The Audubon Conservation Ranching Program

Restoring and conserving bird habitats on a large scale requires collaboration with the farmers and ranchers who live and work on those lands. Photo credit: Lukas Hartmann.

Bird-friendly Beef & Bison Ranching

Since 1970, grassland bird populations have declined by more than 50%—a sharper drop than any other bird group—largely due to habitat loss. To address this issue, the National Audubon Society established its Conservation Ranching program over a decade ago. The program acknowledges the vital role private landowners play in restoring bird habitats by collaborating with beef and bison ranchers to rehabilitate grasslands that once supported thriving bird populations.

A decade in, the program – which operates through a bird-friendly land certification – has certified 114 ranches across 15 states, improving bird habitats on nearly 3 million acres and connecting consumers with sustainably raised, “bird-friendly” beef and bison. Audubon aims to expand the program to 10 million certified acres and beyond.

Food Alliance serves as a third-party certifier for the Conservation Ranching program, providing auditors to help ranchers meet program guidelines and obtain certification.

Chris Wilson, director of Audubon Conservation Ranching, emphasizes the importance of Food Alliance in the program's success, “It’s crucial to have third-party verification of label claims to maximize credibility in the market. Food Alliance brings decades of experience with farm and ranch audits. We appreciate their expertise and professionalism, and the strong working relationships developed between our staff, their staff, the inspectors, and the ranchers in the program. We’re all in this together to improve outcomes for the birds.”

Read on to learn how the program supports grassland birds, consumers, ranchers, livestock, and the environment.

Working with Ranchers to Support Birds and Business

Most remaining grasslands are privately owned, so restoring and conserving bird habitats on a large scale requires collaboration with the farmers and ranchers who live and work on those lands.

Understanding that bird-loving landowners also need to earn a living, the Conservation Ranching program incentivizes ranchers to invest in modifications by using a market-oriented model. The program seeks to connect participating farmers and ranchers with conservation-minded consumers who want to purchase sustainably raised, bird-friendly products.

Landowners and land managers can voluntarily enroll in the program, which is open to beef cattle and bison ranching operations in the United States. Those who meet the program’s requirements can use the Audubon Certified bird-friendly seal on packaging and in marketing materials. This seal indicates that a product was sourced from animals grazed on certified habitat, signaling to consumers the positive impact on lands managed for both birds and biodiversity.

The Long-billed Curlew, an Audubon Grassland Priority bird at risk in mixed-grass prairies . Photo credit: Mike Reis.

Creating and Applying Certification Standards

To develop and maintain certification standards, Audubon staff collaborate with participating producers, cattle industry experts, and wildlife biologists. Audubon identifies priority grassland bird species by region and works continuously with partners and certification holders to create regionally tailored habitat management protocols that benefit those species.

For certification, regional and site-specific protocols must be upheld in four main areas:

• Habitat management: Each farm or ranch must be managed for bird habitat according to the program’s protocols, including general habitat protocols that apply to all sites, regional protocols, and ranch-specific management requirements. Each operation implements its own Habitat Management Plan (HMP) designed to address site-specific conservation opportunities. HMP plans are adaptive and can be modified over time to address changes in the landscape and landowner objectives.

• Forage and feeding: Livestock must be able to freely graze open grasslands. The protocols prohibit the use of antibiotics and animal byproducts and seek to minimize grain-based feed supplementation. No feedlots are allowed.

• Animal health and welfare: Program participants must demonstrate a commitment to properly caring for livestock by adhering to livestock production methods that reflect best practices for animal health and welfare. Mistreatment of animals is not tolerated.

• Environmental sustainability: Using native grasses and other plants as forage increases the ability for pastures to sequester carbon, helping to mitigate the effects of climate change. Pesticides are restricted, including the complete prohibition of neonicotinoid pesticides. Waterways are protected from contamination to ensure ranching practices result in cleaner water bodies.

Measuring Success

Regenerative grazing practices, which mimic the movement of wild bison that once roamed America’s grasslands, are central to the program. By guiding grazing cattle to new sections of land regularly, ranchers can improve soil health, which sequesters carbon, reduces water runoff, and restores balance to grassland ecosystems.

“This program illustrates the interconnectedness of thriving wildlife habitats, healthy soil, and climate change resilience.”

To monitor the impact of rotational grazing and other protocols, Audubon regularly tracks bird populations on all participating ranches. To quantify success, Audubon has created a “Bird-Friendliness Index” (BFI) to compare certified ranches with other grasslands and track changes over time. The index considers how many target species a ranch supports, their conservation status, and population counts of those species. The BFI includes a measure of functional diversity to evaluate the resilience of the grassland bird community. A higher score indicates a more bird-friendly operation.

Burrowing Owl, an Audubon Grassland Priority bird at risk in the Chihuahuan grasslands. Photo credit: Mike Reis.

The overall goal is long-term improvement, so ranches that may initially score poorly on the index are especially welcome and encouraged to participate and see their score rise as they adopt environmentally sustainable, humane, and bird-friendly practices.

The program illustrates the interconnectedness of thriving wildlife habitats, healthy soil, and climate change resilience. Audubon conducts regular environmental assessments on certified ranches to understand how bird-friendly practices positively affect the land and offer natural defenses against climate change. Specifically, the program monitors soil health to measure the correlation between improved habitats and healthier soil, which ultimately enhances our ability to combat climate change.

“We are proud to support a partner certification that aligns with Food Alliance’s own standards and goals,” says Shaila Cook, Food Alliance Certification Program Director. “Our two organizations share values, missions, and goals. Food Alliance is committed to supporting farmers and ranchers who implement sustainable practices and improve environmental outcomes. Audubon has established a meaningful, science-based standard for bird-friendly beef and is doing outstanding work in outreach to the ranch community to enhance bird habitat and create market benefits for ranchers.”

For more information about the Conservation Ranching program, and how to become certified, visit Audubon’s website or email conservationranching@audubon.org.

If you’re interested in supporting the Conservation Ranching program or any of Food Alliance’s certifications, apply to work with us or email shaila@foodalliance.org for more information.