Colorado expands habitat incentives to protect the threatened Preble’s meadow jumping mouse

Colorado’s strategy to safeguard the Preble’s meadow jumping mouse has moved from initial habitat restoration to a broader incentive scheme for private landowners. A 2025 Frontiers in Conservation Science paper highlighted 102 stream miles in the North Fork Poudre watershed as viable mouse habitat, with varying levels of suitability. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s North Fork Poudre Site Conservation Team coordinated voluntary actions such as reduced grazing in sensitive corridors and the placement of log structures to slow water flow and stabilize banks.

In 2024 a conservation bank near Livermore began paying owners who protect riparian areas below 7,600 feet, and a 2026 initiative now extends similar opportunities to additional Larimer County properties. The program also includes a decade-long monitoring plan, noting that landowner access to sampling sites rose from 17% to 56% between 2023 and 2024. By linking restoration, scientific tracking, and financial incentives, the effort seeks to create a connected network of habitats that can support a stable mouse population and benefit broader watershed health.