Habitat Management Agreement

Habitat Management Agreement

Habitat Management Agreements can be tailored to each ranchers operation based on a ranch evaluation and planning exercises, producer objectives and resources, habitat objectives and circumstances that are present. They allow for flexibility and adaptive management decision making.

Experience from the last five years has indicated that the control of invasive plant species, such as leafy spurge, on the native grasslands will be a top priority. It is anticipated that a large chunk of Habitat Management Agreements will have some degree of invasive plant species management. An integrated approach of targeted grazing, biological and chemical control will be effective in the reduction of invasive plant species.

One of our other top priorities will be building grazing management strategies for a multi species approach. All management strategies will be beneficial to both the rancher and species at risk that were identified.

Grazing management protocols can be utilized to control nesting habits of species at risk like Spraque’s Pipit. Creating the desired environment for these threatened birds to nest and rebuild their numbers by deferring grazing or implementing a rotational grazing strategy.

All habitat management agreements are multi species focused and will hold significant ecological value for the grasslands. Due to this, the SSGF will negotiate longer term agreements to ensure desired environmental outcomes.