Preference for Grassland Heterogeneity: Implications for Biodiversity in the Great Plains

The Great Plains of the United States is a grassland region managed primarily for homogeneity associated with production agriculture. The resulting decline of obligate fauna makes enhancing biodiversity an increasingly important ecological goal. A survey was administered to land managers and the general population in ranching regions of Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, and the Texas Panhandle. This research explores the preferred characteristics of privately owned grasslands among ranchers and the general population for vegetation structure and biodiversity. Results indicate a knowledge gap between biodiversity and the vegetation heterogeneity required to support it. Preference for grassland structure is seen as a sociocultural driver of decisions on management practices that constrain adoption of heterogeneity management. Conserving biodiversity and enhancing ecosystem services provided by heterogeneous grasslands can be accomplished by demonstrating that conservation advantages of heterogeneity and production agriculture are compatible.