In 2012, the NGPJV Technical Committee identified 26 priority bird species in need of conservation attention. The NGPJV partnership has since elevated five grassland birds endemic to the region as our top conservation priority in response to a 2019 study that documented alarming trends in grassland bird declines. The Technical Committee developed ten-year conservation objectives which specified that 1-2.5M acres of grasslands conservation are needed in the Northern Great Plains to slow or stabilize declining trends of these five grassland birds by 2026.

Top 5 Priority Species

• Baird’s Sparrow
• Chestnut-collared Longspur
• Lark Bunting
• Sprague’s Pipit
• Thick-billed Longspur

Other Priority Species

• Black-billed cuckoo
• Black-billed magpie
• Brewer’s sparrow
• Burrowing owl
• Ferruginous hawk
• Grasshopper sparrow
• Greater sage-grouse
• Loggerhead shrike
• Long-billed curlew
• Marbled godwit
• Mountain plover
• Northern pintail
• Red-headed woodpecker
• Sharp-tailed grouse
• Short-eared owl
• Spotted towhee
• Swainson’s hawk
• Upland sandpiper
• Wild turkey
• Wilson’s phalarope