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Lesser Prairie Chicken Listing would Add Grazing Input from Outside Entities



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On January 24, 2023, NCBA filed their Notice of Intent to sue the Department of the Interior and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for the listing of the lesser prairie chicken (LPC) under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). As it currently stands, the LPC has been listed as “threatened” in the Northern Distinct Population Segment (NDPS), which encompasses the Texas Panhandle, the Oklahoma Panhandle, southwestern Kansas, and southeastern Colorado. The NDPS’ threatened distinction falls under the 4(d) rule, that species the “take” of LPC in these areas will not be prohibited if it occurs as a result of agricultural practices (plowing, mowing, etc.) on land that has been cultivated for at least five years – grassland converted outside of that timeframe will not be protected by this exemption.

Additionally, the 4(d) rule includes the “implementation of prescribed grazing following a grazing management plan developed by a Service-approved party.”

“This 4(d) rule would allow environmental activist groups to become ‘grazing police’ over cattle producers. Designing a third-party verification system puts political priorities over sound science and empowers distant bureaucrats over land managers and producers with decades of experience,” NCBA Associate Director of Government Affairs, Sigrid Johannes said.

The Southern Distinct Population Segment (SDPS), which encompasses west Texas and eastern New Mexico, has officially been listed as “endangered.” The ruling was initially set to take effect on January 24, but following a letter – drafted by NCBA, Colorado Cattlemen’s Association, Colorado Livestock Association, Kansas Livestock Association, New Mexico Cattle Growers’ Association, Oklahoma Cattlemen’s Association, Texas Cattle Feeders Association, and the Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association – the listing date was pushed to March 27.

This figure illustrates Crucial Habitat Assessment Tool (CHAT) categories for both DPS of the LPC. CHAT 1 areas are the most “critical” focal areas for conservation where landowners will be most likely to have encounters. CHAT 2, 3, and 4 are less critical, but may include corridors, lek locations, etc.

“The lesser prairie chicken only survives today because of the voluntary conservation efforts of ranchers,” Johannes said. “The science has proven repeatedly that healthy, diverse rangelands—like those cultivated by livestock grazing—are where the lesser prairie chicken thrives. There are numerous places where this listing goes seriously wrong and we are defending cattle producers against this overreaching, unscientific rule.”

Mark Gardiner, whoses storied Gardiner Angus Ranch in Ashland, Kansas lies right in the middle of the NDPS, explained that “the 4(d) rule is scary […] we don’t want outsiders telling us how to manage our grazing.”

The Gardiners operate on nearly 48,000 acres of rangeland that is home to “one of the best {LPC} populations in the state of Kansas,” and it’s something their family has been proud of since homesteading in the late 1800s.

While Gardiner doesn’t “pretend to have all the answers,” they’ve worked to proactively manage their rangelands to benefit their cattle and the LPC, which he argued goes hand-in-hand.

“Like most ranches, we take half and leave half,” and if they notice the grass getting too short, they simply move the cattle, Gardiner explained. “Just being aware of your grass” is good for both the cattle and the LPC. For example, on CRP land that’s not grazed, the range becomes too thick for the LPC’s liking.

He echoed NCBA’s sentiment that voluntary, incentivized conservation programs are a far better route than government mandates. For almost 10 years, the Gardiner Angus Ranch has given Kansas State Researchers and students full access to the ranch to study their management practices and LPC populations.

“We get to learn more about it and it’s not costing us anything,” he said, adding that the LPC’s listing needs to be “a win-win for everyone.”

“We’ve always enjoyed the prairie chickens, [and] we’re going to take care of this land better than anyone from Washington, who has no expertise in agriculture, will,” Gardiner said.

Economic Impacts…

On January 19, Market Intel released a report (Report), titled “Lesser Prairie Chicken Rule Pressures Fragile Rural Economies” which argued that “the [LPC] ESA listing further stresses already fragile, drought-stricken rural economies while alienating producers who have worked diligently and voluntarily on wildlife conservation projects.”

Between both population segments of the LPC, “nearly $14 billion in agricultural sales value occurs […] with the bulk, or $8 billion, occurring in Kansas,” the Report shows. “Of this $14 billion figure, $10.9 billion, or 78 percent, comes from livestock production and the remaining $3 billion, or 22 percent, comes from crop production.”

$6.9 billion of Kansas’ agriculture sales value comes from cattle and calves.

Kansas’ agricultural production sales make up over half of the revenue within both DPSs of the LPC.

The Report illustrates that the most critical categorization of LPC range (CHAT 1 designation as shown previously in Figure 1) totals “over 10,000 square miles of land” which is “roughly the size of Massachusetts.” All four CHAT categories within the LPC range total of “over 60,000 square miles […] roughly the size of the state of Georgia – a significant portion of agricultural land.”

Between 2012-2014 and 2020-21, “LPC populations have increased about 50 percent” when during the same time period, agricultural production “remained relatively stable.”

The Report highlighted that the Federal Register’s own ruling admitted that “grazing by domestic livestock is not inherently detrimental to lesser prairie-chicken management and, in many cases, is needed to maintain appropriate vegetative structure.”

The Report added that, “As of the January 19 drought monitor, 60 percent of the land area in Colorado, 77 percent of the land area in Texas, and over 90 percent of the land area in Kansas, New Mexico, and Oklahoma is categorized under abnormally dry conditions or worse.”

Many areas within both DPS are rated as D3 (extreme) and D4 (exceptional) drought conditions.

“Federally listed species that limit agricultural production in an area reeling from water deficits adds another obstacle to local farmers’ and ranchers’ ability to endure,” the Report adds.

While NCBA and other industry organizations are going to do their part through the legal system, Mark Gardiner said that farmers and ranchers need to continue managing their lands effectively, and all interested parties need to “get at the same table and sit together” to learn how everyone can win in this situation.

“Yes, animals and wildlife matter, but so do people,” he argued. “We need to show that the [LPC’s] ecosystem is better off because of us rather than in spite of us.”

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