The Central Hardwoods Bird Conservation Region historically supported myriad habitat types, from open grasslands, to savannas and open- and closed-canopy woodlands, to true mesic forests. These habitat types were often interspersed depending on factors such as slope and aspect within a given landscape. In some cases, one habitat type might occur as a smaller patch in a matrix of another habitat type, such as glades in woodlands or wetlands in barrens, or grade into one another where woodlands on drier upper slopes, for example, grade into mesic forests on lower slopes and bottomlands.

Our habitat objectives almost always focus on restoring the structure and function of natural communities following many, many decades of land use change and, with the exception of mesic forests and wetlands, typically involve the use of prescribed fire. There are many locations where glades and woodlands have degraded over time and can be restored with thinning to open the canopy and fire to stimulate the groundcover. However, most of our prairies and barrens, with their deeper soils, have been completely converted to non-native grasses or cropland and need to be replanted with native vegetation. The Southeastern Grasslands Institute (SGI) is as an important ally in these efforts.  SGI has developed locally-adapted native seed sources that can be used to recreate native grassland communities. Read more at Southeastern Grasslands Institute