Grasslands in the North Central U.S. face threats from increasing temperatures, drought, fire, and more, while also facing region-specific conservation challenges. Much of the land is privately owned and management is led by various federal, state, county, Tribal nations, and NGOs with different goals, resources, and constraints. North Central CASC-supported researchers led an effort to identify the goals and challenges various grassland managers across the North Central region share and better understand what research is needed to help address those challenges. To do this, the researchers synthesized 183 existing grassland management plans across diverse grassland ecosystem types in the region, such as tallgrass prairie and northern mixed grass prairie. The synthesis study, recently published in the journal Conservation Science and Practice, yielded 70 common concerns and questions that range from addressing the effects of land conversion and invasive species on grasslands, to the economic incentives that can improve grassland protection. The informational needs identified in this work can guide collaborative actionable science and support management decisions of grassland ecosystems. 

This work is supported by the North Central CASC Project, “Synthesis of Climate Impacts and Adaptation on Grassland Ecosystems in the Northern Great Plains.”