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Northern Great Plains 2017 Grant SlateNFWF CONTACTSChris WestDirector, Rocky MountainRegional Office303-398-7042chris.west@nfwf.orgSeth GallagherProgram Manager,Rocky Mountain Regional Office303-222-6483seth.gallagher@nfwf.orgTo learn more, go to:www.nfwf.org/greatplainsSharp-tailed grouseOVERVIEWThe vast grasslands of the Northern Great Plains support a unique assemblage ofwildlife adapted to the wide open spaces. Thanks to generations of land stewardshipby ranchers, tribes and public agencies, much of the Northern Great Plains remains asnative grassland that is productive for people and wildlife.However, this unparalleled resource is facing threats including conversion to cropland,energy development, invasive species and a lack of capacity to manage the grasslands ofthis vast region. The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation’s (NFWF) Northern GreatPlains Program (NGP) works with willing private landowners and local partners toaddress these challenges by conserving and restoring native prairie and wildlife whilealso enhancing local ranching and tribal communities.ABOUT NFWFThe National Fish and WildlifeFoundation (NFWF) protectsand restores our nation’s fishand wildlife and their habitats.Created by Congress in 1984,NFWF directs public conservationdollars to the most pressingenvironmental needs and matchesthose investments with privatefunds.Learn more at www.nfwf.orgIn 2017, the program awarded 15 grants totaling more than 2 million. The grants willsupport conservation efforts on more than 83,000 acres in eastern Montana, westernNorth Dakota and South Dakota, eastern Wyoming and the Nebraska Sandhills.The grants will draw more than 4.4 million in matching contributions, generating atotal conservation impact of more than 6.5 million.NFWF awarded the grants to nonprofit conservation organizations, governmentagencies and other stakeholders across five states. Awardees will work with privatelandowners, state and federal wildlife managers, and nonprofit partners to conserve9,000 acres, restore over 6,000 acres and improve management on over 67,000 acres ofgrasslands. Grant awards are listed below.(continued)
Northern Great Plains 2017 Grant SlateSouth DakotaFunk RanchGrantee: The Nature ConservancyNFWF Award Amount:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150,000Matching Funds:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 850,000Total Project:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,000,000The Nature Conservancy is implementing the acquisitionof a conservation easement from Funk Ranch,a 9,500-acreranch in the northern portion of Valley County, Montana,within the Bitter Creek Conservation Area. Bitter Creekhas been identified as high priority for conservation bymultiple conservation organizations, as well as state andfederal agencies.ABN RanchGrantee: Montana Land RelianceNFWF Award Amount:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162,500Matching Funds:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,140,000Total Project:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,302,500The Montana Land Reliance will implement a conservationeasement on a 5,331-acre ranch bordering the westernend of the National Wild and Scenic River Corridor ofthe Missouri River and the Upper Missouri River BreaksNational Monument. The property overlooks the MissouriRiver just downstream from the historic “decision point”where the Lewis and Clark expedition met the confluence ofthe Marias and the Missouri rivers. Of the 5,331 acres, 4,161acres are classified as “prime and important soils.” Giventhe property is primarily native grasslands, a conservationeasement prohibiting cropland conversion wouldsignificantly protect habitat for year-round and migratoryspecies. The property is also home to a healthy pronghornherd, as well as mule and whitetail deer.Winnett Conservation CollaborativeGrantee: Petroleum County Conservation DistrictNFWF Award Amount:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32,500Matching Funds:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32,500Total Project:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65,000The Petroleum County Conservation District (PCCD)will complete an in-depth assessment to determinethe feasibility of organizing a locally led group fromWinnett, Montana to purchase grazing land. The localgroup would manage the land for the purpose of grazingand implementing grassland conservation practices toenhance habitat for native wildlife species. The focus willenhance habitat for pronghorn and greater sage-grousepopulations, while also providing opportunities for thelocal ranching community to become more sustainable.The feasibility study, as well as the process used to createthe document, can be used as a model across the west forrural communities to develop locally-led conservationcollaborative projects.(continued)
Northern Great Plains 2017 Grant SlateIdentifying Native (Undisturbed) Habitats in theDakota Grassland Focus Area of Western South DakotaGrantee: South Dakota State UniversityNFWF Award Amount:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100,000Matching Funds:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100,000Total Project:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200,000South Dakota State University will implement a land-useinventory project focused on identifying native (undisturbed)land tracts within and near the Dakota, Sandhills, andPowder River-Thunder Basin Grassland regions of westernSouth Dakota through Farm Services Agency Common LandUnit data, aerial imagery, and a new and rigorous deductiveprocess developed by the university to determine the extentof known tillage history. This project will result in accurateidentification of western South Dakota lands are truly nativehabitat and has the potential to dramatically impact publicand private conservation planning and prioritization.Using Plowprint to Monitor GrasslandConversion Across the Northern Great PlainsGrantee: World Wildlife FundNFWF Award Amount:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20,000Matching Funds:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20,000Total Project:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40,000World Wildlife Fund will update and expand its geospatial dataanalysis, called The Plowprint Report, to evaluate landscapechange metrics for the Northern Great Plains ecoregion. Theanalysis will use the newest accurate data to track rates ofagricultural conversion, monitor previously converted landsand identify risk factors for remaining intact habitats. Theproject will include developing data to assess soil quality inCanada to complement datasets available for the United States.Native Prairie Restoration Project- Grand River National GrasslandsGrantee: USDA Forest Service – Dakota Prairie GrasslandsNFWF Award Amount:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56,770Matching Funds:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98,700Total Project:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155,470The U.S. Forest Service Dakota – Prairie Grasslands willimplement native prairie restoration and management on460 acres, including a 40-acre restoration on the GrandRiver National Grasslands and 20 acres on adjacent Bureauof Reclamation land, by eliminating crested wheatgrassand reseeding it to native grasslands species. Conservationoutcomes include improvement in herbaceous plant speciesdiversity, including native pollinator plant species, habitatimprovements for native birds and pollinators, improved soilinfiltration and drought resiliency.Sage grouseBirds, Herds, and Stewards:Sustainable Working Lands for the FutureGrantee: American Bird ConservancyNFWF Award Amount:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 230,000Matching Funds:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 230,000Total Project:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 460,000American Bird Conservancy (ABC) will promote educationalopportunities and land stewardship activities in the coreof the Northern Great Plains by offering workshops andproviding conservation technical assistance, developingconservation plans, and assisting private and triballandowners in enrolling in Farm Bill programs. In addition,ABC will coordinate with federal land managers onactivities that will enhance habitat for grassland birdswhile maintaining sustainable land use. Outcomes includeenhanced landowner and resource professional knowledgeof grassland conservation and soil health, implementationof sustainable wildlife-compatible management across theproject area, and restoration and/or improved managementpractices on 26,000 acres.Enhancing Rangeland Ecology byImproving Ranch Management OptionsGrantee: South Dakota Grassland CoalitionNFWF Award Amount. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200,000Matching Funds:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200,000Total Project:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 400,000South Dakota Grasslands Coalition will focus oninfrastructural and land improvement tools to improve(continued)
Northern Great Plains 2017 Grant SlateCattle on the Great Plainsmanagement of land within the Dakota, Sandhills andPowder River-Thunder Basin grasslands of western SouthDakota. The project will work with a minimum of 20 privatelandowners to improve habitat on a minimum 18,500acres through long-term conservation agreements, and willinclude habitat improvement techniques such as fencing (14miles) and water development for prescribed/ecologicalgrazing as well as grassland/wetland restoration (500acres).Restoration and Enhanced Management of Montana’sMilk River Grasslands through Sustainable RanchingGrantee: Ranchers Stewardship AllianceNFWF Federal Funds:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 300,000Matching Funds:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 632,077Total Project:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 932,077Ranchers Stewardship Alliance will implement restoration andenhanced management in the critically important landscapeof Montana’s Milk River grasslands. Project activities directlysupport NFWF’s objectives of grassland habitat conservationand improve outcomes on 8,000 acres for grassland passerines,pronghorn and greater sage-grouse. Approximately 4,000 acresof expiring Conservation Reserve Program lands will transitionto working rangeland, thereby preventing conversion tocropland. Approximately 3,000 acres of existing marginalcropland will be restored through reseeding perennial coverof native grasses and forbs. Management applications willenhance ecological function and forage value of 1,000 acres ofexotic, tame grass plantings dating back to the Dust Bowl era.Stewardship of Private Lands in theNorthern Great Plains and IntegratedPopulation Models for Grassland BirdGrantee: Bird Conservancy of the RockiesNFWF Award Amount:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 229,999Matching Funds:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 578,000Total Project:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 807,999Bird Conservancy of the Rockies will address thedocumented need for building local capacity to implementon-the-ground conservation by supporting threeStewardship Biologist positions in three focal areasof the NGP (Missouri/Milk River Grasslands, DakotaGrasslands and Powder River/Thunder Basin Grasslands)to establish public-private conservation partnerships,provide targeted outreach to landowners, and implementgrassland habitat enhancement and restoration projects.The Stewardship Biologists will conduct at least 100 oneon-one landowner visits, coordinate with partners on fourworkshops, and conduct other outreach reaching over4,000 people. By using conservation plans for guidance,and in combination with additional information developedby Bird Conservancy, they will strategically engage at least(continued)
Northern Great Plains 2017 Grant Slate15 landowners to participate in conservation programsenhancing 27,500 acres. Lastly, they will facilitatepartnerships between landowners and land trusts toconserve through easements.Sandhills Native Ecosystem Partnership ProjectGrantee: Sandhills Task ForceNFWF Award Amount:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200,070Matching Funds:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 220,000Total Project:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 420,070The Sandhills Task Force, in collaboration with theNebraska Game and Parks Commission and the U.S. Fishand Wildlife Service’s Partners for Fish and WildlifeProgram will improve grassland wildlife habitat inNebraska’s Sandhills on privately owned land bycontrolling eastern red cedar infestations on 4,875 acresand improving grazing systems on an additional 3,000acres. Cedar infestations will be controlled by use ofprescribed fire and mechanical treatment. Grazing systemswill be improved by installing necessary watering locationsand fencing, and by establishing a management plan withthe landowner.The Journey to Thirty Breeding AdultBlack-footed Ferrets at Fort BelknapGrantee: Fort Belknap Indian CommunityNFWF Award Amount. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 212,514Matching Funds:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 214,037Total Project:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 426,551The Fort Belknap Fish and Wildlife Departmentseeks financial assistance to manage and increase itsreintroduced black-footed ferret population and associatedblack-tailed prairie dog colony habitat. Future actionsinclude annual sylvatic plague mitigation, ferret populationand habitat surveys, reintroductions (if needed),vaccination and identification tagging on the Fort BelknapReservation in Montana. The long-term goal of this projectis to increase the ferret population on the Reservation toat least 30 breeding adults, which will contribute to theremoval of the species from the Federal List of Endangeredand Threatened Wildlife.Woven Wire Fence ModificationGrantee: Bureau of Land ManagementNFWF Award Amount:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46,042Matching Funds:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50,000Total Project:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96,042The Bureau of Land Management – Miles City Officewill work to modify existing fences that do not meetspecifications for wildlife ‒ primarily pronghorn andmule deer. Cattle and sheep farming were historicallythe primary lifestyle in these communities. As a result,countless miles of fences crisscross the region, whichcreate hazards and barriers for wildlife, often resulting ininjury or death. The objective is to replace at least 11 milesof woven wire fence in crucial pronghorn winter rangeand high use areas to wildlife-friendly specifications tofacilitate pronghorn and young wild ungulates movementacross the landscape.Putting Science into Action to Facilitate PronghornMovements in the Northern Great PlainsGrantee: Miistakis InstituteNFWF Award Amount:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71,200Matching Funds:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71,200Total Project:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142,400The Miistakis Institute project builds the case for ensuringsafe movement of pronghorn across highways in theCanadian portion of the Great Northern Plains throughdevelopment of a participatory science program. Pinchpoints have been identified along the Canadian highwaynetwork where seasonal pronghorn movements areimpaired. Public support needs work, and the businesscase needs to be outlined for provincial agenciesresponsible for implementing strategies to enable effectivepronghorn movement. Through a citizen science approach,stakeholders and the public will be engaged in scienceand conservation action to the benefit of pronghorn andother wildlife species impaired by road fragmentation.Ultimately, the program will create support for theinstallation of one or more overpasses across Highway 1and the identification of crossing sites along secondaryhighways.Feasibility Study Regarding anAgricultural-based Land Trust in South DakotaGrantee: South Dakota Cattlemen’s AssociationNFWF Award Amount:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100,000Matching Funds:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6,000Total Project:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106,000The South Dakota Cattlemen’s Association, in partnershipwith agricultural land trusts from Montana, Wyoming,Colorado and Kansas, seek to address a major impedimentto grassland conservation in the state. The parties willundertake a feasibility study to identify the best way toproceed with initial implementation of a nonprofit landtrust to address this gap for South Dakota’s agriculturallandowners. South Dakota is experiencing some of thehighest grassland conversion rates in history, and thefunding for the feasibility study and initial implementationof an agricultural land trust will provide landowners,federal agencies and nonprofits with an additional tool toaddress this threat in a manner that works for farmers andranchers.
The vast grasslands of the Northern Great Plains support a unique assemblage of . restore over 6,000 acres and improve management on over 67,000 acres of grasslands. Grant awards are listed below. (continued) . inventory project focused on identifying native (undisturbed) land tracts within and near the Dakota, Sandhills, and .
