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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 



In response to urgent circumstances regarding the 

 Federal Government's trust responsibility to manage 

 reservation lands and the need to maintain compliance with 

 existing legislation regarding endangered species and 

 environmental policy, the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe 

 proposes to implement a pilot range improvement project 

 entitled "Prairie Management Plan". 



The proposed project presents a dramatic departure 

 from traditional control of black-tailed prairie dogs 

 {Cynomys ludovicianus) by poisoning on the Cheyenne River 

 Reservation. For years, prairie dogs have been viewed as 

 "pests"; however, the near extinction of black-footed 

 ferrets (Mustela nigripes) , which rely totally on prairie 

 dog towns as habitat and prairie dogs for food, has fostered 

 a recognition of the delicate environmental relationships 

 and biodiversity necessary for a healthy prairie ecosystem. 

 The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has issued a formal 

 opinion: poisoning prairie dogs on the Cheyenne River Sioux 

 Reservation will jeopardize the survival and/or recovery of 

 black-footed ferrets. Additionally, Defenders of Wildlife 

 and the Sierra Club have threatened litigation if prairie 

 dogs are poisoned without consideration to existing 

 legislation. Thus, poisoning alone is no longer an 

 acceptable management tool for prairie dog control. 



Studies have shown that prairie dogs alone are not 

 responsible for range deterioration. The primary cause of 

 prairie ecosystem degradation, and the associated loss of 

 species diversity, has been a lack of funding to change 

 outmoded range management practices. Outdated methods 

 encourage overgrazing and conditions that give rise to 

 prairie dog colonization. Notwithstanding this fact, 

 livestock production is currently the leading industry on 

 many Indian reservations, and will be for the foreseeable 

 future. Thus, the challenge is to incorporate management 

 techniques that are directed at multiple use. 



The Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe's goal is to restore, 

 enhance, and maintain the prairie ecosystem on 2.8 million 

 acres encompassed by the reservation boundaries. This 

 proposal is based on Lakota tradition, which recognizes the 

 intrinsic value of all life forms in a healthy and 

 harmonious environment. Developed by an Interdisciplinary 

 Team of tribal, federal and environmental representatives to 

 reflect traditional Lakota views and improved range 

 management techniques, this approach allows prairie dogs and 



