Land Trust · Bozeman, MT
American Prairie
Defending its own bison herd, formally protesting BLM’s revocation of grazing permits on 63,000 public-land acres
72 staff + 34 volunteers54¢ of every dollar to the workFounded 2001
Stand · Find your defenders
Who’s defending American Prairie?
1 case live in federal court over this place, filed 2026BLM land in Montana, 603,657 acres, managed by the Bureau of Land Management and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, designated in 2001.
The defenders
The groups doing the most work here
4 groups are on the record for American Prairie, in the order they carry the weight. The range says how strongly our editors, the court dockets and their own filings tie each one here. Give directly; nothing routes through us.
Leading the fight
93–98% match
Also in the fight
Legal · Hailey, ID
Western Watersheds Project
Filed a protest against BLM’s revocation of the bison grazing permits
18 staff85¢ of every dollar to the workFounded 1993
Legal · San Francisco, CA
Earthjustice
Filed American Prairie’s protest against BLM’s permit revocation
698 staff + 33 volunteers81¢ of every dollar to the workFounded 1971
Advocacy · Washington, DC
Defenders of Wildlife
Filed its own protest against the revocation of the bison grazing permits
165 staff + 80 volunteers71¢ of every dollar to the workFounded 1947
18 more groups also work this ground
On the ground in Montana
Wild MontanaThey work only in MontanaGrassrootsMontana Conservation CorpsThey work only in MontanaStewardshipMontana Land RelianceThey work only in MontanaLand TrustFive Valleys Land TrustThey work only in MontanaLand TrustUpper Missouri Breaks AudubonThey work only in MontanaFriends GroupBob Marshall Wilderness FoundationThey work only in MontanaFriends Group
More ways in
Custer Gallatin Working GroupThey work only in MontanaFriends GroupWhitefish Legacy PartnersThey work only in MontanaRecreationGallatin Valley Land TrustThey work only in MontanaLand TrustGlacier InstituteThey work only in MontanaFriends GroupCottonwood Environmental Law CenterMontana is one of the 3 states they work inLegalVital Ground FoundationMontana is one of the 4 states they work inLand TrustPacific Northwest Trail AssociationMontana is one of the 3 states they work inTrailsSonoran InstituteMontana is one of the 4 states they work inCoalitionWestern Values ProjectBased in Helena, close to the groundWatchdogRocky Mountain Elk FoundationBased in Missoula, close to the groundAdvocacyGlacier National Park ConservancyThey work only in MontanaFriends GroupAdvocates for the WestWorking this regionLegal
The situation
What’s happening to American Prairie
The largest prairie conservation project in the country is under direct assault. Interior Secretary Burgum personally assumed jurisdiction and ordered BLM to revoke four bison grazing leases covering seven allotments on 63,000 acres in Phillips County, reversing a 2022 authorization that took years to secure. His legal theory: the 1934 Taylor Grazing Act limits permits to domestic animals used for production, not conservation bison. The permits are being converted to cattle-only. Earthjustice, a coalition of more than 50 tribes, the Cheyenne River Sioux, Defenders of Wildlife, and Western Watersheds have all filed formal protests. The reversal threatens 41 bison grazing permits across six western states.
- 2004American Prairie founded to create largest nature reserve in the continental US
- 2022BLM approves bison grazing permits on seven allotments
- 2026Interior Secretary Burgum orders BLM to revoke bison permits
- 2026Earthjustice, 50+ tribes, and Defenders of Wildlife file formal protests
Bison grazing permits revoked by Interior
Source: Montana Free Press · January 16, 2026
Political targeting of conservation organization
Source: US News · January 16, 2026
No public comment window is open on American Prairie right now. A call script is ready on the Public Lands Action Network, and the groups above are how the fight gets funded and argued in the meantime.
In the courts
The cases over this place
The dockets we track that name American Prairie directly. Active first.
ActiveAmerican Prairie Foundation v. United States Department of InteriorMTD · filed 2026 · Docket ↗
Your move
How to stand for American Prairie
GiveGive to American Prairie
Straight to their own donation page. Your dollar never passes through us.
Their donation page ↗SpeakCall your representativesA ready call script on American Prairie, plus any comment window as it opens.
Public Lands Action NetworkFollowWatch the mapEvery threatened place in the country, tracked, with who stands for each.
Threatened Lands MapAmerican Prairie has defenders. It needs more.
4 groups on the record, American Prairie with 72 staff + 34 volunteers, 1 live case in federal court. That is who is holding it. Find your way in.