The Partners for Fish and Wildlife Program in Kansas has been driven by two guiding beliefs. The first is recognizing the value of our native plant communities, not only for their biological diversity, but also their sustainability and their productivity. The second has been to build into the Partners Program the flexibility necessary to make it accommodate the needs of both the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the private landowner/producer.
The Kansas Partners for Fish and Wildlife Program has utilized this philosophy to voluntarily assist private landowners to restore, enhance, and develop thousands of acres of highly functional wetland, grassland, and woodland habitats throughout the state. Since 1990, the Partners Program has partnered with over 500 Kansas landowners. The number of new requests for assistance continues to accelerate.
Gail Combs, Kansas farmer and Partners cooperator, says this about the Kansas Partners Program, "This program does so much good and works so well with me as an agricultural producer and an environmentalist, that it hardly seems possible that a government program could work this well."
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Activities |
Technical Assistance | Habitats of Special Concern | Conservation Strategies | Partners
Kansas Activities
Waterfowl in Kansas. Credit: USFWS.
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- Prairie restoration
- Prairie enhancement
- Riparian restoration
- Riparian enhancement
- Wetland restoration
- Wetland creation
- Bottomland hardwoods
- Oxbow restoration
- Environmental education
Technical Assistance
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Project activities in western Kansas are about 75% upland work and 25% wetland work.
Upland sites, in most cases, are enhanced with the implementation of a grazing management system that follows the general guidelines of "take half, leave half". This can be in the form of rotational grazing, enhancing cattle distribution with additional fence and watering sites, or by managing the timing of grazing to allow regrowth of grasses. Invading woody species are removed or controlled in some manner if deemed a problem. The conservation and enhancement of native prairie is given top priority.
The majority of the wetland sites are playa lake restorations and wetland creations. Playa lakes are restored by taking them out of production and planting a grass filterstrip buffer around the playa to reduce sedimentation and provide wildlife habitat. Wetland creations are accomplished with the construction of lowhead dams 3 to 4 feet in height and the installation of in-line water control structures. A typical lowhead dam would measure 12 feet wide on the top with 10 to 1 slopes, with the top of the structure serving as the spillway. Wetlands are fenced if the area is being grazed.
In eastern Kansas, conservation of existing tallgrass prairie is a top priority. This may include developing grazing systems and adjusting grazing rates on native prairie, cross-fencing, water developments, recommendations of burn frequency and timing, control of woody vegetation through clipping or burning, and recommendations of herbicide applications for noxious plant control.
In cropland areas, native grasslands are restored by no-till drilling native grasses at lower seeding rates and native forbs at higher seeding rates.
Wetland restoration of croplands is accomplished by constructing ditch plugs, low berms, shallow depressions and installing water control structures.
Riparian protection and restoration is accomplished through cross-fencing, fencing of riparnan areas and re-vegetation with native plant communities (native grasses and forbs or bottomland hardwoods through direct seeding).
The cost share ratios range from 10% to 90% and are figured on a site-by-site basis. Factors controlling cost share are: (1) length of agreement, (2) total acres, and (3) wildlife and environmental benefits of the project.
Habitats of Special Concern
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Tallgrass prairie in Flint Hills, Kansas. Credit: USFWS.
The tallgrass prairie is considered to be North America’s most altered biome. Less than 4% of this globally unique grassland remains intact. The State of Kansas harbors 80% of the remaining North American tallgrass prairie.
More than 700 plant species compose this unique plant community. Over 250 bird species, 60 species of mammals, 35 species of reptiles, amphibians, and countless species of insects, all form this rich tapestry of life that we call the tallgrass prairie.
Tallgrass Legacy Alliance
The Kansas Partners Program has made the tallgrass prairie one of its top priorities. In April 1999, the Partners Program helped to initiate an alliance of individuals and organizations called the Tallgrass Legacy Alliance.
The mission of the Tallgrass Legacy Alliance is to preserve, enhance, and restore the tallgrass prairie. This will be accomplished through educational and financial partnerships with private landowners, operators, and private and public entities, in a manner that will strengthen and improve the economic, social, and cultural foundations of the region.
Tom Moxley, rancher and President of the Tallgrass Legacy Alliance says, "The US Fish and Wildlife Service’s Partners Program is working on the ground for producers and the environment in the State of Kansas."
Conservation Strategies
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Threats |
Conservation Strategies | Priorities | Future Needs
Prescribed fire. Credit: USFWS.
Threats - « Back to section top
Presently, a variety of issues threaten the stability of the region. Some of these are as follows:
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Invasive species
- Fragmentation
- Lack of state and federal incentives to manage prairies in a sustainable manner
- Decline in agricultural profitability
- Loss of native plant and animal diversity
- Lack of public understanding of the value of native prairies
Conservation Strategies - « Back to section top
Native Prairies
The cornerstone of the Kansas Partners for Fish and Wildlife Program is the recognition that in order to save the prairies, we must first keep the ranching community healthy and on the landscape. This premise is facilitated by working through producer organizations such as the Kansas Livestock Association, the Kansas Farm Bureau, and numerous other state, federal, and private partnerships.
The Kansas Partners Program works hand in hand with private landowners to tailor conservation projects to truly fit the needs of the individual producer and the needs of the environment.
As an example, invasive species control benefits both ranch profitability and biological diversity. The two together generate stability. Assistance with improved grazing strategies can lead to improved profit margin and greatly improved habitat for a large number of prairie species, such as the lesser and greater prairie chicken.
In general, native prairie restoration and enhancement projects average $50 per acre to complete.
Prairie Streams
Protecting and enhancing streamside corridors improves fish and wildlife habitats and water quality by limiting livestock access. Riparian restoation activities cost about $6,000 per mile of stream.
Wetlands
Wetland restorations provide economic opportunities in the form of recreational use and, at the same time, offer tremendous water quality and trust species benefits for society as a whole. A "win-win" project is the definition of success for the Kansas Partners Program. The cost of wetland restorations in Kansas is currently estimated at $400 per acre.
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Native prairie is our number one priority. Tallgrass prairie is considered to be the most altered biome in North America, making it a habitat type of concern. Grassland nesting birds are the fastest declining guild of birds in North America today. Preservation efforts of the prairie ecosystem will be through educational and financial alliances/partnerships, on-the-ground grassland management assistance and grassland easement programs.
Playa lakes, other wetlands and riparian areas are the second priority of the Kansas Partners for Fish and Wildlife Program conservation efforts. Wetlands and riparian areas have been significantly altered in Kansas, especially playas, oxbows and saline wetlands which are considered habitats of special concern.
Our long term goal is to restore and enhance wildlife habitat for migratory birds, waterfowl, and threatened and endangered species. It is our goal to prevent further listing of plant and animal species within the state and to show positive gains in terms of acres preserved or restored relative to all habitats of concern.
Future Needs - « Back to section top
- New conservation partnerships with 100 landowners per year.
- Restore/Enhance 150,000 acres of native tallgrass prairie per year.
- Restore/Enhance 150,000 acres of mid and short grass prairie per year.
- Enhance 30 miles of prairie streams per year.
- Restore 500 acres of wetlands per year.
Partners
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- Kansas Farmers and Ranchers
- American Sport Fishing Association
- Audubon of Kansas
- Baker University
- Barber County Conservation District
- Comanche Pool Prairie Resource Foundation
- Ducks Unlimited
- Ellis County Conservation District
- Emporia State University
- Environmental Protection Agency
- Haskell Indian National Schools
- Kansas Association of Conservation Districts
- Kansas Association of Wetlands and Streams
- Kansas Biological Survey
- Kansas Department of Health and Environment
- Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks
- Kansas Farm Bureau
- Kansas Livestock Association
- Kansas State Conservation Commission
- Kansas State Extension
- Kansas State Forestry
- Kansas State University
- National Cattlemen’s Beef Association
- National Fish and Wildlife Foundation
- National Wild Turkey Federation
- Natural Resource Conservation Service
- Osborne County Conservation District
- Pheasants Forever
- Pittsburg State University
- Playa Lakes Joint Venture
- Quail Unlimited
- Resource Conservation and Development
- Stream and Prairie Research
- Tallgrass Legacy Alliance
- Texaco
- The Nature Conservancy
- US Army Corps of Engineers
- USDA - Farm Services Agency
- Westar
- Wildlife Management Institute
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Fremont's leather plant. Credit: USFWS.
The primary accomplishment of the Kansas Partners for Fish and Wildlife program is the development of a state-wide network of partners, sincerely committed to working towards an environmentally sound, fiscally stable, and socially acceptable method of land stewardship within the agricultural heartland of America.
FY2015 Habitat Accomplishments
15,054 upland acres restored or enhanced
141 wetland acres restored or enhanced
44 miles of riparian habitat restored or enhanced
FY 1992-2015 Cumulative Habitat Accomplishments
461,390 upland acres restored or enhanced
22,915 wetland acres restored or enhanced
248 miles of riparian habitat restored/enhanced
The Kansas Partners Program has completed over 600 projects with private landowners throughout the state.
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Lesser Prairie Chicken. Credit: USFWS.
Over the past three years, the Fish and Wildlife Service’s Kansas Partners for Fish and Wildlife Program has been involved in a partnership with state and federal agencies in both Kansas and Oklahoma with the common goal of improving and protecting our vanishing prairie resources. What makes this partnership unique is that it centers around a local, landowner-driven, non-profit resource foundation called the Comanche Pool Prairie Resource Foundation, known locally as The Comanche Pool.
The Comanche Pool was founded by a group of landowners located in the mixed-grass and sand-sage prairies encompassing approximately 5.4 million acres in south-central Kansas and North-central Oklahoma. This area includes two Fish and Wildlife Service Regions, two Natural Resources Conservation Service Regions, two State Wildlife Agencies and numerous local Conservation Districts.
The Comanche Pool is dedicated to providing for the regeneration and protection of natural resources, the education of ranchers, local citizens and youth on the proper management of the rangeland ecosystem and enhancement of the socioeconomic well-being of the rural community.
The partnership between the Fish and Wildlife Service and the Comanche Pool began in 1998 when the Service’s Oklahoma Field Office and the Western Governors’ Association, along with the High Plains Resources, Conservation, and Development; the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife; and the Natural Resources Conservation Service hosted Rancher Conversation Meetings in western Oklahoma. These meetings generated landowner input and interest in a new direction the Service was taking toward candidate species conservation. This led to the development of the High Plains Partnership, an effort geared toward the conservation of species at risk in portions of Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Colorado and Kansas. Several Comanche Pool board members were in attendance at the initial meeting and expressed an interest in being involved in this new program.
Map of the Comanche Pool. Credit: USFWS.
In Kansas, it was decided that the Partners for Fish and Wildlife Program would be the best mechanism for completing habitat projects. Contact was made with the Comanche Pool in early February of 2000, and a partnership was developed.
Projects are geared toward habitat restoration and protection for the lesser prairie chicken, black-tailed prairie dog, ferruginous hawk, burrowing owl, plains minnow, red spotted toad, and Arkansas darter. However, the overall emphasis of the partnership is on good rangeland management. Some of the habitat improvement practices include grazing management plans, fencing, water development, control of woody invasives, and native plant restoration.
The Comanche Pool has also received a grant from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and the FMC Corporation for additional habitat restoration projects and has worked diligently to secure a Range Specialist position, jointly-funded by the Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks, Natural Resources Conservation Service, the Fish and Wildlife Service and the Comanche Pool. This position will act as a point of contact for the Service and provide technical assistance to landowners looking to improve their rangeland habitat in both Kansas and Oklahoma. So far, this position has been responsible for completing grassland inventories and grazing plans on over 46,000 acres in four Oklahoma Counties and six Kansas Counties.
The partnership developed with the Comanche Pool and others like it are what has made the Partners for Fish and Wildlife Program a successful endeavor throughout the United States. Working with local, landowner-driven organizations is critical to the to the success of a habitat restoration program on private lands, especially in a state like Kansas which is 98% privately owned.
For more information about the partnership contact the Comanche Pool Prairie Resource Foundation at (620)582-2211 ext. 3 or the Kansas Partners for Fish & Wildlife Program at (620)486-2393.
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