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A first-of-its-kind venture in Colorado is bringing public and private entities together to sustain a tiny mouse whose habitat has shrunk as development, livestock grazing and mining have increased along the Front Range.

The Preble’s meadow jumping mouse, found only in Colorado and Wyoming, is protected under the federal Endangered Species Act. A program announced Thursday will conserve about 200 acres of the mouse’s habitat in Larimer County.

Conservation Investment Management, Colorado Open Lands and the Colorado State Land Board are creating a conservation bank to leverage private funds to help the species, which has been declining in numbers. The Table Top Conservation Bank will maintain 200 acres of state land in perpetuity under a conservation easement.

This undated photo provided by the Center for Native Ecosystems shows a rare Preble s meadow jumping mouse. (Anne Ruggle, Center for Native Ecosystems/Associated Press file)

This is the state’s first-ever commercial conservation bank to sell credits to offset negative impacts to the mouse’s habitat across a broad area, the three participants said in a statement.

Read the Denver Post’s article here