PRATT — The Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies has honored the Alexander Ranch of Barber County with the 2011 National Private Lands Fish and Wildlife Stewardship Award.   The Alexander Ranch is owned and operated by Ted, Brian, and Mona Alexander in south-central Kansas.

The Alexander Ranch became eligible for the national award by winning the 2011 Kansas Wildlife Habitat Conservation Award.

“The Alexanders’ decades of dedication to the improvement of native grasslands in an area once over-grazed and degraded by the encroachment of eastern red cedar deserves statewide recognition,” said Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks and Tourism wildlife biologist Chris Berens, who nominated the Alexander Ranch for the award.

The ranch covers more than 7,000 acres and has flourished as a custom grazing operation for the past 27 years. It is home to several wildlife and aquatic species considered at-risk or in need of conservation.

The ranch has also entered into a “Candidate Conservation Agreement with Assurances” with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services. This voluntary agreement guarantees to address the conservation needs of a species before they become listed as endangered or threatened by specifying actions that will remove or reduce threats to the species.

The Alexanders have opened their ranch to training opportunities for public, state, and federal agency staff and have allowed many university students to conduct wildlife research, including the interaction of wildlife and grazing practices.