Panhandle Lesser Prairie Chicken/Black-Tailed Prairie Dog

Resource Concern: Wildlife

Target Area

Priority for Funding

High Priority Screening

Applicants must meet all four criteria to be ranked high priority.

The offered acreage contains or is within 5 miles of a known lesser prairie chicken population confirmed by a Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) or U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) biologist or official map.
The offered acreage is native rangeland.
The offered acreage is adequately fenced and watered to carry out prescribed grazing.
The applicant agrees to operate under a prescribed grazing plan and stocking rate based on Zone 1 supplement 645 for lesser prairie chicken on the offered acres.

All high priority applications will be accepted and ranked for possible funding.  Low priority applications will be accepted but not ranked unless funds are available after all high priority applications have been funded.

Eligible Practices

Cost Share Rates

Limited Resource Farmer/Rancher - 90 percent
Beginning Farmer/Rancher - 50 percent
All others - 50 percent

Practices will be cost shared on the established county average cost of the practice.

Incentive Payment Levels: Flat Rate

Prescribed Grazing (528) - Payment limited to maximum of 2,500 acres, acreage not limited.

7.50 dollars per acre - Limited to a maximum of 2 years.  Applicable only to acres requiring a planned full growing season deferment (such as planned rest, before and after a prescribed burn or following brush management). Payment to be made after each full growing season deferment is completed. $7.50 per acre - Year 5 (maximum 1 year) - Must be actively implementing NRCS approved grazing management plan and TPWD approved wildlife management plan to receive payment.

Ranking Criteria

Contiguous acres planned for enrollment in this tract.

Percentage of grazing land in this operating unit will be operating under an active grazing management plan for the duration of this contract.

There is a prairie dog colony of this property and the landowner/operator agrees to retain the prairie dog colony for the life of the contract.

There is currently a Lesser Prairie Chicken or Black-tailed Prairie Dog management Plan with written guidelines on the offered acres or will the applicant agree to implement a TPWD approved wildlife management plan that includes either lesser prairie chicken or black-tailed prairie dogs before the end of the first full year of the contract.