This project restores shrubs and reduces cheatgrass on parts of the big desert, an ecologically important and sensitive landscape in southcentral idaho

The Idaho Department of Fish and Game received a $300,000 Cooperative Agreement from the Bureau of Land Management under the Good Neighbor Authority (CFDA 15.015) program, awarded September 16, 2025, with completion targeted for September 15, 2030. The project implements habitat restoration and invasive species management on the Big Desert, an ecologically sensitive landscape in southcentral Idaho. Key deliverables include planting and seeding native shrubs such as sagebrush and winterfat, mapping and treating cheatgrass infestations using herbicide applications, and reestablishing the suppressed native plant community across the project area.

The restoration activities are designed to benefit multiple stakeholder groups by improving wildlife habitat for big game species including mule deer, pronghorn, and elk, as well as species of conservation concern such as burrowing owls, golden eagles, and pygmy rabbits. Secondary benefits include reducing wildfire risk, enhancing forage availability for both wildlife and livestock, mitigating wildlife depredation on adjacent private lands, and improving outdoor recreational experiences on public lands. The cheatgrass treatment methodology has demonstrated effectiveness on the Big Desert in prior applications, supporting the project's anticipated outcomes.

IT provides habitat for many big game species including mule deer, pronghorn, ELK, and safe-grouse as well as numerous species of conservation concern such as burrowing OWL, golden eagle, as well as numerous species of conservation concern, such as burrowing OWL, golden eagle, grasshopper sparrow, loggerhead shrike, sagebrush sparrow, little brown BAT, townsend s big-eared BAT, western small-footed myotis, yuma myotis, pygmy rabbit, and yellow and morrison s bumblebee. In addition to supporting a rich diversity of native wildlife, the big desert holds cultural recreational agricultural and economic value for local communities and the state of idaho. Through this project, idaho department of fish and game plants and seeds shrubs such as sagebrush and winterfat and maps and treats cheatgrass using herbicide. Cheatgrass treatments using herbicide have been successful on the big desert and similar results are expected in our project area.reestablishing the shrub component and reducing cheatgrass benefits wildlife species, local communities, grazing permittees, and public land users. In addition, reducing cheatgrass enhances wildlife habitat by reinvigorating the suppressed native plant community, which increases forage for wildlife species. Improving habitat on public land across large areas over time helps mitigate depredations on private land. Furthermore, reducing cheatgrass mitigates wildfire and improves the outdoor experience for both consumptive and non-consumptive public land users.