Matt Light, a Boy Scout from Billings, Montana, completed an ambitious project last spring for his Eagle Scout Service Project, one that he hopes will make a difference for sage grouse that are facing major declines across their range.

“This gives us confidence going forward that if we get onto this before a particular sagebrush ecosystem becomes a forest, there’s a high likelihood of keeping birds on that landscape,” says Jeremy Maestas, the SGI’s technical lead in Redmond, Oregon.

“We are pushing the accelerator as fast as we can to achieve lasting conservation results,” says Naugle. “This is an ambitious conservation science effort. But it’s not just research. We don’t have a lot of time here. We need to put that research on the ground. Fortunately the Sage Grouse Initiative has the partners and local support to do just that.”

Sage Grouse Initiative field staff Gillian Brooks and Scott Scroggie earned prestigious awards from Pheasants Forever at a recent national staff meeting in Estes Park, Colorado. Howard Vincent, CEO of Pheasants Forever, presented Brooks with the Landowner Service award and Scroggie, the “Acre Maker” award.

Proactive conservation that removes encroaching trees helps maintain sage grouse populations within their remaining strongholds, according to a study published today in the scientific journal, Biological Conservation.

The Sage Grouse Initiative is featured in this Denver Post Op-ed

“Out on the Land,” a program of RFD TV with host Dr. Larry Butler, traveled to the Paint Rock Angus Ranch in Montana to visit with owner/operator Dennis Mercer and to track sage grouse with Lorelle Berkeley, Montana Fish, Wildlife, and Parks biologist.

National Public Radio’s Morning Edition featured the Sage Grouse Initiative and ranchers in Montana’s Centennial Valley- aired July 10, 2013. Listen in.