Primary nesting season designations on Conservation Reserve Program lands: Grassland bird breeding phenology and stakeholder perspectives

Abstract Obligate grassland birds have declined dramatically across North America, primarily due to habitat loss and agricultural intensification. The Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) compensates landowners for converting cropland to grassland or maintaining existing grassland; it is a key program for conserving grassland birds. Under drought conditions, mowing and grazing are restricted to outside a designated primary nesting season (PNS). Using published data, we investigated how effectively PNS dates encompass the breeding period. We also interviewed CRP government administrators, grassland bird conservation NGOs, and landowners participating in CRP to discern their beliefs of the appropriateness of PNS for conserving birds while accommodating landowner needs. We find that PNS dates span the breeding of most species, but some initiate breeding before and some continue after PNS, including species of conservation concern. Stakeholders disagree on PNS suitability, but agree that CRP “manages to the most”‐ a compromise between bird conservation and landowner needs. We identify a benefit to extending the PNS period, a need for regular review of PNS, especially in response to climate‐change driven phenology shifts, and incentives that address landowner needs while further protecting late‐breeding declining grassland birds.