Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center
Home
Our Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center's priority is to continue the important work of the Department of the Interior and the USGS, while also maintaining the health and safety of our employees and community. Based on guidance from the White House, the CDC, and state and local authorities, we are shifting our operations to a virtual mode and have minimal staffing within our offices.
Migratory Bird Center of Excellence
The Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center is known for its long history of meeting the migratory-bird research needs of Department of the Interior and the Nation.
NPWRC HistoryMeet the Northern Prairie Staff
Our employee directory contains names, position titles, phone numbers, email addresses, and biographies of Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center staff.
Employee DirectoryNPWRC Science Topics
Science conducted by Northern Prairie scientists can be grouped into six primary research topics:
NPWRC ScienceNews
Piping Plovers Breed Less and Move More in the Northern Great Plains
Piping plover breeding groups in the Northern Great Plains are notably connected through movements between habitats and show lower reproductive rates than previously thought, according to a new U.S. Geological Survey study. These new findings point to a need for further studies and suggest the species may show a higher extinction risk than currently presumed.
Chronic Wasting Disease: Can Science Save Our Dear Deer?
What’s in a name? Chronic wasting disease sounds ominous, too descriptive for comfort, almost impolite in its directness. It is, in fact, a truthful name for a disease and a real threat to North America’s cervids.
Honey Bee Helpers: It Takes a Village to Conserve a Colony
Do you eat fruits and vegetables? What about nuts? If so, you can thank an insect pollinator, usually a honey bee. These small insects play a major role in pollinating the world’s plants, including those we eat regularly. They also increase our nation’s crop values each year by more than 15 billion dollars.
Publications
Balancing the need for seed against invasive species risks in prairie habitat restorations
Adequate diversity and abundance of native seed for large-scale grassland restorations often require commercially produced seed from distant sources. However, as sourcing distance increases, the likelihood of inadvertent introduction of multiple novel, non-native weed species as seed contaminants also increases. We created a model to determine an...
Larson, Jennifer L; Larson, Diane L.; Venette, Robert
The effects of management practices on grassland birds—Lark Sparrow (Chondestes grammacus)
Keys to Lark Sparrow (Chondestes grammacus) management include providing open grasslands with sparse-to-moderate herbaceous and litter cover and a woody component and allowing occasional burning or moderate grazing. Lark Sparrows have been reported to use habitats with 10–63 centimeters (cm) average vegetation height, 10–54 percent grass cover, 9–...
Shaffer, Jill A.; Igl, Lawrence D.; Johnson, Douglas H.; Sondreal, Marriah L.; Goldade, Christopher M.; Parkin, Barry D.; Euliss, Betty R.
U.S. Geological Survey migratory bird science, 2020–21
Bird conservation as an endeavor engages a broad range of partners and a coordinated effort across State and Federal agencies, nongovernment organizations, universities and, at times, international partnerships. To understand information needs and respond to the many challenges in bird conservation, U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) scientists...
Pearse, Aaron T.; Sherfy, Mark H.; Wimer, Mark; Khalil, Mona; Wiltermuth, Mark