Advancing forestry practices to support Southern wildlife

To unfamiliar visitors, the longleaf pine forests of the South might seem stately and beautiful … but quiet, at times seemingly devoid of wildlife. Nothing could be further from the truth — you just need to know where to look, and have patience. 

The remaining fragments of these once-immense forests hold some of the greatest plant and animal biodiversity in the United States. Warblers, vireos, bluebirds, sparrows, hawks, kites and many more types of birds either live there or move through on annual migrations. White-tailed deer, wild turkeys, northern bobwhite quail and black bears all call it home. So do lesser-known species that have evolved to flourish in these fire-dependent forests. Gopher tortoises, eastern indigo snakes and flatwoods salamanders are just a few of the reptiles and amphibians that can be found. Red-cockaded woodpeckers are longleaf specialists, but they share the wealth of insect life with pileated, red-bellied, red-headed, hairy and downy woodpeckers. 

For decades, NFWF has supported efforts across this mostly privately owned landscape to conserve existing stands of longleaf, advance forestry practices such as controlled burning and forest thinning, and replant seedlings where opportunities arise. Longleaf conservation exemplifies a sweet-spot for the Foundation, with a focus on voluntary, public-private partnerships. Work unfolds with enthusiastic partners across private and public lands, from family-owned timberlands to military installations, state parks, national forests and federal wildlife refuges. 

In 2024, NFWF awarded $33.5 million in grants through its Longleaf Landscape Stewardship Fund. Grants supported the crucial work of stalwart conservation nonprofits such as The Longleaf Alliance, The Nature Conservancy and Pheasants Forever, as well as state agencies and forestry stakeholders such as the Forest Landowners Association, American Forest Foundation and Tall Timbers Research. 

Watch: NFWF and the Bezos Earth Fund are working to conserve vital longleaf habitat in the southeastern United States
 

Contributing Partners: Altria Group, Bezos Earth Fund, Energy Transfer, International Paper, Orton Foundation, Southern Company, Walton Family Foundation, U.S. Department of Defense, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Forest Service, USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service

This story originally appeared in NFWF's 2024 Annual Report.