Uploaded January 2026 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
Cheatgrass, one of Wyoming’s most pernicious and dangerous invasive species, is spreading into the wildlife-rich Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. The grass greens up and sets seeds earlier than native plants, “cheating” the system of water and nutrients. Once it dries out, cheatgrass becomes highly flammable, fueling fast-moving wildfires that are difficult to control.
Because it’s unpalatable and lacks nutritional value once dry, cheatgrass is threatening Wyoming’s beloved wildlife as well as the state’s ranching heritage. The invasive grass is the major reason we are losing sagebrush habitat across the West at the alarming rate of one million acres each year. Hotter, drier conditions are also allowing cheatgrass to reach into forests, further reducing forage and raising forest fire risk.
In this video, join The Nature Conservancy's Wyoming Director of Science Dr. Corinna Riginos and Wyoming Sagebrush Ecologist Charlotte Cadow as they track the leading edge of cheatgrass at Red Canyon Ranch near Lander, Wyoming. Their goal? To “hold the line” against further spread.
The team’s work has been recognized with the prestigious Camp Monaco Prize. The award was established by the Buffalo Bill Center of the West’s Draper Natural History Museum and the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation to foster native biodiversity conservation in the ecosystem through innovative scientific research, management action and public outreach that carries global, as well as regional, implications.
Learn more about cheatgrass research and other important work at The Nature Conservancy’s Red Canyon Ranch at nature.org/redcanyonranch.
Image and video credit: Brian Bitterfeld/Bitter Pictures
Keep up with The Nature Conservancy's latest efforts to protect nature and preserve life:
Facebook - nature.org/facebook
Instagram - nature.org/instagram
LinkedIn - nature.org/linkedin
Text NATURE to 97779 to join The Nature Conservancy on text.
To sign-up for nature e-news visit: preserve.nature.org/page/82226/data/1
Cheatgrass, one of Wyoming’s most pernicious and dangerous invasive species, is spreading into the wildlife-rich Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. The grass greens up and sets seeds earlier than native plants, “cheating” the system of water and nutrients. Once it dries out, cheatgrass becomes highly flammable, fueling fast-moving wildfires that are difficult to control.
Because it’s unpalatable and lacks nutritional value once dry, cheatgrass is threatening Wyoming’s beloved wildlife as well as the state’s ranching heritage. The invasive grass is the major reason we are losing sagebrush habitat across the West at the alarming rate of one million acres each year. Hotter, drier conditions are also allowing cheatgrass to reach into forests, further reducing forage and raising forest fire risk.
In this video, join The Nature Conservancy's Wyoming Director of Science Dr. Corinna Riginos and Wyoming Sagebrush Ecologist Charlotte Cadow as they track the leading edge of cheatgrass at Red Canyon Ranch near Lander, Wyoming. Their goal? To “hold the line” against further spread.
The team’s work has been recognized with the prestigious Camp Monaco Prize. The award was established by the Buffalo Bill Center of the West’s Draper Natural History Museum and the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation to foster native biodiversity conservation in the ecosystem through innovative scientific research, management action and public outreach that carries global, as well as regional, implications.
Learn more about cheatgrass research and other important work at The Nature Conservancy’s Red Canyon Ranch at nature.org/redcanyonranch.
Image and video credit: Brian Bitterfeld/Bitter Pictures
Keep up with The Nature Conservancy's latest efforts to protect nature and preserve life:
Facebook - nature.org/facebook
Instagram - nature.org/instagram
LinkedIn - nature.org/linkedin
Text NATURE to 97779 to join The Nature Conservancy on text.
To sign-up for nature e-news visit: preserve.nature.org/page/82226/data/1
