Collaboratively Enhancing and Expanding Resilient, Working Grassland Landscapes
2025 MGP Annual Report
Quick Links to Tools:
wlfw.org - Working Lands for Wildlife
wlfw.org/yieldgap/ - Rangeland Production Lost to Tree Encroachment
wlfw-um.projects.earthengine.app/view/isi-invasion-severity-index
The Invasion Severity Index (ISI) is a visual representation of annual grass invasion and recovery potential of rangelands within sagebrush ecosystems across the western U.S.
The Rangeland Analysis Platform combines satellite imagery with thousands of on-the-ground vegetation measurements collected by BLM, NPS, and NRCS. The power of cloud computing and machine learning technology allows the platform to easily map vegetation across the United States.
rangelands.app/production-explorer/
This application compares current year production to past years, quantifies the amount above or below a long-term average, and provides an interactive estimate of the stocking rate.
Explore past and present landscapes from the Great Plains to the Pacific coast. This easy-to-use map uses historic and current aerial imagery to highlight how our landscapes have changed since the mid-20th century and how we can conserve our natural heritage.
mesic.app
Restore water where it matters most. Identify, prioritize, and monitor conservation and restoration across the sagebrush biome’s mesic resources — wet meadows, springs, seeps, and riparian corridors. A Working Lands for Wildlife tool.naip-chm.projects.earthengine.app/view/naip-chm-a-conus-structure-model
A canopy height model
Our Geography
Montana Grassland Partnership (MGP) aims to accomplish community-based conservation at a landscape scale. To do this, it requires thoughtful collaboration across the Missouri River Plains and allows us to strategically target threats at scale not previously possible alone.
The Montana Grassland Partnership utilizes five collaborative teams to tackle the biggest threats to our grassland ecosystem
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The goal of the Grassland Retention Team is to prevent the conversion of rangeland to cropland or other land uses that are less compatible with wildlife. The team is made up of 35 conservation professionals representing 16 private and public organizations.
Chair Contact: Stephanie Berry
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The Big Game Team works with interested partners on a variety of things related to big game habitat in and around the MGP focus area. Much of the team’s work centers around ensuring suitable habitat and connectivity for migrating big game species. A majority of on the ground projects focus on improving fences to allow for better wildlife passage all while improving the quality and lifespan of ranch infrastructure. Other focus areas the team looks to dive into include big game habitat quality concerns, specialty habitats, and continued efforts to improve restrictive fencing at scale
Chair Contact: Martin Townsend (mtownsend@ranchstewards.org)
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The Conifer Team is focused on restoring and enhancing grassland and sagebrush rangelands that are experiencing woody encroachment and infill into areas that historically did not have trees present. In eastern Montana, conifer encroachment is still largely in its early phases, making this the optimal time for early intervention as it is more cost effective and efficient. The team is working to identify priority areas to work collaboratively across state, federal and private lands to better stop the spread of woody invasives across the landscape.
Chair Contact: Tayler Scherr (tscherr@ducks.org)
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The Mesic Team’s primary objective is to foster enhanced communication and coordination among organizations and agencies to enhance the success of ongoing and future mesic restoration projects within these critically important ecosystems.
Chair Contact: Autumn Holzgen (autumn@mtcorps.org)
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The Restoration Team is focused on improving and maintaining the native plant species composition of intact and restored grasslands and sagebrush rangelands in north-central Montana. The team specifically works to: 1) address the threat of invasive annual grasses in our landscape, 2) address the threat of invasive perennial grasses in our landscape, and 3) improve the technical ability of land managers to reestablish a stable native plant community when that is a desired outcome of restoration
Chair Contact: Marisa Sather (marisa_sather@fws.gov)
Past Years Reports:
The Goals of MGP:
The Montana Grassland Partnership is a locally rooted, collaborative effort working together to support the long-term health and productivity of Montana’s grasslands and rural communities.
The Faces of the Partnership
Below is a list of partners currently involved in the Montana Grassland Partnership
