Sheyenne Delta Prairie Restoration Gets Boost

McLeod, ND—March 6, 2006—A North Dakota resident’s $25,000 challenge grant will support The Nature Conservancy’s efforts to restore prairie at two sites within the Sheyenne Delta. The gift, made by John Challey, will enable Conservancy staff to purchase seed harvest and planting equipment for re-establishing native plants at Brown Ranch, a 1,531-acre property in the heart of the Sheyenne Delta. Additionally, the gift will help purchase fencing for both Brown Ranch and a portion of the Conservancy’s 572-acre Pigeon Point area that was restored to prairie and is now ready to be grazed. To date, individuals from across the state have matched the gift with an additional $9,000.

“This challenge grant gives our prairie restoration efforts a significant boost,” said Rob Self, The Nature Conservancy’s Sheyenne Delta project director. “The generosity and vision will help ensure that future generations will be able to enjoy North Dakota’s rich native prairies just as we have.”

The Sheyenne Delta is one of the most important native prairie landscapes in the Upper Midwest. Because of its less productive, sandy prairie soils, much of it was never plowed for crop production and the majority of the land is administered by the U.S. Forest Service as the Sheyenne National Grasslands. Brown Ranch is located on the southern edge of the Delta and features tallgrass prairie vegetation in the upland areas, with wetlands or wet prairies filling the lower-lying swales.

“Restoring prairie at Brown Ranch and Pigeon Point helps ensure the region’s native plants and animals,” said John Challey. “I encourage other North Dakota residents to join me in helping protect our natural heritage.”

The Conservancy purchased Brown Ranch in 2000 and is working to restore 100 acres of the property that was disturbed prairie. In addition, the Conservancy is building strong partnerships with neighboring landowners and government agencies. An example: working with the U.S. Forest Service and ranchers, the Conservancy is encouraging sustainable grazing practices to improve native species diversity, along with livestock production. Moreover, the Brown Ranch is being utilized for numerous projects with North Dakota State University, North Dakota Parks and Recreation Department, U.S. Forest Service and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

At Pigeon Point, the high diversity of wetland habitats and plant life first attracted the Conservancy to the site. At least 15 rare plants are harbored in fen and wetland thicket habitats. The preserve also has some of the best developed, spring-fed streams in the Sheyenne River Valley. Since 1994, the Conservancy has conducted stewardship activities to control the invasive weeds, and has conducted prescribed burns to reinvigorate the remnant prairie patches and woodland communities. The most ambitious undertaking has been the restoration of native prairie on a 200-acre field. Native seed restoration began in 2000 and Pigeon Point is already showing positive signs of recovery.

The Nature Conservancy is a leading conservation organization working around the world to protect ecologically important lands and waters for nature and people. To date, the Conservancy and its more than one million members have been responsible for the protection of more than 15 million acres in the United States and have helped preserve more than 102 million acres in Latin America, the Caribbean, Asia and the Pacific. Visit The Nature Conservancy on the Web at www.nature.org.