Pheasants Forever’s Montana Grassland Initiative

What is the Montana Grassland Initiative?

Through Pheasants Forever's Montana Grassland Initiative, we will increase both the quantity and quality of Montana’s wildlife habitat by focusing on the state’s grassland and sagebrush steppe ecosystems. With a unified vision for conservation, we aim to meet the challenges facing this vital landscape, and together we can keep Montana’s grasslands healthy and intact.

Colorized coverage map showing sagebrush steppe focal areas in Montana

WATCH: Montana Grassland Initiative Explained

Why Focus on Grasslands?

Grasslands and Sagebrush steppe are vital to the Montana upland experience — as well as to the state’s culture, industry and wildlife. These crucial pieces of Montana’s legacy are disappearing at an alarming rate. Over 30% of eastern Montana’s grasslands have been broken or altered, and the state has seen a 34% decline in grassland bird populations. Over 1.5 million Montana acres enrolled in the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) have expired in the last decade — and nationwide, 2.6 million acres of grasslands are lost every year.

For a better picture of the nationwide impact of our disappearing grasslands, check out the interactive tool created by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology.

Montana Grassland Threats and Strategy

The Montana Grassland Initiative will take ambitious steps to address the top threats to the state’s grassland habitat, which include.

» Land use conversion.

» Invasive annual grasses.

» Conifer encroachment.

» Lack of grassland management.

» Loss of species diversity.

Montana Grassland Initiative 5-year Goals:

Our conservation delivery team in Montana is already delivering a high-level of grassland and sagebrush conservation, but we can do more. With increased focus and emphasis on grasslands, we will unlock new opportunities to meet the challenges of this imperiled ecosystem. During the first year of the initiative, we have already impacted 311,446 acres of grasslands, opened 12,448 acres of public access to grasslands, raised just over $100,000, and completed 1,198 landowner contacts.

We are not stopping there, our 5-year goals are outlined below:

» 750,000 acres of intact grasslands anchored.

» 600,000 acres of vulnerable grasslands conserved.

» 150,000 acres of converted/altered grasslands restored.

» 50,000 acres of public access to grasslands opened.

» 9,000 landowner contacts.

» 1.5 million total acres of grassland impact.

HOW WILL THE MONTANA GRASSLAND INITIATIVE ADDRESS GRASSLAND THREATS?

This brand new endeavor will prioritize our statewide efforts, allow the organization to provide more support to our conservation and landowner partners and help us pursue more ambitious grassland conservation goals.

We will use the best available science support tools, focus on areas with high upland game bird opportunities, utilize a “protect the core, grow the core” mentality, center work around existing staff capacity for project delivery and stay focused on communities and partnerships ready to complete conservation projects.

» Central Grassland Roadmap

Through the Montana Grassland Initiative, we are:

» Identifying a unifying conservation delivery vision for Montana.

» Prioritizing our statewide efforts underneath this initiative.

» Providing more support to our conservation partnerships.

» Pursuing even more ambitious grassland conservation goals.

Thanks to our Partners!

Like all great conservation work, the Montana Grasslands Initiative is made possible by our tremendous network of partners and supporters, including...

USDA-NRCS
Bureau of Land Management
US Fish and Wildlife Service
Montana Fish Wildlife and Parks
Ranchers Stewardship Alliance
Winnett ACES
Ducks Unlimited
World Wildlife Fund
Prairie Pothole Joint Venture
Northern Great Plains Joint Venture
Intermountain West Joint Venture
Yellowstone Conservation District
National Fish and Wildlife Foundation

Contact us

Hunter VanDonsel
Pheasants Forever Montana State Coordinator
406-461-3827
hvandonsel@pheasantsforever.org