638,000 acres with more than 300 species supported
Conservation
is at our core
Stewardship of the natural resources at Pathfinder Ranches is the primary focus of all management decisions, programs and initiatives. The management team of Pathfinder Ranches is dedicated to protecting and conserving the unique ecology, wildlife, and natural resources of sagebrush and riparian ecosystems on a landscape scale.
Learn more about our stewardship projects
Bighorn Sheep in the Sweetwater Rocks
The last resident herds of bighorn sheep disappeared from the Sweetwater Rocks in the late 1800s and early 1900s. As one of the private landowners of the area, we are committed to supporting the reintroduction effort and enhancing bighorn sheep habitat through water development, fence conversion, weed control and other forage enhancements.
Open Space Preserved
The way to protect our open spaces is not to put them in needless opposition to development. The pressure for jobs and resources is not going away.
Here’s what we are doing to reduce that pressure: Pathfinder Ranches maintains 638,000 acres in the middle of Wyoming as the world’s largest sage-grouse habitat. That’s 30 times bigger than Manhattan, or roughly the size of Rhode Island.
Companies that purchase Pathfinder mitigation credits, in addition to using the credit to offset their disturbance, ultimately preserve this vast Wyoming habitat. This exchange is known as mitigation banking.
Forever, we are going to nourish these open spaces for wildlife and for the values that vast open spaces in Wyoming provides—because we live here and love this state, too.
Many Species Supported
The sage-grouse is the lead actor, but the supporting cast is equally marvelous. Sage-grouse need specific elements to survive in sagebrush country like leks and wet meadows—the same habitats occupied by hundreds of other species.
These “sagebrush-obligate” species at Pathfinder Ranches include ferruginous hawks, sage thrashers, mule deer, long-billed curlews and sage sparrows to name a few. In fact, over 300 species rely on sagebrush country for their survival.
Promoting active stewardship on Pathfinder Ranches benefits all the residents of the Sagebrush Sea.
Grazing for Habitat
Well-managed livestock grazing is a benefit to rangelands and sage-grouse habitat, and the custodianship that the livestock managers at Pathfinder Ranches bring to the ecosystem is invaluable for conserving healthy landscapes.
Through its four grazing associations, Pathfinder Ranches manages the forage resources. Pathfinder requires ranchers practice time-controlled grazing to match grazing times and livestock numbers to the condition of the grassland resources, and rest-rotation to provide adequate rest periods for grasses and other plant communities, including endangered plants. Grazing rotations are consistently analyzed throughout all pastures and allotments to monitor rangeland conditions.