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The Great Plains

Hope for Great Plains Grasslands

Expansive view of a prairie with yellow and orange grasses stretching into the distance.

Building a healthy future for grasslands and all the life they support

Grasslands The Bluebell Ranch is a privately-owned and managed property in Deuel County within the Prairie Coteau landscape, South Dakota. The Prairie Coteau is one of the nation’s largest and best remaining grasslands located in southern North Dakota, eastern South Dakota and western Minnesota. All of Bluebell Ranch’s approximately 7,000 acres are under U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service grassland and wetland easements, which ensures the grassland will remain available for grazing and wildlife. Part of Bluebell Ranch was conserved under the Prairies without Borders project, which was created by the Conservancy and partners to purchase additional U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service grassland and wetland easements in order to conserve large contiguous tracts of native grassland in the Prairie Coteau. Bluebell Ranch is located in Deuel County, South Dakota, within the Prairie Coteau landscape. © Richard Hamilton Smith

Close-up of a dried milkweed pod.
Common Milkweed in Winter Frost on milkweed seeds in the prairie. © Chris Helzer/TNC

Our Approach

Grasslands enrich our lives with wildlife that inspires us, food and water that nourishes us and time-honored ways of life that shape us. Globally, grasslands are the least protected and most threatened terrestrial habitat. North American prairies are no exception, with about 75% lost due to agricultural conversion, incompatible development, invasive species and overgrowth of trees and shrubs.

Despite the losses, Great Plains prairies still offer expansive panoramas of windswept grasses, colorful wildflowers and unbounded skies—a grand wilderness that once supported vast herds of buffalo, elk and pronghorn. Cattle now serve as a surrogate grazing species in grasslands.

Healthy grasslands are important for nature and for people, storing vast amounts of carbon. The region is also witnessing the resurgence of buffalo herds, thanks in large part to the leadership of Indigenous communities who are actively bringing buffalo back to Tribal lands.

Powerful Partnerships

TNC is working to conserve grasslands on a global scale—from the prairies of the Great Plains to African savannas. But no one organization can do this alone. In the Great Plains, TNC partners with Tribal communities, landowners, conservation organizations, public agencies and policymakers to guarantee long-term impact.

How Grasslands Contribute to Global 2030 Goals

Globally, conserving grasslands is a critical strategy for achieving TNC's ambitious 2030 goals:

  • Green icon of a songbird on a thin branch.

    1.6B

    Conserve 1.6 billion acres of land through restoration and improved management.

  • A green icon of a cloud with CO2 written on it.

    3B

    Avoid or sequester 3 billion metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions annually.

  • Green icon of three people.

    45M

    Support the leadership of 45 million people from local and Indigenous communities.

Great Plains Grassland Initiative Areas

The Nature Conservancy is focusing its efforts on three grassland initiative areas within the Great Plains. Tap or click the circles to learn more about our work in the Southern High Plains, Flint Hills and Northern Great Plains.

Southern High Plains

At the intersection of five western states—Colorado, Kansas, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas—are about 45 million acres of grasslands that represent one of the largest opportunities for prairie conservation in the country. Here, TNC is using innovative financing to protect grasslands at record pace and scale. Learn more about the Southern High Plains.

Northern Great Plains

Spanning five U.S. states (Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana and Wyoming) and two Canadian provinces (Alberta and Saskatchewan), our work in the Northern Great Plains helps ensure our region’s most important grasslands remain protected, resilient and connected. Learn more about the Northern Great Plains.

Flint Hills

Less than 5% of North America’s tallgrass prairie remains. Most is found in the Flint Hills of Kansas and Oklahoma. For nearly 25 years, TNC has practiced community-based conservation to help conserve this last tallgrass prairie habitat. Learn more about the Flint Hills.

Explore the Map Return
Map of Great Plains grasslands. Southern High Plains Northern Great Plains Flint Hills
Two people wearing safety vests and hard hats walk among a field of solar panels.
Clean Energy TNC is helping catalyze a rapid renewable energy buildout that safeguards nature and supports equitable transition for communities. © Dave Lauridsen

Clean Energy

Across the Great Plains, lands with plentiful solar and wind resources are also vital for agricultural production and native habitat. We are launching an urgent next phase of work to deploy renewable energy resources, protect biodiversity and foster sound land management practices. Learn more about The Nature Conservancy's clean energy work in the Great Plains.

Latest News

A monarch butterfly is about to land on a purple flower.

Plant Diversity Is a Win for Ranchers and Nature

We know more biodiversity is better for grasslands. But how much is enough? A new study aims to answer that question.

A creek winds across rolling hills, dotted by trees. A blue sky can be seen in the distance.

Introducing Sand Creek Ranch

The Nature Conservancy in Oklahoma has acquired Sand Creek Ranch, a 5,000-acre property located in the Red Hills of Harper County.

A small group of bison graze in a grassland with foothills and mountains in the distance.

American Buffalo Return Home to Tribal Lands

Through our partnership with the InterTribal Bison Council (ITBC), we've transferred 3,000 buffalo to Native Nations to restore their ancestral grazing lands.

A person dressed in protective fire gear uses a drip torch to ignite a fire in tall grass.

Baptism by Fire

A new generation is picking up the drip torch to give Iowa prairies the phoenix treatment.

By Bethany Kaylor