A grassland conservation area near Consul has been expanded to over 10 times its original size, bringing the total size of the Zen-Ridge project to 1,235 hectares.

Because of its mission to protect Saskatchewan’s ecosystems, the Nature Conservancy of Canada, alongside numerous donors, banded together to purchase more land, and in-turn protect the habitats of plants and animals native to the area.

A release from the Nature Conservancy says grasslands are one of the most endangered ecosystems in the world. The Zen-Ridge conservation project is home to pronghorn antelope, the burrowing owl, the swift fox, and the chestnut-collared longspur, all of which are endangered or threatened.