This is Bert Noll.

Biologist Nicolas Marchand lives in the department of Maldonado, Uruguay,

and works with ranchers to make racing cattle in grasslands sustainable and compatible with conservation.

A kind of approach that makes sure pastures are appropriate for livestock

and also helps host birds like the buffed breasted sandpiper which spend their winters here.

Uruguay, Nicolas is saying here, is a country that does ranching in a natural system,

not a transformed one.

That means, unlike other kinds of ranching, these pastures are still native

grassland ecosystems that offer a vital habitat for birds and other wildlife.

And he's working to conserve ranching from intensive urban development nearby.

He and his manumet team build relationships and engage with ranchers and agricultural

agencies operating among these lagoons.

We still have a great percentage of natural pastures and grasslands,

about 60% of Uruguay.

Nicolas says here,

but many have been lost in a short period of time.

He wants to keep enhancing his connections with ranchers,

restoring pastures and creating management practices that benefit

venturing shorebirds or to avoid losing more of these crucial ecosystems.

This show is part of a series on manumet's shorebird conservation research

and it's also available in Espanol.

Visit our website, birdno.org to learn more.

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