Conservation

The gopher tortoise earned its name for good reason – because it likes to dig and spends much of its time underground. The gopher tortoise, the Southeast’s only land-dwelling tortoise, burrows in the sandy soils below longleaf pine forests where it can escape heat and danger. Its burrows are popular...

“Not today,” said Mr. Leonard Keyes as he and Dr. John Stanley surveyed the plot of land on Keyes’ farm in Mize, Mississippi. “ Too dry.” Stanley stood beside him holding a tray of squash transplants and nodding his head in agreement. Earlier that morning, Stanley, sourcing manager for Up in Farms...

The landscape modeling expertise Samuel Cushman provides as a research ecologist at the U.S. Forest Service’s Rocky Mountain Research Station is in demand worldwide as human-caused disturbances impact animal distribution, connectivity and survival. Whether it’s clouded leopards in Borneo, lions in...

Squeals of excitement and laughter competed with the sounds of power saws, drills and hammers at the Hungry Valley Child Care Center in Sparks, Nevada, as Reno-Sparks Indian Colony (RSIC) teens were handed power tools for the first time in their lives to assist with building a hoop house. As part of...

The greater sage grouse is an iconic bird that lives in the American West's sagebrush landscape. It’s also a species at the center of a nationwide debate focused on how best to manage its habitat to balance multiple uses and ensure the bird’s long-term survival. And the dialogue has just been...

This past April, we woke up at 3 a.m. and made our way to a blind amid an expanse of sagebrush on a ranch in central Montana. When the sun rose that morning, I saw my first sage grouse--actually, I got to see more than 100 of them!--when the birds arrived at the lek site for their famous tail...

When you meet farmers Gordon Bednarz and Brenda Sullivan, two words come to mind —polar and opposites. But the pair has joined forces in a unique way – sharing land and growing food as partners, without a formal partnership. And it’s working! He is the owner of Bednarz Farm in his hometown of...

You've seen those markers on storm drains that say: “No dumping. Drains to river.” Or to a “lake” or “creek.” It’s a reminder that what we do on the land has a direct impact on a body of water somewhere. Many of our nation's farmers, ranchers and forest landowners are taking steps to ensure they're...

Wetlands and wildlife – they’re made for each other. Wetlands provide critical habitat, shelter food and places to raise young. Landowners across the country are voluntarily restoring and protecting wetlands on private lands. This not only provides high-value wildlife habitat but provides many other...

A vibrant and healthy agriculture sector is a critical component of restoring and improving the health of the Chesapeake Bay, and I’m proud of the steps that our Bay-area agricultural producers are taking to protect this national treasure. Agricultural producers have implemented nearly $1 billion...