prevent the need to list the New England cottontail under the Endangered Species Act.

Sage grouse like the habitat around the Pokorny Ranch, and the Pokornys like the conservation improvements SGI helped them make on their Wyoming ranch. “They were the first landowners I had to enroll in the program,” says Kevin Edinger with the Wyoming NRCS. “These folks are really progressive operators. They’re as good as it gets.”

On the California-Nevada state line, a geographically distinct population of sage grouse once faced a precarious future. Today, that’s changed. The decision by the USFWS that the Bi-State sage grouse no longer needs protection under the Endangered Species Act proves that diverse partners committed to a shared vision works to achieve wildlife conservation.

Lara Fondow enjoys working with birds and people. That’s why she currently works as a Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) Sage Grouse Initiative (SGI) Range and Wildlife Conservationist in Rexburg.

SGI partner Pheasants Forever signed on with the USDA to continue important proactive conservation efforts with private landowners, including tools that restore and protect the sagebrush sea.

California rancher Mike Byrne shares why sage grouse conservation is working in his community in a new Western Livestock Journal that features the latest Sage Grouse Initiative results in 11 western states.