National Wildlife Federation

08/05/2024 | News release | Distributed by Public on 08/05/2024 10:28

Grasslands: A Disappearing Ecosystem

If you were to ask someone what they think a cowboy is, I bet you would get a pretty similar answer to mine. My mind conjures images of vast, open expanses of prairie filled with birds, bees, butterflies, elk, deer, and buffalo. A cowboy drives his herd towards greener pastures and in the distance, mountains pierce the big, blue sky dotted with fluffy white clouds. The hum of the freeway interrupts my bucolic vision and I'm reminded that this imagination of the West is increasingly disappearing, as is the way of life supported by those grasslands. The unfortunate truth is that North American grasslands are now vanishing as fast as the Brazilian rainforest.

Every year, an estimated 2 million acres of United States' grassland and sagebrush shrublands are lost or degraded, on average, an area about triple the size of Yosemite National Park. A recent map developed by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology starkly shows how rapidly grasslands have succumbed to a combination of urban development, conversion to cropland, and degradation by invasive species. This destruction of grasslands has had dire consequences for wildlife and climate change, not to mention those who depend on healthy grasslands for their livelihoods (like cowboys!).

Henlow's sparrow, photo by Richard Remington

Grasslands of the United States

The United States contains a multitude of unique grassland ecosystems across the country, supporting countless animal and plant species. In the West, the Great Plains, Great Basin shrublands, and coastal grasslands are home to elk, the greater prairie-chicken, and prairie dogs, among countless other wildlife species. In the Southeast, prairies, savannas and coastal dunes serve as homes to the southern plains bumble bee, gopher tortoise, and northern bobwhite quail. Northeastern grasslands and shrublands, such as Maine's blueberry barrens and coastal plains in Rhode Island, are home to a similarly diverse set of wildlife including the northern pintail duck and bobolink.

According to the U.S. Geological Survey, a staggering 62% of our temperate grasslands have already been lost, and in some areas more than 80% have been lost! Meanwhile, sagebrush steppe shrublands also suffer from the effects of invasive species and human modification.

Wildlife Under Pressure

As grassland habitats succumb to modern pressures, grassland birds have suffered the most, experiencing the steepest losses of all North American birds over the last 50 years. Greater sage-grouse populations alone have declined 80% across the American West since 1965 and the northern bobwhite has experienced a similar decline of over 80% since 1966. The conversion of prairies and other types of grasslands to crop production, as opposed to traditional ranching, has particularly negative effects on wildlife. What was once productive grazing land that mimicked historical grazing patterns and provided habitat to wildlife is now tilled land. Well-managed grazing both increases soil carbon storage and increases wildlife populations, while providing a way of life that has sustained generations of Americans.

The iconic monarch butterfly has been particularly hard hit by the ongoing grassland loss. Western monarchs have lost 95% of their population since the 1980s. Eastern monarchs haven't fared much better, losing 80% of their population since 1990 and the western bumble bee population declined 57% from 1998-2020. Pollinators like the monarch and native bees are vital to farming and ranching operations and they rely on large, connected habitats to provide pollen, nectar, and habitat to survive the winter and breed. It is estimated that pollinators provide over $15 billion in value to US crops!

Monarch tagging to determine migration patterns. Curlew National Grassland, Caribou-Targhee National Forest. Credit: US Forest Service

Grasslands help fight climate change, too

Forests are well known for their ability to fight climate change because they store carbon. However, the benefits of grasslands to climate adaptation and mitigation deserve far more recognition. In some areas of the United States, grasslands may offer more secure carbon storage than forests in a changing climate. These "upside-down forests," hold the bulk of their carbon underground in soils, where it is less vulnerable to climate-driven drought, heat waves, and fires than carbon in forests. Additionally, grassland conversion continues to outpace deforestation in the US. As a result, converting just once acre of native grassland to cropland releases the equivalent emissions of 15,300 gallons of gas from a typical US vehicle! Avoiding grassland conversion has the potential to be a more cost-effective nature-based climate mitigation strategy than nearly any other option at our fingertips. Simply, the best thing we can do for grasslands is to leave them intact, manage them well, and prevent the spread of invasive plants!

Not only do grasslands store carbon, they are also important for resilience to climate change-driven extreme weather like droughts and floods. Healthy soils, like those found in well-managed grasslands, both filter and retain water much better than degraded soils or hard infrastructure ever could. Erosion and topsoil loss in the United States is shockingly estimated to be higher than during the Dust Bowl. Grassland plants hold soil in place and filter out harmful substances, protecting city water supplies and ecosystems downstream. Amazingly, just one acre of tallgrass prairie can intercept 53 tons of water from running off during a 1-inch rainfall!

Upland sandpiper (Bartramia longicauda), Dakota Grassland Conservation Area, USA. Credit: Tom Koerner, USFWS

This is a Real Bummer. Isn't Anyone Doing Anything About It?

Yes! Federal agencies including the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and Fish and Wildlife Service work with state and local governments, farmers, ranchers, and private landowners to conserve, restore, and protect grasslands through various programs. One popular initiative is the Grassland Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) which compensates producers for conserving environmentally sensitive lands, either by grazing sustainably or removing it from crop production using 10- to 15-year contracts. Grasslands CRP currently has enrolled 8.6 million acres and the most recent sign up included 1.8 million acres from underserved producers who have traditionally struggled to access USDA programs!

Unfortunately, Grassland CRP and other efforts are not nearly enough to stem the tide of grassland destruction. Every ten years, or the typical length of a CRP contract, 20 million acres will be converted, on average. The 8.6 million acres enrolled in Grassland CRP help, but aren't enough to stem the destruction of these vital ecosystems.

Western meadowlark, Credit: Rick Bohn, Prairie Pothole Region, USFWS Mountain-Prairie

What can I do to Help Save Grasslands?

The good news is NWF, in partnership with various hunting, fishing, scientific, and environmental organizations has developed the North American Grasslands Conservation Act, modeled after the successful North American Wetlands Conservation Act. The Grasslands Act would create a landowner-driven, voluntary, incentive-based program to conserve, restore, and improve management of grasslands across the country through a partnership-based approach that will help sustain them as working lands for wildlife and people. This national grant program would provide the multi-faceted support that grasslands need to continue to fight climate change, support rancher livelihoods, and serve as habitat for species in decline. Your elected officials need to hear that you support that kind of effort!

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