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After the couple of crazy weeks we had during the Piping Plover surveys, I thought that with the onset of summer, the weather would be more cooperative but I was wrong. Our Loggerhead Shrike surveys took place mainly in the car as we drove along pre-determined routes and kept an eye out for shrikes. They like to nest in shrubs and shelterbelts and are attracted to roads due to the insect activity. Mid-July is the best time to spot the threatened bird because the fledglings are growing up and learning to hunt for themselves. The only walking we had to do for the survey was around the occasional cemetery looking in the shelterbelts for active nests. Due to a minor foot injury, I stood watch over the shelterbelts near the car while my field partner Nathaniel walked the perimeter.

We started the adventure in Maple Creek on Wednesday at 8:00 AM. After getting our coffee to get us going, we began the survey route that would meander down to Consul. What we expected to only take a couple of hours ended up taking two days! The weather was beautiful, just a little too hot for Loggerhead Shrikes to be active. Once it hit 30 degrees, we had to pause the survey due to the high heat which reduces the detectability of shrikes. After a quick regroup to make a new plan, we decided to visit our participants in the area and try again the next morning.

The next day, we were ready and on the road by 6:00 AM to try and finish the survey within the time we had. It was already Thursday and the forecast was above 30 degrees for the rest of the week. The early morning surveying was almost peaceful after I had my morning coffee to keep me awake, or at least that’s what I thought until we got driving and Nathaniel felt something small fly into the car through an open window. We thought it was nothing until a bumblebee flew right into Nathaniel’s face! We quickly found an approach to pull over and try to get the bee out except he did not want to leave and found that the space between the windshield and the dash was a nice place to hang out. With lots of guidance, I got what I believed was our bee out of the car. I looked over at Nathaniel and said “That has to be the bee that was flying around, what are the chances there is another bee right outside of our car right now?” With a sigh of relief, we got back in the car and began driving again. When there wasn’t any suitable habitat for Loggerhead Shrikes, we were able to speed up a bit. After about 5 minutes, we heard buzzing again and assumed the noise was coming from the open window. That's when the bee decided to make another appearance, flying at Nathaniel’s face again! We got to another approach and attempted to get it out but we gave up after a couple of minutes to continue our survey, this time accepting we had a new insect companion.

Near the end of our survey, I got what I thought was our bee out and exclaimed, “That has to be our bee! What are the chances that there is a different bee while we have one in our car?”. I found myself wrong again. Continuing our drive, the bee made a final appearance before flying out the window, and after over an hour, we said goodbye to our new friend. The rest of the survey route was not as eventful but with 10 Loggerhead Shrike sightings, including young fledglings, I think it was quite successful.

photo: N. Hak

The arrival of summer signals the beginning of family vacations and road trips across the prairies. This also includes young Burrowing Owls, who are now starting to leave the nest and forage for themselves after weeks of being provided for by their parents. The young owls are practicing their hunting and flying skills, and venturing out on their own to other burrows nearby. “At dusk, the road surface tends to be warmer than surrounding grasslands, attracting many small insects and rodents,” explains Grace Pidborchynski, coordinator of Operation Burrowing Owl at Nature Saskatchewan, “As a result, young owls are also attracted to the road and ditch when they begin searching for prey.” This can lead to vehicle collisions as the owls will fly low to the ground in search of food. Motorists are asked to be alert and on the lookout for owls as they drive on highways and the many grid roads that cross our province.

The Burrowing Owl population across the prairies has been steadily declining since the mid-80s, making the survival of each juvenile owl critical for the survival and growth of the species. Motorists can help reduce the risk of owl-vehicle collisions by slowing down near known or potential nest sites and being on the lookout for low-flying birds. Slowing down can also increase your chances of spotting this endangered owl!

Burrowing Owls are about 9 inches tall, with mottled brown and white feathers, bushy white ‘eyebrows’, and long featherless legs. They are often found nesting in native prairie that has been well grazed, as the short grass helps them to spot predators. Burrowing Owls nest in abandoned burrows excavated by badgers, ground squirrels, or other burrowing mammals. They are most often seen standing on their burrow, sitting on nearby fence posts, or foraging in ditches.

Nature Saskatchewan has been involved with the conservation of the Burrowing Owl since 1987, relying on the help of landholders and the public. Operation Burrowing Owl partners with stewards across southern and central Saskatchewan and uses voluntary agreements to conserve the rapidly disappearing habitat required by the owls, as well as to monitor the Saskatchewan population. The program works alongside steward practices, and the land continues to be used in a way that benefits the steward. If you see a Burrowing Owl, please give us a call on our toll-free Hoot Line, at 1-800-667-HOOT (4668) or email obo@naturesask.ca. “You will be helping to monitor the population and aid with conservation efforts,” Pidborchynski mentions. All caller and program participant information is never shared without permission.

photo credit: Boyd Coburn

Hearing a ruckus in your yard? The loud shrieking coming from the bush or shelterbelt may be a nest full of shikes waiting for their fresh meal! These migratory songbirds are a threatened species, and Saskatchewan is an important part of their breeding range. They return to the Canadian prairies each spring from their wintering grounds in southern Texas and Mexico; and in July, their young are starting to leave the nest!

There can be up to seven young in the nest waiting with hungry mouths to be fed by their overworked parents. Look for nests about chest high in shrubs around your yard, preferably near something prickly. “July is a busy time for the Loggerhead Shrike, explains Emily Putz, Habitat Stewardship Coordinator of Shrubs for Shrikes with Nature Saskatchewan. “the adults are out hunting constantly to try to provide enough food for their nestlings, and soon those young will be fledging and venturing out of the nest to learn to hunt for themselves.”

Shrikes are predatory songbirds; they are opportunistic hunters that will catch anything they can carry. They share many of the same hunting practices as larger birds of prey, such as a hawk, but they have dainty songbird feet that lack the powerful talons of other predatory birds, meaning they can’t hold down the prey to tear pieces off. To get around this they will hang their prey on thorns or barbed wire, and use their sharp beak to rip off the edible pieces. Shrikes make excellent pest control since their main food sources are insects such as grasshoppers, mice, voles, and even snakes.

“This is a great time to hunt, but can also be a dangerous time for the young,” Putz continues,” as road mortality is one of their biggest threats.” Watch for shrikes by the roadside, especially near shelterbelts, as they are attracted to insects on the road. The fledglings will not be able to move out of the way of a moving vehicle, so slow down if it looks like there’s a bird on the road.

Nature Saskatchewan runs a voluntary stewardship program, Shrubs for Shrikes, that works with rural landholders to conserve and monitor this species at risk. They are asking anyone who sees a Loggerhead Shrike, or impaled prey, to call their toll free line at 1-800-667-4668 or email outreach@naturesask.ca. Personal information is never shared without permission and every sighting helps this species’ recovery!

photo credit: M. Yaskowich

You may have heard it before, without even realizing what it was: a soft, tinkling call from an unseen bird, soaring high above the prairies. It’s the ethereal call of the male Sprague’s Pipit, who have one of the longest-known flight displays of any bird species in the world - able to call for 3 hours at a time, up to 100 metres above the ground! Nature Saskatchewan is asking for the public’s help in monitoring and protecting this unique grassland bird.

These cryptic, secretive birds are roughly sparrow-sized, measuring about 6 inches tall with legs that are quite long in comparison to their bodies and pink in colour. They have buffy brown, streaked plumage on their backs and heads, with a ‘necklace’ of short, brownish streaks above a pale, unmarked belly and flanks. Their white tail feathers are especially noticeable when fanned out during flight, forming a stark contrast to the inner brown feathering. They mostly remain out-of-sight, and are most easily detectable by their tinkling call.

Sprague’s Pipits require large, unbroken tracts of native prairie, typically more than 160 acres in size, with minimal woody shrub and tall grass cover. They also stay away from areas that are grazed too short or have too much bare ground. “Pipits are often referred to as the ‘Goldilocks’ bird because of their tendency to need things just right,” explains Emily Putz, Habitat Stewardship Coordinator. “They prefer native grass ranging from 10-30 cm in height, which can often be found in areas that have been moderately grazed.”

Between mid-May and mid-July, these birds lay 3-6 eggs on the ground in grass-lined, cup-shaped nests surrounded by vegetation. Females incubate the eggs for 11-15 days, and after hatching both parents will feed the chicks and clean the nest site, with young pipits leave the nest about 10-13 days after hatching. “Pipits are generalist insectivores, and will forage on the ground scooping up and swallowing any arthropod they can find, though grasshoppers and spiders are known favourites”, explains Putz. “especially with hungry chicks, a Sprague’s Pipit family will eat a huge number of grasshoppers in a summer.”

Unfortunately, Sprague’s Pipits are listed as Threatened in Canada as their populations have been shrinking in recent decades. Landholders and land managers can help the pipit by conserving native prairie Landholders can also ensure that livestock grazing is kept to healthy levels on quarters covered by native prairie or perennial forage. It is also recommended that any haying – which does help to maintain suitable habitat for pipits in tame pastures – is not done until after July 15, once pipits have left the nests and are not in danger of being crushed.

Nature Saskatchewan’s Stewards of Saskatchewan Banner program aims to engage participants in contributing to Sprague’s Pipit population monitoring and habitat conservation. Nature Saskatchewan also has funding available for the construction of wildlife-friendly fencing and for native seeding projects, both of which can contribute to the conservation of Sprague’s Pipits and the improvement of their habitat by keeping grazing on the landscape.

If you happen to hear or spot a Sprague’s Pipit this summer, please report your sighting to Nature Saskatchewan’s toll-free HOOTline, 1-800-667-HOOT (4668) or email Emily Putz at outreach@naturesask.ca. Every sighting helps with tracking the population and range of this iconic prairie bird. All caller and program participant information is kept confidential.

photo credit: T. Thomas

Schools out and its time to hit the beach! As families head out to our provinces beautiful shorelines for some R & R, they should be on the lookout, as this is also the time when the endangered Piping Plover will be hitting the beaches for a different reason…to nest!

Piping Plovers, listed as Endangered since 1985, are masters of camouflage and nest directly on the shoreline; above waterline and below the vegetation growth. Saskatchewan boasts the largest remaining breeding population in the world each summer on our beaches. Because they prefer sandy open beaches, Piping Plovers are often threatened by human activity, since we too favour these types of shorelines in our recreation. “Since the Plovers nest on the ground and mostly rely on not being seen, activities like ATV traffic and loose dogs on beaches are a risk to them,” Emily Putz, Coordinator for Nature Saskatchewan’s Plovers on Shore program explains, “limiting these kind of activities on beaches where they are known to nest can go a long way.”

In June, Piping Plover females will lay four eggs in a shallow scrape in the sand lined with pebbles. Over the next 28 days, both parents will incubate and fiercely defend their nest. “They make fantastic parents,” says Putz, “especially the males who stick around a bit longer in late summer with the fledglings. During the breeding season they will both defend the nest, leading predators away with broken wing displays or false scrape incubation.” Peak hatching occurs in mid June to early July, and the babies are up and moving within the day. “It’s just being mindful that we are sharing these spaces with these small creatures that can use our help,” further explains Putz, “something as insignificant as a deep footprint to us can mean life or death if a small chick falls and is trapped in it.”

Adult Plovers look very similar to the common Killdeer, with sandy grey backs, white bellies, and orange bill and feet. Where they differ is in their face markings, Piping Plovers will have a black headband marking and one black neck band marking, opposed to the Killdeer’s two neck bands. If you think you’ve seen a Piping Plover, please report your sighting to Plovers on Shore through Nature Saskatchewan’s toll free hoot-line, 1-800-667-HOOT (4668). All caller information is kept private and every sighting goes towards helping learn more about these Endangered shorebirds.

Nature Saskatchewan, in partnership with the Canadian Wildlife Service, also just completed the 2024 Prairie Piping Plover Census across the province. The survey window closed on June 16th and the data is pouring in. We are excited to see how the Piping Plovers are faring and would like to extend a big thank you to our many partners and volunteers that contributed time and effort to make this census possible, as well as landholders that gave access permission to their shoreline during the survey window!

If you have any questions about the Plovers on Shore program, or would like to learn more about this species, please contact Emily Putz at 306-780-9832 or outreach@naturesask.ca.

photo credit: E. Putz

Grace Pidborchynski, Habitat Stewardship Coordinator
Phone: (306) 780-9833
Email: obo@naturesask.ca           

Rebecca Magnus, Species at Risk Manager
Phone: (306) 780-9270
Email: rmagnus@naturesask.ca

photo credit: Grace Pidborchynski

Keep an eye out for returning Shrikes this May! Spring has sprung and that means many of our birds are back on the prairies to once again raise their families. In this busy time, Nature Saskatchewan asks everyone to keep an eye out for the threatened Loggerhead Shrike.

This fierce bird is often seen perched on tall branches near open spaces. When looking to ID this bird watch for a slate grey back, white belly, and black wings and tail. They also have a striking mask that extends across their face to behind their eyes. When in flight, watch for the flash of hidden white patches on their black wings. “These birds have the unique behaviour of impaling their prey,” Emily Putz, Shrubs for Shrikes coordinator for Nature Saskatchewan explains, “they will find sharp points such as a thorny branch or a wire barb to hang their prey, then rip small pieces off with their hooked beak. Pairs will often hang prey on branches near their nest as a larder for later as well, living up to their nickname as the Butcherbird!”

Prey can often be seen hung in areas with shrikes, especially in the spring when the males return and try and impress the females with their hunting skills. Prey can include insects such as caterpillars and grasshoppers, birds, amphibians and snakes, and rodents such as mice and voles. They have even been known to take larger prey such as a young gopher! “Thorny shrubs such as Buffaloberry and Hawthorns are especially attractive to nest in and great shrubs to include in your yard site if you are trying to attract shrikes for their pest control abilities,” further explains Putz, “but in yards or shelterbelts, Shrikes might also use prickly conifers or caraganas as substitutes.”

Loggerhead Shrikes populations have been on the decline since the 1960s, with up to 80% of the population lost across their range. Habitat loss and degradation is the leading cause of their decline, both of their prairie hunting habitat and the shrubs they call their homes. Shelterbelts are becoming things of the past which further contributes, as their adapted shrub habitat also becomes sparse.

While the prairie Loggerhead Shrike is listed as Threatened in Canada, Saskatchewan, at the heart of their remaining range, still has the largest population of breeding pairs in the country. Nature Saskatchewan’s Shrubs for Shrike’s program aims to keep Saskatchewan’s population strong by getting more eyes and ears our looking for these unique birds and contributing to their population monitoring. The program also works directly with landholders and land managers that may have spotted them nesting on their land, by conserving their habitat and reporting their sightings through our annual census.

If you happen to spot a Loggerhead Shrike this spring, please report your sighting to Nature Saskatchewan’s toll-free HOOTline, 1-800-667-HOOT (4668) or email Emily Putz at outreach@naturesask.ca. Every sighting helps with tracking the population and range of this iconic prairie bird. All Caller and program participant information is kept confidential.

Emily Putz, Habitat Stewardship Coordinator
Phone: (306) 780-9832
Email: outreach@naturesask.ca      

Rebecca Magnus, Species at Risk Manager
Phone: (306) 780-9270
Email: rmagnus@naturesask.ca

Photo credit: Kim Mann

Emily Putz

Habitat Stewardship Coordinator
Cell Phone: (306) 780-9832
Email: outreach@naturesask.ca    

Rebecca Magnus

Species at Risk Manager
Phone: (306) 780-9270
Email: rmagnus@naturesask.ca