Greater Sage-Grouse populations will benefit from 14 new management plans released today by the Obama administration, but additional habitat protections recommended by scientists are urgently needed due to a drastic drop in grouse numbers, officials of the American Bird Conservancy said.
“We hope that at the end of the day, these plans produce a ‘glass half full’ outcome and not another disconcerting ‘glass half empty’ disappointment that leads to the end of the grouse,” said Steve Holmer.
Greater Sage-Grouse, which once numbered as many as 16 million birds, now has fewer than 200,000 individuals remaining, and it is no longer found in nearly half of its original range. A recent scientific analysis found that the population declined 55 percent from 2007 to 2013; many of the remaining grouse subpopulations may be too small to persist over time and are at a high risk of extinction.
“We have lost over half of all sage grouse in just the last seven years,” said Mr.
Holmer. “Following some of the conservation measures indicated as necessary by scientists but ignoring others isn’t enough to reverse this trend.”
The plans affect public lands with sagebrush habitat in Oregon, California, Nevada, Utah, Idaho, Wyoming, Montana, Colorado, North Dakota, and South Dakota. Each plan includes management prescriptions to address a variety of threats to grouse, including oil and gas drilling, construction of new roads and power lines, mining, invasive species, and grazing.
"The rapid decline of Greater Sage-Grouse is a warning about the region's environmental health that we cannot afford to ignore," said Mr. Holmer. "Effectively balancing the tidal wave of development threatening the West will require building on the conservation measures currently proposed."
The grouse management plans affect over 68 million acres of public lands and national forests and have been guided by input from government scientists on the National Technical Team and by analysis prepared by the U.S. Geological Survey, which identified priority grouse habitats for conservation.
“In March, a team of the top sage grouse scientists, including Drs. Jack Connelly and Clait Braun, sent a letter to the administration asking for these plans to follow the best available science,” said Mr. Holmer. “In critical areas, including mining and grazing, the administration didn’t reach the bar set by the grouse conservation experts.”
He said more than 350 plant and animals species of conservation concern also depend on sagebrush habitat including mule deer, pronghorn antelope, and Golden Eagle. Sage Thrasher, Sage Sparrow, and Brewer’s Sparrow, which have also declined due to loss of sagebrush, will benefit from Greater Sage-Grouse conservation.
“Greater Sage-Grouse are an icon of the American West and an indicator that the vast wide-open spaces are rapidly filling up,” said Mr. Holmer. “It would be tragic to see such an abundant bird go the way of another once super-abundant species, the Passenger Pigeon. Strengthening these management plans is essential if that outcome is to be avoided.”
He said opponents of the administration’s sagebrush conservation strategy and protections for the Greater Sage-Grouse "are attempting to halt the planning process. Language in the House National Defense Authorization Act added by Rep. Rob Bishop (R-UT) would overturn the new federal grouse conservation plans."
“Congress should not be interfering with and further delaying grouse conservation,” said Mr. Holmer. “The grouse can’t last through another decade of inaction. It is crucial these conservation plans be improved to reflect the best available science and then given a chance to work.”