Prairies
Prairies
Prairies are grass-dominated ecosystems shaped by climate, soils, drought, fire, grazing, and the interactions of plants and animals. Across North America they range from tallgrass prairie in wetter regions through mixed-grass prairie to the drier shortgrass plains. Deep-rooted perennial grasses, wildflowers, fertile soils, recurring disturbance, and large herbivores historically produced expansive and biologically diverse landscapes. Much of the original prairie has been converted to agriculture or otherwise fragmented, leaving surviving remnants and reconstructed grasslands increasingly important for biodiversity, soil conservation, water management, carbon storage, and ecological research. :contentReference[oaicite:0]{index=0}
Prairie Ecology and Natural History
Prairie ecosystems developed under the combined influence of precipitation, temperature, drought, fire, grazing, and soil conditions. Tallgrass prairie generally occurs where moisture is greater, while mixed-grass and shortgrass communities dominate progressively drier regions. Fire and herbivory help prevent woody plants from taking over and continually reshape vegetation structure. Prairie grasses are particularly well adapted to disturbance because much of their growing tissue is located near or below ground, allowing plants to recover after grazing, fire, and drought. :contentReference[oaicite:1]{index=1}
Native prairie once covered immense portions of central North America, but agricultural settlement transformed much of this landscape. Remaining prairie fragments often serve as reservoirs of native plant diversity and as reference ecosystems for restoration projects. Research at sites such as Konza Prairie has demonstrated how precipitation, fire, soils, topography, and grazing interact to determine prairie productivity and species composition. :contentReference[oaicite:2]{index=2}
Prairie soils are another defining feature. Dense networks of perennial roots contribute organic matter and nutrients to the soil and help stabilize it against erosion. These root systems also allow prairie vegetation to withstand dry conditions and contribute to long-term storage of carbon below ground.
Prairie Wildlife and Biodiversity
Prairies support diverse communities of mammals, birds, reptiles, insects, pollinators, and soil organisms. Bison historically exerted enormous influence through selective grazing, trampling, wallowing, nutrient redistribution, and seed movement. Their activities created a shifting mosaic of vegetation heights and habitat conditions that supported many other species. Modern reintroduction projects increasingly treat bison not only as culturally important animals but also as ecosystem engineers capable of restoring ecological processes. :contentReference[oaicite:3]{index=3}
Prairie dogs are another important ecosystem engineer. Their colonies modify vegetation, soils, nutrient cycling, and water infiltration while creating habitat used by numerous other species. Black-tailed prairie dog towns can support distinctive communities of predators, grazing mammals, reptiles, and birds, demonstrating how one species can influence an entire grassland ecosystem. :contentReference[oaicite:4]{index=4}
Smaller and less visible organisms are also fundamental to prairie biodiversity. Butterflies, native bees, grasshoppers, soil microorganisms, reptiles, and small mammals participate in pollination, decomposition, food webs, and nutrient cycling. Declines of specialized species such as prairie butterflies frequently reflect the larger loss and fragmentation of native grassland habitat.
Fire, Grazing, and Prairie Management
Fire is a natural and essential prairie process. Historically, fires ignited by lightning and Indigenous burning repeatedly removed accumulated vegetation, recycled nutrients, stimulated new plant growth, and limited the expansion of trees and shrubs. Today, prescribed burning is widely used to reproduce some of these ecological effects and to control invasive or woody vegetation. :contentReference[oaicite:5]{index=5}
Grazing interacts closely with fire. Bison, cattle, and other herbivores preferentially feed on newly growing vegetation, creating patches with different plant heights and structures. Patch-burn grazing deliberately uses this relationship by burning different portions of a landscape at different times, encouraging animals to concentrate on recently burned areas and producing a shifting mosaic of habitats. :contentReference[oaicite:6]{index=6}
Research has shown that carefully managed grazing and mowing can sometimes increase plant diversity by preventing dominant grasses from excluding less competitive species. Management therefore increasingly seeks to restore variation rather than maintain uniformly tall or uniformly short vegetation.
Prairie Restoration
Prairie restoration attempts to rebuild native grassland on land that has been cultivated, invaded by nonnative species, or otherwise degraded. Restoration commonly involves site preparation, planting diverse native seed mixtures, controlling invasive plants, mowing, grazing, prescribed burning, and long-term ecological monitoring. :contentReference[oaicite:7]{index=7}
Restoration projects range from small remnant prairies to landscape-scale reconstruction efforts involving thousands of acres. Examples include tallgrass prairie reconstruction, restoration of coastal prairie, recovery of Palouse Prairie, and rehabilitation of grasslands in the Prairie Pothole Region. Such projects can improve wildlife habitat, pollinator resources, water infiltration, erosion control, groundwater protection, and carbon storage. :contentReference[oaicite:8]{index=8}
Prairie restoration is also an ecological experiment. Studies show that weather during establishment, previous land use, seed composition, management history, and proximity to surviving prairie remnants can all influence long-term outcomes. Restored grasslands may gradually recover plant, animal, and soil communities, but reconstruction of a complex native ecosystem can take decades.
Prairie Conservation
Because only a fraction of historic prairie remains intact, conservation increasingly focuses on protecting surviving remnants while reconnecting them through restored habitat. Public agencies, conservation organizations, Indigenous communities, ranchers, farmers, and private landowners all play important roles because much surviving native prairie lies outside formally protected areas. :contentReference[oaicite:9]{index=9}
Canadian and American prairie conservation programs emphasize protection of large landscapes where ecological processes such as grazing and fire can continue. Grasslands National Park, Prairie Pothole landscapes, Great Plains conservation areas, and numerous wildlife refuges demonstrate the importance of maintaining prairie at scales large enough to support migratory birds and species with extensive habitat requirements.
Conservation efforts also increasingly recognize working ranchlands as important ecological landscapes. Properly managed grazing can allow agricultural production to coexist with native vegetation and wildlife, particularly where ranching has prevented grasslands from being converted to intensive crop production.
Prairies and Agricultural Landscapes
Agriculture has been one of the major forces transforming prairie ecosystems, yet new conservation approaches seek to restore prairie functions within working farmland. Prairie strips are one example. These narrow areas of native prairie vegetation are strategically planted within or along crop fields to intercept runoff, reduce soil erosion, retain nutrients, and provide habitat for birds and pollinators. :contentReference[oaicite:10]{index=10}
Research from Iowa and elsewhere indicates that relatively small amounts of prairie vegetation can produce disproportionately large environmental benefits. Prairie strips may reduce soil and nutrient losses while increasing plant, insect, and bird diversity without requiring entire farms to be removed from production. :contentReference[oaicite:11]{index=11}
Native warm-season grasses and prairie forbs can also be incorporated into pasture systems, providing livestock forage while improving habitat and ecological diversity. These approaches demonstrate that prairie conservation and agricultural production do not always have to be competing land uses.
Prairie Birds
Grassland birds are among the wildlife groups most closely associated with prairie condition. Species such as Greater Prairie-Chickens, Lesser Prairie-Chickens, Grasshopper Sparrows, Baird's Sparrows, Henslow's Sparrows, meadowlarks, longspurs, curlews, and Upland Sandpipers depend on particular combinations of vegetation height, density, litter, grazing intensity, and landscape size. :contentReference[oaicite:12]{index=12}
Different bird species often require different habitat structures, making heterogeneous prairie landscapes especially important. Prairie-chickens, for example, require large landscapes containing suitable areas for courtship, nesting, feeding, and brood rearing. Other species prefer short, recently grazed vegetation, while some require tall and dense grass.
Large syntheses of grassland bird research have therefore examined the effects of burning, grazing, mowing, farming, and restoration. These studies reinforce the importance of maintaining large grasslands and varied habitat conditions rather than managing every acre identically. :contentReference[oaicite:13]{index=13}
Climate, Carbon, and Ecological Resilience
Prairies can contribute to climate resilience because much of their carbon is stored below ground in extensive root systems and soils. Healthy grasslands can also improve water infiltration, reduce erosion, and retain moisture during drought. Restored prairie landscapes may therefore provide benefits extending beyond wildlife conservation.
Drought remains a defining environmental force, particularly in mixed-grass and shortgrass regions. Prairie species evolved with recurring periods of limited rainfall, but climate change can intensify heat, drought, invasive-species pressures, and changes in fire regimes. Conservation increasingly focuses on maintaining ecological diversity and landscape connectivity so prairie species can better respond to changing conditions.
Restoration of streams, wetlands, floodplains, and prairie potholes can complement grassland conservation by slowing water movement and increasing landscape water retention. Such projects illustrate how prairie management increasingly addresses entire interconnected ecosystems rather than vegetation alone. :contentReference[oaicite:14]{index=14}
Prairie Protection and Working Landscapes
The future of prairie conservation depends heavily on landscapes where people live and work. Partnerships with ranchers and private landowners can preserve unplowed native grasslands while supporting rural economies. Conservation agreements, grazing management, invasive-species control, prescribed burning, and habitat restoration can allow working landscapes to continue providing ecological functions.
Indigenous communities are also increasingly involved in prairie and bison restoration. Returning bison to Tribal lands can restore ecological processes while renewing cultural relationships that were disrupted when bison populations were nearly eliminated.
The accumulated research on prairie management shows that successful conservation rarely depends on a single technique. Fire, grazing, wildlife restoration, invasive-species control, seed establishment, agricultural conservation practices, and long-term monitoring are most effective when combined and adapted to local ecological conditions.
Conclusion
Prairies are dynamic ecosystems created and maintained by interactions among climate, soils, fire, grazing animals, plants, and wildlife. Their apparent simplicity as open grasslands conceals complex ecological communities above and below the soil surface. Bison, prairie dogs, grassland birds, insects, native plants, microbes, and other organisms all contribute to prairie function.
Conversion to agriculture and other land uses has eliminated or fragmented much of the original North American prairie, making surviving remnants exceptionally important. At the same time, decades of restoration research demonstrate that significant ecological functions can be recovered through native planting, prescribed fire, managed grazing, wildlife reintroduction, prairie strips, and landscape-scale conservation.
Protecting remaining native prairie while restoring ecological processes across farms, ranches, public lands, and protected areas offers the strongest opportunity to preserve prairie biodiversity. These efforts also provide broader benefits through soil conservation, water retention, pollinator habitat, carbon storage, climate resilience, and the protection of one of North America's defining ecosystems.
Prairies
Prairie Ecology and Natural History
1. | Smithsonian Magazine | Smithsonian Magazine | December 2025
Explains how climate, fire, grazing animals, and evolutionary history helped produce the extensive prairie landscapes of the Midwest.
2. | National Park Service | U.S. National Park Service | February 6, 2025
Explains how mixed-grass prairie forms a transition between tallgrass and shortgrass ecosystems and supports hundreds of plant species.
3. | National Park Service | U.S. National Park Service | 2024
Introduces an intact mixed-grass prairie at Scotts Bluff National Monument and the grasses that dominate this ecosystem.
4. | National Park Service | U.S. National Park Service | 2024
Provides an overview of tallgrass prairie ecology, bison grazing, native vegetation, and the enormous historical reduction of the ecosystem.
5. | National Park Service | U.S. National Park Service | July 26, 2023
Prairies are grass-dominated ecosystems shaped by climate, fire, grazing, soils, and interactions among plants and animals across North America.
6. | U.S. Geological Survey | USGS | 2022
Reviews grassland ecology and research on the widespread conversion of native North American grasslands to cropland and other uses.
7. | Janet Batzli and Seth McGee | University of Wisconsin–Madison | 2022
Introduces tallgrass prairie ecology, fire, soils, restoration, fragmentation, invasive species, and the challenges of reconstructing functioning prairie ecosystems.
8. | National Park Service | U.S. National Park Service | March 15, 2021
Describes the tallgrass prairie ecosystem and the dramatic decline of native prairie following agricultural settlement.
9. | National Park Service | U.S. National Park Service | 2021
Describes common native grasses in mixed-grass prairie, including western wheatgrass, blue grama, prairie Junegrass, and little bluestem.
10. | National Park Service | U.S. National Park Service | 2020
Explores mixed-grass prairie biodiversity, soils, invasive plants, wildlife, cultural importance, and conservation at Little Bighorn.
11. | Iowa State University Extension | Iowa State University | September 1, 2019
Provides a broad introduction to Iowa prairie ecology, plant diversity, remnants, reconstruction, management, and conservation.
12. | National Park Service | U.S. National Park Service | 2019
Describes the mixed-grass and shortgrass prairie communities protected and monitored at Fort Laramie National Historic Site.
13. | National Park Service | U.S. National Park Service | 2019
Examines efforts to restore agricultural land to mixed-grass prairie at Fort Union Trading Post.
14. | NASA Earth Observatory | NASA | 2018
Examines Alabama and Mississippi's Black Belt Prairie, a historically grass-dominated ecosystem largely converted to agriculture.
15. | Llewellyn L. Manske | North Dakota State University | 2011
Examines grazing, perennial grasses, soil organisms, nutrient cycling, and biological processes involved in restoring degraded prairie.
16. | NOAA | National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration | 2009
Introduces prairie grassland climate, wildlife, prairie potholes, land-use pressures, drought, and projected climate change.
17. | Jesse Nippert and John Blair | Ecological Society of America | 2005
Uses Konza Prairie research to explain how precipitation, fire, soil, and topography influence tallgrass prairie productivity.
18. | Land Management Research Program | U.S. Geological Survey | n.d.
Surveys the Great Plains and Prairie Pothole Region and the extraordinary diversity of mammals, birds, reptiles, and wetlands they support.
19. | Rachel Hauser | NASA Earth Observatory | n.d.
Discusses long-term research into grasslands and the effects of agriculture, land management, and climate on prairie productivity.
20. | University of Minnesota Extension | University of Minnesota | n.d.
Explains prairie soils, grasses, wildflowers, wildlife value, establishment, burning, mowing, and long-term prairie management.
21. | Iowa State University Extension | Iowa State University | n.d.
Describes prairie and meadow plantings as biologically diverse alternatives to conventional turfgrass landscapes.
22. | National Park Service | U.S. National Park Service | n.d.
Collects the National Park Service's Prairie Ecology of the Badlands series on mixed-grass prairie plants, monitoring, restoration, and management.
Prairie Wildlife and Biodiversity
23. | Alicia Ault | Smithsonian Magazine | May 6, 2026
Reviews bison history, near-extinction, Indigenous connections, conservation, genetics, and their role as prairie ecosystem engineers.
24. | Ashley D'Souza | Smithsonian Magazine | April 21, 2026
Highlights the ecological importance of bison as large grazers and ecosystem engineers across North American grasslands.
25. | National Park Service | U.S. National Park Service | 2023
Reviews research showing how bison grazing can influence plant productivity, nitrogen, vegetation structure, biodiversity, and nutrient redistribution.
26. | National Park Service | U.S. National Park Service | March 1, 2023
Describes prairie dogs as keystone animals whose colonies provide food and habitat for scores of Great Plains species.
27. | Julie Rebh | Smithsonian Magazine | November 1, 2022
Explores both visible prairie wildlife and the often overlooked ecological processes occurring in prairie soils.
28. | World Wildlife Fund | WWF | 2021
Introduces Northern Great Plains grasslands, their wildlife, ecological processes, climate, and conservation challenges.
29. | National Park Service | U.S. National Park Service | January 15, 2021
Explains how black-tailed prairie dog towns create biologically distinctive habitats used by birds, mammals, reptiles, and large grazers.
30. | Tina Shaw | U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service | 2021
Uses monarch conservation to illustrate how protecting individual species can support entire prairie plant and animal communities.
31. | Claire Bresnan | Smithsonian Magazine | November 17, 2020
Describes field research on the behavior and collective movements of a large bison herd living on Montana prairie.
32. | Mongabay | Mongabay | June 2020
Examines efforts by Indigenous communities to restore bison to landscapes where the animals once shaped prairie ecology and culture.
33. | National Park Service | U.S. National Park Service | 2020
Surveys prairie dog biology, colonies, ecological importance, historical decline, and their interactions with other prairie animals.
34. | Leila Nilipour | Smithsonian Magazine | December 7, 2018
Examines research into how bison and cattle grazing patterns affect grassland birds and prairie habitat structure.
35. | National Park Service | U.S. National Park Service | November 6, 2017
Explains how selective bison grazing produces a shifting mosaic of prairie vegetation and helps maintain plant diversity.
36. | National Park Service | U.S. National Park Service | 2017
Discusses the ecological restoration of wild bison and their historical role as keystone engineers of North American prairie.
37. | National Park Service | U.S. National Park Service | 2017
Describes bison and tallgrass prairie conservation at Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve in the Kansas Flint Hills.
38. | National Park Service | U.S. National Park Service | 2017
Introduces the native prairie and bison conservation history of Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge in Oklahoma.
39. | Katie Taylor | Mongabay | November 20, 2015
Discusses wildlife tracking and other technologies being used to restore native animals and ecological processes to North American prairie.
40. | Patricia Valentine-Darby | U.S. National Park Service | June 25, 2015
Explains how prairie dogs modify vegetation, soils, nutrients, water infiltration, and habitat for numerous grassland species.
41. | Mongabay | Mongabay | August 2013
Connects the severe decline of the Poweshiek skipperling butterfly to the disappearance and fragmentation of tallgrass prairie.
42. | U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service | U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service | n.d.
Describes efforts to rebuild prairie dog populations in shortgrass prairie following catastrophic losses from sylvatic plague.
43. | National Audubon Society | Audubon | n.d.
Identifies priority North American grasslands for birds and highlights threats to remaining tallgrass and mixed-grass prairie.
Prairie Fire, Grazing and Management
44. | Parks Canada | Government of Canada | 2026
Explains why managed cattle grazing can mimic some ecological effects of bison and help maintain mixed-grass prairie habitat.
45. | Robert Pierce II et al. | University of Missouri Extension | March 2026
Explains how native warm-season prairie grasses and forbs can simultaneously provide livestock forage, wildlife habitat, and conservation benefits.
46. | National Park Service | U.S. National Park Service | March 4, 2025
Explains why frequent fire historically maintained tallgrass prairie and how prescribed burning is now used to suppress woody and invasive vegetation.
47. | National Park Service | U.S. National Park Service | March 4, 2025
Describes adaptive management using fire, herbicides, monitoring, and predictive models to combat invasive annual bromes in mixed-grass prairie.
48. | National Park Service | U.S. National Park Service | July 27, 2024
Describes prescribed burning of the restored tallgrass prairie at Homestead National Historical Park.
49. | National Park Service | U.S. National Park Service | May 23, 2024
Explains how prescribed fire is used to suppress invasive vegetation and improve prairie habitat for grassland birds.
50. | Micah Kloppenburg | Xerces Society | April 18, 2024
Shows how native prairie pastures can support grazing cattle while greatly increasing plant diversity and pollinator habitat.
51. | Cara Cannon Byington | Cool Green Science | October 10, 2023
Explains how bison grazing, wallowing, dung, seed movement, and selective feeding influence almost every level of prairie ecology.
52. | Justine E. Hausheer | Cool Green Science | September 18, 2023
Reviews bison biology and their role as ecosystem engineers in prairie landscapes.
53. | U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service | U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service | July 2023
Explains how prescribed fire recycles nutrients and creates new prairie growth that benefits grazing animals, birds, insects, and pollinators.
54. | National Park Service | U.S. National Park Service | 2022
Explains why tallgrass prairie depends on recurring grazing and fire to maintain vegetation diversity, nutrient cycling, and open habitat.
55. | National Park Service | U.S. National Park Service | April 7, 2022
Discusses why both cattle and bison grazing are used to maintain prairie diversity at Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve.
56. | National Park Service | U.S. National Park Service | October 27, 2021
Reviews the historical prairie fire regime and the roles of lightning, Indigenous burning, grazing animals, and drought.
57. | Northern Illinois University | ScienceDaily | February 2, 2021
Finds that controlled burning and bison restoration can have much greater effects on prairie animal communities than plant diversity alone.
58. | Northern Illinois University | ScienceDaily | July 20, 2017
Finds that prairie restoration can eventually restore soil bacterial communities resembling those of native prairie remnants.
59. | National Park Service | U.S. National Park Service | 2017
Describes prescribed fire as part of prairie restoration and eastern red cedar control at Chickasaw National Recreation Area.
60. | Lisa Feldkamp | Cool Green Science | January 25, 2017
Describes the return of bison to a large restored Indiana prairie and their use as a natural habitat-management tool.
61. | Matthew L. Miller | Cool Green Science | September 26, 2016
Examines preparations for returning bison to Kankakee Sands and expectations that grazing would increase habitat diversity.
62. | Anna Herzberger et al. | Restoration Ecology | 2015
Investigates changing relationships between prairie plants and soil microorganisms during the long-term restoration of tallgrass prairie.
63. | University of Illinois | ScienceDaily | March 11, 2014
Examines changes in soil microbial communities as shrubs invade rare remnant hill prairies.
64. | Matthew L. Miller | Cool Green Science | November 3, 2014
Describes decades of prairie reconstruction that made possible the reintroduction of bison to Nachusa Grasslands in Illinois.
65. | University of Colorado Boulder | ScienceDaily | October 31, 2013
Reveals previously undocumented microbial diversity beneath surviving tallgrass prairie remnants.
66. | Matthew L. Miller | Cool Green Science | May 29, 2013
Follows researchers studying bison behavior and genetics on a large mixed-grass prairie preserve in South Dakota.
67. | Ana Davidson et al. | Ecological Society of America | 2012
Reviews how burrowing mammals such as prairie dogs act as ecosystem engineers affecting plants, soils, pollinators, predators, and grazing animals.
68. | Kansas State University | ScienceDaily | May 6, 1998
Reports long-term Konza Prairie research showing that bison grazing can prevent declines in grassland plant diversity.
69. | Kansas State University | ScienceDaily | May 6, 1998
Reports that grazing and mowing can increase plant species diversity in tallgrass prairie.
70. | National Park Service | U.S. National Park Service | 2021
Explains patch-burn grazing, in which fire and grazing interact to create a shifting mosaic of prairie habitats.
71. | University of Missouri Extension | University of Missouri | n.d.
Discusses prescribed burning, grazing, haying, and management of remnant native prairie for wildlife and livestock.
72. | Iowa State University Extension | Iowa State University | n.d.
Explains how native prairie plants can be incorporated into pastures to provide forage while improving wildlife and pollinator habitat.
Prairie Restoration
73. | Jonathan Moczygemba | U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service | February 5, 2026
Describes restoration of South Texas coastal prairie for grassland birds and the endangered northern aplomado falcon.
74. | Elena Wolff | U.S. National Park Service | December 2024
Documents restoration of coastal prairie through invasive tree and shrub removal followed by native grass and forb planting.
75. | National Park Service | U.S. National Park Service | August 14, 2024
Describes a major effort to restore mixed-grass prairie using native seed, invasive-species control, prescribed fire, and partnerships with Tribal Nations.
76. | Tina Shaw | U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service | March 13, 2024
Describes a large Prairie Pothole Region initiative to restore thousands of acres of grasslands and wetlands.
77. | Iowa State University Extension | Iowa State University | 2024
Provides practical guidance for prairie site selection, preparation, reconstruction, seed establishment, and long-term management.
78. | National Park Service | U.S. National Park Service | 2023
Discusses restoration of Pacific Northwest prairie, Indigenous cultural resources, invasive plants, fire, and alternatives to prescribed burning.
79. | Ally Turner | U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service | July 28, 2023
Documents restoration of extremely rare Palouse Prairie remnants for native plants, bees, butterflies, and other pollinators.
80. | Michigan State University | ScienceDaily | November 16, 2022
Shows how the year and historical conditions under which a prairie is planted can produce very different restoration outcomes.
81. | U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service | U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service | November 10, 2022
Describes landscape-scale monitoring designed to measure whether grassland restoration is benefiting wildlife and human communities.
82. | National Park Service | U.S. National Park Service | April 6, 2022
Describes reconstruction of rare bottomland tallgrass prairie at Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve.
83. | Sam Johnson and Jordan Giese | U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service | 2022
Examines how native grassland restoration and seed diversity affect wildlife, pollinators, agriculture, and biodiversity.
84. | Sarah Nizzi | Xerces Society | July 15, 2020
Describes restoration of an Iowa cemetery prairie where removal of woody vegetation revealed rare native plants.
85. | Michigan State University | ScienceDaily | April 6, 2020
Finds that weather conditions during the establishment of restored prairie can influence vegetation for many years afterward.
86. | National Park Service | U.S. National Park Service | February 27, 2020
Introduces prairie restoration and explains its benefits for biodiversity, wildlife habitat, water absorption, and erosion reduction.
87. | University of Minnesota | ScienceDaily | August 28, 2019
Shows that plants can disperse from remnant prairie into neighboring restored prairie and increase restoration biodiversity.
88. | U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service | U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service | n.d.
Details one of America's largest tallgrass prairie reconstruction projects and its benefits for birds, pollinators, carbon storage, and groundwater.
89. | U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service | U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service | n.d.
Reviews the loss and restoration of rare South Puget Sound prairie ecosystems.
90. | U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service | U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service | n.d.
Examines restoration of coastal prairie by controlling woody vegetation to improve habitat for the endangered northern aplomado falcon.
91. | Iowa State University Extension | Iowa State University | n.d.
Explains reconstructed prairie succession and the use of native prairie plantings as outdoor ecological classrooms.
92. | University of Minnesota Extension | University of Minnesota | n.d.
Describes professional training in prairie, wetland, forest, savanna, and shoreline ecological restoration.
Prairie Restoration Science
93. | Maya Rayle | Smithsonian Magazine | May 29, 2026
Examines experimental restoration of prairie streams designed to improve water retention, biodiversity, vegetation, and climate resilience.
94. | Justine E. Hausheer | Cool Green Science | August 22, 2023
Examines research comparing small-mammal communities in remnant and reconstructed Nebraska prairie.
95. | Cara Cannon Byington | Cool Green Science | January 28, 2019
Describes wildlife research involving ornate box turtles in restored and remnant tallgrass prairie at Nachusa Grasslands.
96. | Douglas H. Johnson et al. | U.S. Geological Survey | July 26, 2019
Compiles extensive research on the ecology, habitat needs, and management responses of 40 North American grassland bird species.
97. | Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center | U.S. Geological Survey | June 21, 2018
Describes a major synthesis of thousands of studies examining how prairie and grassland management affects birds.
98. | The Nature Conservancy | Cool Green Science | March 29, 2017
Explores lessons from decades of prairie reconstruction, including restoration of plant diversity and recolonization by birds, bees, grasshoppers, and mammals.
99. | R. J. Fletcher Jr. and Rolf R. Koford | Journal of Wildlife Management | 2002
Compares breeding-bird communities in native tallgrass prairie and restored Iowa grasslands.
100. | R. J. Fletcher Jr. and Rolf R. Koford | U.S. Geological Survey | January 1, 2002
Examines the influence of prairie restoration, vegetation, patch size, and surrounding landscapes on breeding grassland birds.
101. | Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center | U.S. Geological Survey | n.d.
Collects research on native prairie restoration, invasive species, grazing, burning, wetlands, and grassland wildlife.
Prairie Conservation and Restoration
102. | Parks Canada | Government of Canada | 2025
Describes more than two decades of restoring cultivated land to native mixed-grass prairie habitat for threatened wildlife.
103. | Parks Canada | Government of Canada | 2025
Reviews restoration projects protecting more than 30 species at risk in Grasslands National Park.
104. | Environment and Climate Change Canada | Government of Canada | July 31, 2024
Explains the conservation value of protecting former community pastures containing extensive native prairie and threatened-species habitat.
105. | Parks Canada | Government of Canada | June 18, 2024
Introduces Canada's Grasslands National Park and its rare mixed-grass prairie, wildlife, native plants, ecological restoration, and species-at-risk programs.
106. | Parks Canada | Government of Canada | December 2, 2022
Reviews conservation programs protecting one of Canada's largest surviving native mixed-grass prairie landscapes.
107. | Parks Canada | Government of Canada | November 19, 2022
Describes efforts to restore ecological processes such as grazing and fire while recovering threatened prairie species.
108. | Environment and Climate Change Canada | Government of Canada | 2020
Profiles an 80,000-hectare Saskatchewan prairie conservation landscape containing important habitat for numerous grassland species at risk.
109. | U.S. Geological Survey | U.S. Geological Survey | November 8, 2018
Reviews the Native Prairie Adaptive Management initiative and how prescribed burning and grazing can control invasive grasses while maintaining native prairie communities.
110. | Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center | U.S. Geological Survey | June 28, 2018
Examines adaptive management of more than 100,000 hectares of native tallgrass and mixed-grass prairie, including the effects of fire, grazing, and rest on grassland birds.
111. | Janet Batzli and Seth McGee | University of Wisconsin–Madison | 2016
Documents long-term adaptive management and ecological restoration of the Biocore Prairie at the University of Wisconsin–Madison.
112. | Environment and Climate Change Canada | Government of Canada | 2013
Provides a detailed conservation strategy for birds of Canada's Prairie Pothole Region and surrounding mixed-grass prairie.
113. | U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service | U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service | n.d.
Describes large-scale partnerships with landowners and Tribes aimed at conserving and restoring grasslands across the central United States.
114. | U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service | U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service | n.d.
Explains grassland restoration incentives, woody-plant control, private-land conservation, and efforts to protect declining prairie wildlife.
115. | Government of Alberta | Alberta.ca | n.d.
Includes State of the Prairie research documenting remaining native grasslands and land-use changes across Alberta's prairie regions.
Prairie Conservation, Agriculture and Climate
116. | Erik Hoffner | Mongabay | August 2026
Includes the restoration of tallgrass prairie and reintroduction of bison at Illinois's Nachusa Grasslands among notable wildlife recovery efforts.
117. | Sonya Daw and Rocky Mountain Network | U.S. National Park Service | May 6, 2026
Describes long-term monitoring of mixed-grass prairie vegetation, soils, invasive species, erosion, nutrients, and ecological integrity.
118. | Tim Reinbott et al. | University of Missouri Extension | January 2026
Evaluates native grasses, prairie forbs, and legumes as livestock forage and as improved habitat for wildlife.
119. | National Park Service | U.S. National Park Service | 2026
Describes monitoring of highly endangered Pacific Northwest prairie and Garry oak ecosystems and their threatened wildlife.
120. | National Science Foundation | NSF Public Access Repository | 2026
Reviews grassland ecosystems, including the climatic gradient from tallgrass through mixed-grass to shortgrass prairie and the ecological importance of fire.
121. | University of Missouri Extension | University of Missouri | 2025
Describes volunteer efforts to restore remnant prairie through native seed collection, prescribed burning, and reseeding.
122. | Spoorthy Raman | Mongabay | June 2023
Examines community and First Nations efforts to restore the endangered Garry oak-prairie ecosystem of the Pacific Northwest.
123. | U.S. Geological Survey | USGS | 2022
Highlights research into prairie pothole carbon, grassland management, restoration, invasive species, and wildlife conservation.
124. | NOAA | National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration | 2020
Examines drought impacts and management challenges in tallgrass, shortgrass, and Sandhills prairie landscapes.
125. | Jill A. Shaffer and John P. DeLong | U.S. Geological Survey | 2019
Introduces North American prairie and reviews the management practices that determine habitat quality for grassland birds.
126. | Martha Kauffman and Laura Nowlin | Mongabay | September 14, 2018
Argues that healthy native grasslands improve water retention, reduce erosion, support ranching, and store substantial amounts of soil carbon.
127. | Mike Gaworecki | Mongabay | December 2016
Reports continuing conversion of native Great Plains grasslands to agriculture and the consequences for biodiversity and carbon storage.
128. | Glenn Scherer | Mongabay | April 2, 2015
Examines research linking expansion of corn and soybean production for biofuels to conversion of prairie and other grasslands.
129. | Brad S. Fresenburg | University of Missouri Extension | February 2015
Reviews buffalograss, a native shortgrass prairie species adapted to dry western plains and historically associated with bison grazing.
130. | Mongabay | Mongabay | January 26, 2011
Reviews research on using perennial prairie grasses grown on marginal land as a potential source of biofuel.
131. | Ecological Society of America | Issues in Ecology | 1999
Reviews research into biodiversity, ecosystem productivity, stability, and reliability using experimental prairie grassland communities.
132. | The Nature Conservancy | The Nature Conservancy | n.d.
Describes conservation of a Nebraska landscape containing prairie, wetlands, migratory birds, mammals, reptiles, insects, grasses, and wildflowers.
133. | U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service | U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service | n.d.
Discusses adaptive restoration planning for prairie and related western landscapes affected by wildfire, drought, invasive species, and land degradation.
134. | ScienceDaily | ScienceDaily | n.d.
Provides a concise overview of prairie restoration, including soil conservation, biodiversity, carbon storage, pollinators, and backyard restoration.
Prairie Strips and Agricultural Landscapes
135. | Matt O'Neal | Iowa State University Extension | August 12, 2026
Reviews research showing how prairie strips embedded in corn and soybean fields can provide valuable habitat for bees and other pollinators.
136. | Iowa State University Extension | Iowa State University | 2025
Offers a landowner-oriented guide to incorporating prairie strips into agricultural property.
Finds substantially higher densities of grassland birds on agricultural fields containing prairie strips than on conventional control fields.
138. | Chris Kick | Iowa State University Extension and Outreach | October 21, 2022
Reviews nearly two decades of research showing prairie strips can reduce soil and nutrient losses while providing wildlife habitat.
139. | Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada | Government of Canada | 2021
Explains how careful grazing and native prairie management can improve biodiversity, soil condition, carbon storage, and agricultural productivity.
140. | Iowa State University Extension | Iowa State University | May 2020
Provides detailed answers for landowners planning, planting, and maintaining prairie strips.
141. | Iowa State University | College of Agriculture and Life Sciences | September 7, 2017
Summarizes research and practical guides designed to help farmers and landowners establish prairie strips.
142. | STRIPS Project | Iowa State University | n.d.
Introduces prairie strips as a conservation practice integrating native prairie into crop fields to reduce erosion, improve water quality, and create wildlife habitat.
143. | STRIPS Project | Iowa State University | n.d.
Explains how strategically placed prairie vegetation can provide disproportionately large conservation benefits within intensively farmed landscapes.
144. | STRIPS Project | Iowa State University | n.d.
Provides a concise explanation of prairie strips and the research that led to their development.
145. | STRIPS Project | Iowa State University | n.d.
Summarizes long-term experiments measuring how prairie strips influence soil loss, nutrient runoff, plants, insects, and birds.
146. | STRIPS Project | Iowa State University | n.d.
Provides practical information about establishing and maintaining native prairie strips on working farms.
147. | STRIPS Project | Iowa State University | n.d.
Answers common questions about prairie-strip establishment, seed mixes, mowing, burning, weeds, costs, and agricultural compatibility.
148. | STRIPS Project | Iowa State University | n.d.
Describes the research partnership studying how small areas of reconstructed prairie can improve environmental performance of row-crop agriculture.
149. | Iowa State University | Iowa State University | n.d.
Provides a conservation-planning tool for identifying farmland suitable for prairie plantings, wildlife habitat, and erosion control.
Prairie Birds and Bird Conservation
150. | W. Daniel Svedarsky et al. | U.S. Geological Survey | 2022
Reviews habitat requirements and conservation practices for the Greater Prairie-Chicken.
151. | W. Daniel Svedarsky et al. | U.S. Geological Survey | January 21, 2022
Explains why Greater Prairie-Chickens require extensive prairie containing a mosaic of lekking, nesting, feeding, and brood-rearing habitats.
152. | Jill A. Shaffer et al. | U.S. Geological Survey | October 25, 2021
Reviews extensive research showing that Grasshopper Sparrows favor large grasslands with intermediate vegetation height and limited woody cover.
153. | U.S. Geological Survey | U.S. Geological Survey | July 26, 2019
Summarizes thousands of studies examining how grassland birds respond to prairie management practices.
154. | National Audubon Society | Audubon | 2019
Identifies major North American prairie and grassland strongholds and recommends strategies for limiting habitat conversion and climate-related losses.
155. | National Audubon Society | Audubon Great Lakes | 2019
Reviews the status of prairie and other grassland habitats and their importance to Bobolinks, Henslow's Sparrows, meadowlarks, and other declining birds.
156. | National Audubon Society | Audubon Great Lakes | 2015
Identifies important prairie and grassland bird habitats in the greater Chicago region and outlines priorities for restoration and protection.
157. | National Audubon Society | Audubon Minnesota | 2012
Reviews prairie management methods including burning, mowing, and grazing and their importance to grassland birds.
158. | Jill A. Dechant et al. | U.S. Geological Survey | January 1, 1998
Synthesizes research on Grasshopper Sparrow habitat and its response to grazing, mowing, burning, and other prairie management.
159. | Jill A. Dechant et al. | U.S. Geological Survey | 1998
Provides detailed management recommendations for maintaining prairie habitat suitable for Grasshopper Sparrows.
160. | Jill A. Dechant et al. | U.S. Geological Survey | January 1, 1998
Reviews habitat requirements and management responses of Baird's Sparrow, a characteristic bird of northern mixed-grass prairie.
161. | Jill A. Dechant et al. | U.S. Geological Survey | 1998
Synthesizes research on Baird's Sparrow responses to grazing, burning, mowing, and other grassland-management practices.
162. | James R. Herkert | U.S. Geological Survey | January 1, 1998
Reviews management of tall, dense prairie and grassland habitat for Henslow's Sparrow.
163. | James R. Herkert | U.S. Geological Survey | 1998
Provides management recommendations for a declining prairie bird strongly associated with dense grass and accumulated litter.
164. | U.S. Geological Survey | U.S. Geological Survey | 2020s
Reviews habitat management for Lesser Prairie-Chickens across the southern Great Plains.
165. | U.S. Geological Survey | U.S. Geological Survey | 2020s
Reviews habitat requirements and management considerations for Mountain Plovers in shortgrass and mixed-grass prairie.
166. | U.S. Geological Survey | U.S. Geological Survey | 2020s
Examines management of prairie and grassland habitat for Upland Sandpipers.
167. | U.S. Geological Survey | U.S. Geological Survey | 2020s
Reviews the relationship between Long-billed Curlews and native Great Plains grasslands.
168. | U.S. Geological Survey | U.S. Geological Survey | 2020s
Examines habitat requirements of Marbled Godwits in northern prairie and Prairie Pothole landscapes.
169. | U.S. Geological Survey | U.S. Geological Survey | 2020s
Reviews prairie and grassland habitat requirements of Savannah Sparrows.
170. | U.S. Geological Survey | U.S. Geological Survey | 2020s
Updates research and conservation recommendations for Baird's Sparrow.
171. | U.S. Geological Survey | U.S. Geological Survey | 2020s
Reviews habitat management for the Lark Bunting, an iconic bird of western prairie.
172. | U.S. Geological Survey | U.S. Geological Survey | 2020s
Examines habitat requirements and management recommendations for Lark Sparrows.
173. | U.S. Geological Survey | U.S. Geological Survey | 2020s
Reviews grassland and shrubland management for Field Sparrows.
174. | U.S. Geological Survey | U.S. Geological Survey | 2020s
Examines management of western grassland and shrub-steppe habitat for Brewer's Sparrows.
175. | Jill A. Dechant et al. | U.S. Geological Survey | January 1, 1998
Synthesizes research on Grasshopper Sparrow habitat and its response to grazing, mowing, burning, and other prairie management.
