Sandhills Grassland Bird Study

The first field season concluded in July for a research project to study the response of grassland breeding birds to Eastern redcedar management in the Sandhills. This multi-year research effort is led by Dr. Sarah Sonsthagen and PhD student Rachel Rusten with Nebraska Cooperative Fish & Wildlife Research Unit at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL) with funding received by the RWBJV from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) and United States Geological Survey (USGS) through the Science Support Partnership Program (SSP). Habitat loss to woody encroachment is a widespread and ongoing concern for many grassland-obligate species, but the long- and short-term effects of woody removal is not well understood. Results from this study will help evaluate the decade of conservation investments in the Sandhills, inform conservation delivery and prioritization tools, as well as provide a monitoring prototype that can be expanded into other priority landscapes.

The Rainwater Basin Joint Venture partnership upholds the vision of the Great Plains Grassland Initiative (GPGI) that sustainable grasslands support vibrant bird populations and economically viable ranching operations. Through on-the-ground conservation delivery, the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), Nebraska Game and Parks Commission (NGPC), Sandhills Task Force, local Natural Resources Districts, The Nature Conservancy, Pheasants Forever, and U.S. Forest Service are all actively engaged reducing the vulnerability of Nebraska core grasslands from woody encroachment. To improve the value of these conservation investments, it is important to understand how (and when) priority bird species (Dickcissel, Eastern Meadowlark, Grasshopper Sparrow, Greater Prairie Chicken, Sharp-tailed Grouse, Western Meadowlark) respond to grassland enhancement projects. The results of this project will help the RWBJV partnership improve tools to guide grassland conservation delivery and to communicate the outcomes of supporting working lands programs on private lands.

This year, Rachel and the field crew conducted over 750, 5-min point counts on 70 sites between May – July on public and privately managed land across several counties (e.g., Cherry, Blaine, Garfield, Loup, Rock, Thomas, and Wheeler). Fine-scale vegetation structure and characteristic data were collected at roughly one-third of survey points. Approximately 120 surveys were located on public lands, including Valentine NWR (pre-treatment), Seier NWR (post-treatment), and the Nebraska National Forest Bessey Ranger District (post-treatment). The remaining 85% of surveys were located on private lands representing a diverse set of management activities (mechanical removal, piles, burns, grazing, etc.). Private lands sites were selected primarily from recently completed projects with assistance from NRCS and USFWS. Landowner participation in the study is voluntary and participating landowners will receive a summary report listing the birds observed on their property and relative conservation priority. Thank you to NRCS, USFWS, USFS, PF, and NGPC partners for your assistance with site selection and connecting with producers and landowners. We especially thank the producers and landowners who have helped with this project, providing access to their land and local guidance. This project is planned to continue through 2026.