Mike Bryan, CEO of BBI Biofuels, criticizes a recent study by researchers at South Dakota State University, which found that more than 1.3 million acres of grassland were converted to corn and soybean fields between 2006 and 2011, the highest rate of grassland conversion in the U.S. Corn Belt since the 1930s. In their study, Christopher Wright and Michael Wimberly used a geographic information system to analyze USDA data based on satellite imagery, and found that many types of grasslands are being plowed up and converted to cropland — mostly to plant more corn.

Bryan writes about the loss of grasslands as if they are no more important than the grass on his lawn. But grassland loss is no joke for grassland wildlife. In addition to reducing habitat, converting grasslands to cropland increases soil erosion and surface runoff. Once prairie is plowed, restoration efforts can only regain a fraction of the land’s original ecological function. Restoring native prairie is difficult and expensive, and research shows that the habitat quality can never be fully restored.

“Grasslands to cashlands?” Tell that to this black-footed ferret. Corn fields don’t make good wildlife habitat. Photo: J. Michael Lockhart, US Fish & Wildlife Service, via flickr

What’s behind this plow-up? High corn prices, driven in part because about 40% of the country’s corn crop is being used to produce about 13-14 billion gallons of ethanol every year. Experts estimate that 20-30% of the high price of corn is due to the ethanol market.

The plowup and increased corn plantings also crowd out a future with better biofuels. As Wright and Wimberly put it, “the window of opportunity for realizing the benefits of a biofuel industry based on perennial bioenergy crops, rather than corn ethanol and soy biodiesel, may be closing in the Western Corn Belt.” The study suggests we need to be moving to greater production of cellulosic ethanol that utilizes native mixed-grass species as a feedstock, and wouldn’t require converting grasslands to plowed rows of corn or soy.

NWF supports biomass sources that minimize impacts to habitats and biodiversity. Corn ethanol, especially when its cultivation crowds out wildlife and leads to the plowing up of remaining prairies, has increasingly serious impacts that shouldn’t be taken lightly.

Flickr:USFWS/Rocky Mountain-Prairie Region. The black-footed ferret is one of North America’s rarest species.

Now, one of the rarest animals in North America could be on the verge of a comeback. The next big step is buy-in from private landowners who typically cringe at the mention of endangered species. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is hoping ranchers and others will agree to host black-footed ferrets in exchange for assurance they won’t face restrictions that hinder their operations.

Foster program for ferrets?

Several federal agencies will offer assistance (including financial help) to participants in the proposed Safe Harbor program, kind of the conservation equivalent of foster homes for ferrets. The plan is undergoing an environmental assessment.

 ”We’ve got to have wider geographical distribution of colonies of black-footed ferrets. The only way we’re go to achieve that is with the help of landowners,” said Tom Dougherty, who first got involved with the recovery program when he was with the Wyoming Wildlife Federation.

Dougherty later became a regional director and a senior adviser with the National Wildlife Federation. He represented NWF on an advisory committee to the team overseeing ferret recovery.

Ferrets have been released – and some have been born in the wild – on federal, tribal, state and private lands in the Intermountain West and Plains. The recovery program’s goal is a population of 3,000.

According to the Black-footed Ferret Recovery Implementation Team, the biggest obstacle to ferret recovery today is lack of suitable reintroduction sites.

Friendly environs for ferrets

Gary Walker, who ranches near Pueblo, Colo., thinks his land is more than suitable. His cattle ranch is stocked with thousands of acres of ferrets’ favorite food – prairie dogs. He’d like to see ferrets take a big bite out of the rodent’s population.

Walker also prefers working with – not against – nature.

 ”I believe in nature and native predation,’’ Walker said. “It’s nonsense to me why we would be raising all these ferrets in captivity and not be introducing them into the wild, letting mother nature do what it is intended to do.”

Terry Fankhauser agrees. The executive vice president of the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association say his group “is on board” with the Fish and Wildlife Service’s efforts to find landowners who will host ferrets. It’s a turnaround for an organization that in the late 1990s backed a bill requiring legislative approval to reintroduce an endangered or threatened species not currently in the state. That followed on the heels of the Colorado Division of Wildlife’s release of lynx to restore the long-haired mountain cat in the state.

The cattlemen’s group is now backing legislation that would authorize reintroduction of black-footed ferrets on the property of consenting owners.

“Landowners can participate and should participate in the conservation of these species,’’ Fankhauser said.

Black-footed ferrets were on the edge of extinction in 1987, with only 18 ferrets left. Today, captive breeding programs are slowly helping the species recover. This photo of a mother and her four kits was taken at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s National Conservation Center in Colorado

Fankhauser would like to see similar programs aimed at keeping wildlife off the Endangered Species List in the first place.

Dougherty doesn’t understand the opposition the Fish and Wildlife Service plan has met in some places, including Colorado’s neighboring state of Kansas. He thinks it’s in everybody’s best interests to restore a threatened or endangered species to viable population levels, eliminating the special protections that can restrict land uses.

“If you told me 20 years ago that we had a chance in recovering the black-footed ferret, I’m not sure I would’ve believed it,” he added. “Now, I actually think we’re on the threshold of recovering the species.”

Once believed to be extinct, black-footed ferrets are slowly recovering with the help of captive breeding programs. This photo of a mother and her four kits was taken in a "preconditioning pen" at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's National Conservation Center in Colorado where captive bred ferrets learn to survive in their natural habitat before being released into the wild at reintroduction sites. Photo by Mike Lockhart.

May 18 – Endangered Species Day

This Endangered Species Day, help raise awareness about imperiled animals and plants in your area and about the importance of wildlife conservation. Learn how to get involved at www.nwf.org/esday
 

This Photo of the Day was donated by a participant in the annual National Wildlife Photo Contest. See more photos or sign up for the 42nd Annual National Wildlife Photo Contest.

For now, I’d like to accentuate the positive. NWF has been working hard to make sure wildlife is represented  - read our 2012 Farm Bill priorities to learn more. We were pleased that one of our priorities – protection for native grasslands through a Sodsaver provision – was included in the Senate Agriculture Committee’s bill. I have written before about Sodsaver, a provision that will limit federal subsidies on native grassland converted into cropland.

Native grassland is an extremely valuable and under-appreciated biome in the US. I grew up a stone’s throw away from the Appalachians, and I remember clearly the first time I drove across the plains states. I had never seen the horizon so far away before, and the land stretching out flat, or slightly rolling until it met the sky. I have only recently started to learn how many amazing plants and animals live in the grasslands – like prairie chickens and Sandhill cranes.

5 Grassland Species

Here are 5 species that can thank the Senate Agriculture Committee for protecting their homes by including a Sodsaver provision – how many of these species did you already know? How many more can you name?

Black-footed ferret. Photo by Ryan Hagerty for U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Prairie kingsnake. Photo: Illinois Department of Natural Resources

Snakes are key predators and an important part of prairie ecosystems. Prairie kingsnakes are common grassland snakes that come in a variety of shades of grey to brown. They are non-venomous and they don’t usually bite, but they shake their tales if they feel threatened.

Pronghorn antelopes. Photo: US Fish and Wildlife Service

Regal fritillary butterfly. Photo: flickr, Bill Bouton

Butterflies that depend on prairie habitat are in decline, in Europe as well as the US. Many insects, including important pollinators, depend on grasslands to survive.

Burrowing owl family. Photo: flickr, Annette’s photography

 Burrowing owls, like prairie dogs and ferrets, live in underground burrows (hence the name). Burrowing owls are also unique because they are often active during the day.

Did you already know these animals?  Can you think of any more?  If so, send us a comment through the feature below!