Dear Friends,

One of the most amazing springtime rituals of the eastern New Mexico grasslands is the sunrise dance of the lesser prairie chicken. In late April, I traveled to The Nature Conservancy’s Milnesand Prairie Preserve to observe this incredible mating display. As I crouched in a blind before sunrise, I was surrounded by the sounds of a grassland ecosystem awakening in the same manner that it has every day for thousands of years.

Through the darkness came a distant thumping. As the light grew, the thumping intensified as several males strutted out of the tall grass to the open ground of the breeding area, or “lek.” I was mesmerized by their courtship display: The males spread their feathers, inflated their orange air sacs and danced into the morning.

The performance was accompanied by the songs of meadowlarks and red-winged black birds. The chirping of a black-tailed prairie dog drew my eye to a nearby mound, where a burrowing owl popped up to observe the show.
 
Sitting in the blind in the early morning chill, I felt a rush of exhilaration at bearing witness to this age-old ritual, and pride in our efforts to protect this landscape. I also felt profoundly grateful to you for supporting the Conservancy’s work here. As long as we give prairie chickens room to dance and security to raise their young, our children and grandchildren will be able to witness this magical rite of spring.
 
With your support and funding from the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation and the New Mexico Game and Fish Department, we’ve taken another important step in protecting these birds and their artistry. In January, we added 9,200 acres to the Milnesand Prairie Preserve, enlarging this home of the largest concentration of lesser prairie chickens in New Mexico, and perhaps the world.

Protecting grasslands like Milnesand are a wise investment for nature and for people. New Mexico’s native grasslands are home to a suite of bird species, including the long-billed curlew and Cassin’s sparrow, whose numbers have rapidly declined elsewhere on the Great Plains. This same landscape provides essential services to people, by stabilizing the soil and storing carbon in the ground. Grasslands also provide protein-rich food for livestock and many native grazers, such as pronghorn and mule deer.
 
Investing our conservation dollars here also gives us a stake in the local community as a landowner and land manager. And our collaborative approach supports the local ranching community: The Milnesand Prairie Preserve and the newly acquired Johnson Ranch are both leased by local ranchers who are managing their livestock grazing in a sustainable way that preserves the healthy prairie chicken habitat. Collaboration is also the hallmark of our approach elsewhere in New Mexico. In the western part of the state we are making a positive impact on the health of two waterways vitally important to people and nature.

Along the Rio Nutria, we’re working with the Zuni Tribe, the state Game and Fish Department, and the Cibola National Forest to protect the last remaining population of the endangered Zuni bluehead sucker. Earlier this year the Conservancy and the Game and Fish Department partnered to expand the scenic Rio Nutria Preserve by acquiring more than one mile along the Rio Nutria, further protecting the habitat of this highly vulnerable species.

To the south, we’re proud to report added protection for the gem of our Living Rivers program, the Gila River. Once again in collaboration with the New Mexico Game and Fish Department we’ve acquired a vital tract of land along the Upper Gila River, extending the Gila Riparian Preserve. Our work here with ranchers and other partners is focused on enhancing habitat for the imperiled southwestern willow flycatcher and yellow-billed cuckoo and two endangered fish species, loach minnows and spikedace.

Over the past 25 years we have had tremendous success in protecting the Gila, but the survival of this river, one of the last free-flowing perennial rivers in the Southwest, faces formidable odds. The Gila flows west into Arizona and its waters are being sought as part of the Arizona Water Settlement Act. The Conservancy is involved in the effort to determine how to best maintain the natural flows of the river. Our collaborative work with all the parties will seek to protect water for people, nature and the future.

The pressures on water in the arid Southwest are among the many complex challenges we face as the world’s climate changes. Our Conservancy scientists have documented significant climatic effects on the plants, animals and landscapes of New Mexico. These scientists are leading a four-state effort to understand the impacts of climate change and how we can adapt to such change. Through the next year, we’ll work with partners to apply this knowledge throughout the region.

These times challenge us to look beyond quick fixes and easy answers. There are none. But I’m proud that the Conservancy has the ability, tenacity and partnerships to tackle the daunting challenges facing New Mexico and the world. Your support of this work is producing tangible, lasting results that will benefit future generations of New Mexicans. 

Thank you for all you do in support of conservation in New Mexico.

Sincerely,

Terry Sullivan

 P.S. If you are intrigued by the amazing journey of the Gila River, we encourage you to see an exhibit at the New Mexico Museum of Natural History & Science in Albuquerque, opening on June 12 and running through September 13. “Free Flow: The Gila River in New Mexico” features images by renowned photographer Jan Haley and poetry by Carol Sinor.

Learn more about our Gila Riparian Preserve. Or, to experience the Gila in person, enjoy world-class hospitality at the Bear Mountain Lodge.

Nature picture credits (top to bottom, left to right): Photo © Harvey Payne (Prairie Chicken); Photo © Patrick McCarthy/TNC (Terry Sullivan).