Conservationists launch effort to restore prairies

JUDITH KOHLER The Associated Press DENVER – Four conservation groups are teaming up to try to restore some of the country’s original grasslands and preserve the wildlife that depends on it. The groups announced the partnership Tuesday. Members say only 10 percent of North America’s 585 million acres of original native grasslands remain, putting wildlife that live there at peril. The goal is to improve 60 million acres of habitat. Terry Riley, of the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership, said the project’s focus will be on grouse because those birds are a bellwether of the prairie’s condition. “We have found that prairie grouse are one of the most sensitive (species) to change,” said…

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