Announcing the Great Plains’ Bird of the Year: the Western Meadowlark

This year, we launched the Audubon Great Plains’ Bird of the Year contest to celebrate the many amazing bird species found in our region. We narrowed down to ten species nominees and shared them on social media to build engagement and have our followers vote on the winner.

From grassland species to backyard birds, here are the nominees: the Western Meadowlark, Bobolink, Grasshopper Sparrow, Upland Sandpiper, Burrowing Owl, Northern Harrier, Horned Lark, American Goldfinch, Black-capped Chickadee, and the Red-winged Blackbird. With 115 votes cast, our region has spoken, and with a tight race, the winner is the Western Meadowlark with 27 votes, and the Bobolink came in a close second with 24 votes.

It came as no surprise to our team that the Western Meadowlark was selected as the winner for 2026. It is the state bird for North Dakota and Nebraska and serves as a powerful symbol of the Great Plains. The song of the Western Meadowlark represents the arrival of spring, joy, and an open prairie landscape. The Western Meadowlark breeds mostly in natural grasslands, abandoned weedy fields, and rangeland.

Migration

In early spring, often March through April, Western Meadowlarks return to their nesting grounds in the Great Plains to breed again, filling prairies with their distinctive flute-like song and marking the seasonal renewal of grassland ecosystems.

During spring and summer, these birds nest in native prairies, hayfields, and grazed grasslands, where males can often be found singing from a fence post to defend their territory and attract a potential mate.

Western Meadowlarks are short-distance migrants and begin to head south in mid-October through November. Western Meadowlarks from the Great Plains (North Dakota, South Dakota, and Nebraska) head to states such as Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, Arkansas, and parts of the Mississippi Valley. Audubon’s Bird Migration Explorer offers a visual representation of migration patterns for over 450 species, including the Western Meadowlark.

Conservation Challenges:

In North America, grassland species are experiencing the fastest decline of any bird group. Grassland species have experienced more than a 40% decline since 1970. Like many declining species, the Western Meadowlark faces a variety of conservation challenges, including residential and commercial development limiting green spaces and natural vegetation, and agricultural practices, to name a few. Generations of farmers have been good stewards of land and wildlife while also providing food for people and livestock. However, some agricultural practices, like overuse of pesticides, can reduce the availability of food, clean water, and safe places for birds to feed, rest, and breed. And, the conversion of natural vegetation, such as native prairies, to agriculture has reduced the areas once used by birds. Our working lands team works with landowners and producers to enroll in programs providing cost-share assistance, such as the Prairie Management Toolbox and the North Dakota Conservation Forage Program. Our Range Ecologists provide technical assistance and habitat management plans to sustain the land and support wildlife.   

Additionally, our team works with ranchers through programs such as Audubon’s Conservation Ranching, and we can help ensure that livestock management is a conservation solution for birds.

Through our new Audubon Great Plains’ Bird of the Year program, we hope to build awareness and inspire action. As we celebrate the Western Meadowlark throughout the year, everyone can play a part. At home, you can plant native species in your yard or garden and provide habitat for birds using our native plant database. You can explore MOTUS data on various species and help spread the word! The Motus Wildlife Tracking System is an international, collaborative network that uses automated radio telemetry to track the movements of small animals—primarily birds, bats, and insects—on a hemispheric scale. And lastly, you can spend time outdoors and grow your connection with birds and the places they call home.