New Mexico

Conservation Science Global
Pollinators for Rare Plants in New Mexico (NM)
Research the 10 rare plants that occur in New Mexico that are threatened by habitat fragmentation and landscape change. Project determine pollinators for each of the plants, whether the pollinators are a limiting factor in successful seed set for the plants, and what the resource requirements for the pollinators are, in order to generate management plans for these pollinators.
$90,000

Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District
Water Conservation Pilots and Habitat Restoration to Sustain Agriculture and Species in the Middle Rio Grande (NM)
Improve riparian and aquatic habitat at up to four outfall sites where conveyed water re-enters the Rio Grande, execute irrigation efficiency pilot projects on up to five lateral diversions, and implement a late-season forbearance native water leasing pilot beginning in the 2020 irrigation year. Project will provide Rio Grande silvery minnow with refuge and spawning habitat, with focus on low flow critical periods.
$1,000,000

National Audubon Society
Activating a Community for the Middle Rio Grande (NM)
Empower local river stewards to restore and enhance riparian habitat in the Middle Rio Grande for birds and people. Project will recruit 125 community members, students and teachers to plant 200 native trees, shrubs and plants on 6 acres of riparian habitat and engage 11,000 people in storytelling through digital media.
$25,000

New Mexico Association of Conservation Districts
Modifying Fences to Improve Habitat Connectivity for Ungulates (NM)
Improve fencing to wildlife-friendly specifications to provide permeability into historic winter range habitat for pronghorn, elk and mule deer in the Taos Plateau. Project will modify or remove 20 miles of fencing.
$153,818

New Mexico Association of Conservation Districts
Pronghorn Restoration in the Southeast Plains: II (NM)
Expand ongoing efforts to restore grassland habitat and facilitate broader pronghorn movement throughout its historic range within Lincoln, Chaves and Eddy counties, New Mexico. Project will modify 40 miles of fence and remove mesquite across 13,000 acres of grassland in historic pronghorn antelope habitat.
$246,534

New Mexico Department of Game and Fish
Rio Chama Aquatic Habitat Restoration (NM)
Improve instream habitat and channel function for resident fish species, including Rio Grande chub, brown trout, and rainbow trout, and enhance riparian health for several associated wildlife species. Project will increase fish passage and riparian health and function through channel shaping and revegetation.
$100,000

Pheasants Forever
Coordinating Range Wildlife Conservation in the Lesser Prairie Chicken Range (CO, KS, NM, OK, TX)
Work with private landowners and other partners to implement on-the-ground riparian habitat restoration across the lesser prairie chicken range. Project will enroll landowners into voluntary contracts that will restore or improve management on 30,000 acres of southwestern grassland habitat.
$101,436

Rio Puerco Alliance
Brazos River and Tributaries Wetland and Stream Restoration (NM)
Restore Encinado Creek to provide access to the floodplain, and minimize bank erosion and a narrowing width/depth ratio. Project will prevent erosion, raise the water table, and spread water as sheet flow, lowering stream temperatures, reducing runoff and creating improved habitat for the threatened and endangered species that live in the project area.
$151,684

Rocky Mountain Bird Observatory
Implement a Radio Telemetry Network in the Great Plains and Chihuahuan Desert to Monitor Grassland Birds (multiple states)
Implement a network of automated radio telemetry stations throughout the Great Plains and Chihuahuan Desert to monitor the annual cycle of grassland birds, including Baird’s sparrow, Sprague’s pipit and chestnut-collared longspur. Project will initiate this effort by holding webinars to recruit and train partners and develop a plan to track grassland birds across the region, install telemetry stations to track focal species, and deploy tags on focal species.
$250,000

Rocky Mountain Bird Observatory
Monitoring Wintering Grassland Birds in the Chihuahuan Desert — IV (NM)
Apply a rigorous sampling protocol to estimate the density of wintering grassland birds in the Chihuahuan Desert, including Sprague’s pipits and chestnut-collared longspurs. Project will implement a previously-developed monitoring program to produce baseline estimates of wintering bird populations and evaluate the impact of ongoing grassland restoration investments.
$230,000

The Trust for Public Land
Protection of Cañon Ciruela for Incorporation into the Sabinoso Wilderness (NM)
Work with the Bureau of Land Management to acquire the 8,914 acre Cañon Ciruela property in eastern New Mexico as an addition to the Sabinoso Wilderness. Project will significantly increase the size of the Wilderness, support habitat for numerous species, and improve public access.
$450,000

Trout Unlimited
Rio Chama/San Antonio Rio Grande Cutthroat Trout Restoration (NM)
Advance cutthroat conservation objectives outlined in the 2013 Rio Grande Cutthroat Trout Conservation Strategy, a multi-partner document intended to ensure Rio Grande cutthroat persistence throughout its range. Project will entail partner coordination, site characterization, project prioritization, and project implementation in the possible locations of Nabor and East Wolf Creeks, and Rio Brazos in the upper Rio Chama basin, and in several streams in the Rio San Antonio basin, all in northern New Mexico.
$96,059

University of Oklahoma
Developing Tools to Advance Grassland Bird Wintering Habitat Management Practices (CO, NM, OK, TX)
Expand on an existing framework studying the wintering ecology of longspurs and other grassland birds in the Great Plains using species distribution modeling, automated radio telemetry biologging, and weather radar analysis. Project will develop tools to improve field grassland bird surveys to more accurately estimate abundance and habitat usage, and to improve grazing management regimes to best advance bird conservation.
$138,145