Ramos Ranch (formerly Ranney Ranch)

Feature Story: Restoring Grasslands for Bird-Friendly Beef

Conserve it Forward

Conserving the ranch with an easement before selling

Located 12 miles east of Corona, NM, in Lincoln County, the Ranney Ranch is a living example ofthe power of managed grazing in restoring grasslands for wildlife, birds and livestock. The landowners, siblings Nancy, George and Ed Ranney, were extremely active in the regenerative agricultural community for more than 18 years, providing leadership in holistic management practices, organic grass-fed beef production, soil carbon sequestration, and ecologically sound approaches to land health.

In 2020, the Ranney family made the difficult decision to finally sell the iconic ranch, but first they wanted to maintain the integrity of the ranch and protect the results of their land management practices with a conservation easement. NMLC completed the easement across a large, 9,949-acre portion of the ranch in August, and the property was immediately acquired by brothers Heriberto and Jaime Ramos. The Ramos brothers had hunted on the ranch for years and wanted to enjoy the property for years to come. The easement consists of high-value mixed forest, savanna and grassland habitats, and hosts a viable agricultural operation. The new owners have since renamed the property the Ramos Ranch and plan to continue the land management practices instigated by the Ranneys years ago.   [See the expanded Ranney story under “Success stories” on the NMLC website).

Keeping these larger legacy ranches intact and not subdivided into parcels too small to be economically viable as agriculturally productive lands is critical not only to the health of our rural communities but also to maintaining connectivity for wildlife throughout the Southwest. NMLC appreciates both the Ranneys and the Ramos brothers for conserving and maintaining the quality of this grassland property.