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Protection, Conservation and Enhancement of Tricolored Blackbird Habitat in and Agricultural Landscape

Year Awarded: 2025

USDA Funding: $5,433,817.00

Partner-Contributed Funding: $984,799.99

Project Timeline: 2025-2030

Conservation Program Funded: Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP): Land Management 

California Counties: Amador, Butte, Calaveras, Colusa, El Dorado, Fresno, Glenn, Kern, Kings, Madera, Mariposa, Merced, Modoc, Nevada, Placer, Sacramento, San Benito, San Joaquin, San Luis Obispo, Shasta, Siskiyou, Solano, Stanislaus, Sutter, Tehama, Tulare, Tuolumne, Yolo, and Yuba Counties

Lead Partner: Audubon California

Collaborating Partners:

  • California Farm Bureau Federation
  • Western United Dairies
  • California Department of Fish and Wildlife

Project Summary

The Protection, Restoration and Enhancement of Tri-Colored Blackbird Habitat on Agricultural Lands RCPP project addresses the dramatic decline of the Tricolored Blackbird, a California Threatened species, by leveraging a partnership between conservation organizations and the agricultural community, especially the dairy farming community, to protect Tricolored Blackbirds nesting on farms and develop natural wetland and upland habitat.

Project Goals

  • Implement the harvest management practice already successfully launched in California and critical to the survival and successful reproduction of large Tricolored Blackbird colonies on agricultural lands, with an emphasis on dairy farms and forage operations
  • Execute industry-led, annual outreach to dairies and other producers with nesting colonies of Tricolored Blackbirds, as well as a public awareness campaign highlighting farmers' role in saving this species, generating support for species protection among the agricultural community and educating the public on the importance of Tricolored Blackbirds, dairy and forage farms and the role of NRCS
  • Implement habitat restoration and enhancement projects to create suitable nesting habitat on wetlands and rangelands to provide non-conflict locations on natural habitat for Tricolored Blackbirds to successfully nest

Conservation Practices/Activities

  • 327 – Conservation Cover
  • 328 – Conservation Crop Rotation
  • 340 – Cover Crop
  • 342 – Critical Area Planting
  • 382 – Fence
  • 390 – Riparian Herbaceous Cover
  • 420 – Wildlife Habitat Planting
  • 528 – Prescribed Grazing 
  • 587 – Structure for Water Control 
  • 643 – Restoration of Rare and Declining Natural Communities
  • 644 – Wetland Wildlife Habitat Mgmt. 
  • 645 – Upland Wildlife Habitat Mgmt.
  • 647 – Early Successional Habitat Development and Mgmt.
  • 649 – Structure for Wildlife
  • 657 – Wetland Restoration
  • 658 – Wetland Creation
  • 659 – Wetland Enhancement


NRCS Contact
 

Shanna Farmer
Acting RCPP Coordinator
Davis State Office, California
Phone: (530) 902-7339
Email: shanna.farmer@usda.gov


 

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