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Parks and Protected Areas Suffield National Wildlife Area - Species At Risk
Twelve federally listed species at risk depend on the habitat within the Suffield National Wildlife Area; an additional five species have been identified as at-risk by the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) but are not yet on the federal Species at Risk List. Nearly 80 provincially listed species are found here as well. You can learn about some of these species below!
Burrowing Owl (Speotyto cunicularia)
Status: Endangered (Species at Risk Act or SARA) Roughly the size of a pigeon, the Burrowing Owl is occasionally called a “ground owl” because it stands erect on the ground. But you have to keep your eyes pealed! With its small size and earth-coloured plumage, this predator is difficult to spot. The Burrowing Owl is active both day and night during the summer months. Treeless plains largely free of visual obstructions provide this species with the habitat it requires. When badgers, gophers and other ground-dwelling mammals abandon their burrows, the Burrowing Owl moves in, using these underground lairs for nesting, roosting and caching food. Canada’s population of Burrowing Owls is mostly found in a belt stretching from Regina, Saskatchewan to Lethbridge, Alberta. There are also infrequent occurrences in the southern interior of British Columbia. But with the loss of prairie habitat to cultivation and other human activities, this species is in decline. Their numbers have plummeted by more than 50 percent in Canada in the last thirty years. We now have fewer than 1,000 pairs. Unless this trend is reversed, Canada’s Burrowing Owl population may be lost within a few decades. Resources: Environment Canada’s Species at Risk Database Learn more about the Burrowing Owl! Where to find the Burrowing Owl:
Chestnut-collared Longspur (Calcarius ornatus)
Status: Threatened (The Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada or COSEWIC) The Chestnut-collared Longspur is a medium-sized, sparrow-like bird that occurs in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba. It prefers to breed in short-grass or mixed-grass prairie sites recently grazed or disturbed by fire, but its breeding habitat is being fragmented by road development associated with the energy sector. This grasslands species was assessed as Threatened because it has suffered severe population declines since the late 1960s and the results of several surveys suggest that the declines have continued over the last decades, albeit at a slower rate. Grasslands are the most threatened biome in North America. Resources: COSEWIC Wildlife Species Assessments (detailed version), November 2009; All About Birds Guide – Chestnut-collared Longspur Where to find the Chestnut-collared Longspur:
Common Nighthawk (Chordeiles minor)
Status: Threatened (The Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada or COSEWIC) Picture a big bat with headlights. With its white wing patches and erratic flight pattern, it is little surprise that the Common Nighthawk is sometimes known as the “bullbat!” This bird is, in fact, neither a hawk nor strictly nocturnal. It belongs to the goatsucker family, and is most active from dawn to early morning, and from late afternoon to dusk. It can even be seen in broad daylight! A medium-sized bird with a large head and tiny bill, the Common Nighthawk hunts flying insects. Its range in Canada extends from the Yukon to Labrador. With the approach of winter, this species migrates to South America, traveling as far as northern Argentina! The male Common Nighthawk is an aerial acrobat. During the breeding season, he can be seen diving at females, young nighthawks, and intruders such as humans and raccoons! Plummeting straight toward the ground, he pulls up a mere two metres before impact! The air rushing through his wingtips at the bottom of the dive makes a deep booming sound - similar to the sound produced by blowing across the opening of a bottle - as he flexes his wings downward. In April of 2007, the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) recommended that the Common Nighthawk be included on Schedule 1 of the Species at Risk Act. Areas surveyed over the last three generations have shown an almost 50 percent decline in the species! Reasons for its decline may include reductions in the number of insects and loss of the open habitat in which it thrives. Resources: Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Cornell Lab of Ornithology Bird Guide, McGill University, Bird Studies Canada Where to find the Common Nighthawk:
Ferruginous Hawk (Buteo regalis)
Status: Special Concern (SARA) North America’s largest hawk occupies open, arid habitats where grasses or sagebrush are dominant. A voracious raptor, the Ferruginous Hawk is particularly partial to ground squirrels. A breeding pair and their young can gorge on almost 500 squirrels in one nesting season! In Canada, the Ferruginous Hawk’s breeding range is limited to the grassland region of southern Alberta, southern Saskatchewan and southwestern Manitoba. This represents less than half its historic Canadian range. At one time, it vanished from Manitoba altogether! Current estimates indicate that there are only between 2,000 and 4,000 breeding pairs in Canada. The major factor responsible for this bird’s decline is the loss of grassland habitat due to extensive agriculture and natural fire suppression. Resources: Hinterland Who’s Who, Environment Canada’s Species at Risk Database Where to find the Ferruginous Hawk:
Loggerhead Shrike (Lanius ludovicianus excubitorides)
Status: Threatened (SARA) Canada’s Prairies are home to a formidable hunter the size of a robin. The Prairie population of Loggerhead Shrikes feeds on grasshoppers, beetles, mice, small birds, snakes, lizards and frogs. It uses its feet to carry prey as heavy as its own body, and eats it once it is impaled on barbed wire or thorns, or wedged into a forked branch. In the two weeks after they hatch, baby Shrikes can grow from just over three grams to more than 45 grams! Keeping their young fed is hard work. Scientists observing a nest with eight nestlings watched as the parent birds appeared with a grasshopper every four minutes over the space of an hour! In Canada, the Prairie population of Loggerhead Shrikes occurs in central and southern Alberta and Saskatchewan, and in southern Manitoba. It favours open areas dotted with scrubby growth. The last 100 years have witnessed the gradual decline of this subspecies. Pesticides are a critical factor in this decline. Another factor is habitat loss due to the removal of hedgerows, shrubs and trees, and the draining of potholes and sloughs. Resources: Environment Canada’s Species at Risk Database, Hinterland Who’s Who Where to find the Loggerhead Shrike:
Long-billed Curlew (Numenius americanus)
Status: Special Concern (SARA) The Long-billed Curlew is North America’s largest shorebird at up to 66 centimetres in length (including the bill). In winter, this migrant can be found as far south as Costa Rica. Its Canadian range during the breeding season encompasses the grasslands of southern Saskatchewan, Alberta and British Columbia. Here, two to three weeks after the birth of her chicks, the female abandons the nest, leaving her mate to care for them until they are about six weeks old. The number of Long-billed Curlews breeding in Canada has declined drastically since the early twentieth century, when they were commonly seen as far east as southern Manitoba. Loss of the species’ native prairie nesting grounds due to cultivation and urban encroachment is the main factor responsible for this decline. Resources: Environment Canada’s Species at Risk Database, Cornell Lab of Ornithology Where to find the Long-billed Curlew:
McCown’s Longspur (Calcarius mccownii) Donate a picture of McCown’s Longspur! Send it here. Status: Special Concern (COSEWIC) “See, see, see me, see me, hear me, hear me, see.” This is the warbling, tinkling song of the male McCown’s Longspur. An aerial acrobat, the male attracts a mate by flying about 10 metres into the air. He then descends, singing, with wings outstretched and tail fanned out to display a black upside-down “t” on a white background. The McCown’s Longspur is the size of a sparrow. It favours shortgrass prairie habitat. In Canada, it occurs in southern Alberta and Saskatchewan during the breeding season. This range, which once included part of Manitoba, has declined due to the destruction of native shortgrass prairie for agriculture and urban development. Resources: National Audubon Society, Environment Canada’s Species at Risk Database, McGill University Where to find the McCown's Longspur:
Rusty Blackbird (Euphagus carolinus)
Status: Special Concern (COSEWIC) For the Rusty Blackbird, the Suffield National Wildlife Area is an important migratory pitstop. This bird breeds in the boreal region, where it favours forest wetlands. Its massive breeding range covers an area of 7.6 million square kilometres. In Canada, it can be spotted anywhere from the Yukon to Newfoundland and Labrador. The Rusty Blackbird is almost 23 centimetres in length, and feeds on both plants and insects. When food is scarce, it will eat other birds. The Rusty Blackbird is disappearing. Data from the Breeding Bird Survey indicate an average decline of more than 10 percent per year for the last 30 years. There are several potential explanations for this precipitous loss. They include destruction and degradation of the species’ boreal habitat. Global warming is thought to be responsible, either directly or indirectly, for the drying of boreal wetlands and changes in their water chemistry. Human activities such as peat production and logging are also direct contributors to the loss of boreal wetlands. Canada can play a major role in conserving the Rusty Blackbird. This country is home to approximately 70 percent of the global breeding population of Rusty Blackbirds. As well, about 70 percent of the species’ breeding range is in Canada. Resources: Environment Canada’s Species at Risk Database, Canadian Wildlife Service Quebec Region, National Audubon Society, US Geological Survey, Kaufman, Kenn. Birds of North America. Hillstar Editions L.C. 2000., Smithsonian National Zoological Park Where to find the Rusty Blackbird:
Short-eared Owl (Asio flammeus)
Status: Special Concern (SARA) The Short-eared Owl is a world traveler! It can be spotted in North, Central and South America, Europe, Asia, Africa and on many Oceanic islands. Indeed, it is one of the most widely distributed owls on the planet. It breeds in every province and territory in Canada. A medium-sized owl, this species favours vast stretches of fairly open habitat, particularly marshland and deep grass fields. Prairies, grassy plains and tundra are some of its preferred summer haunts. Large-scale destruction of native prairie grasslands, wetland drainage, urban expansion and increasingly intensive agricultural practices are contributing to the decline of the Short-eared Owl. Resources: Environment Canada’s Species at Risk Database, Cornell Lab of Ornithology Where to find the Short-eared Owl:
Sprague’s Pipit (Anthus spragueii)
Status: Threatened (SARA) The Sprague’s Pipit is a secretive bird on the ground and hard to spot out in the open. But the male is a show off in the air! Displaying males can remain airborne for half an hour. This is longer than any other bird species. In one case, a male was observed displaying for three hours before he returned to the ground! A ground-nesting songbird, the Sprague’s Pipit resembles a sparrow and is approximately 10 to 15 centimetres in length. It breeds and winters in open grassland with no shrubs or trees. This bird is endemic to the Canadian Prairies and the northern Great Plains of the United States. In Canada, it can be spotted in summer from the foothills of the Rockies in Alberta to Manitoba. Its winter range extends as far south as Mexico. Over the past 10 years, populations of Sprague’s Pipit in Canada have declined by 7.1 percent per year. This loss is largely due to the destruction of native grassland, a critical habitat for this bird. At least 75 percent of the native grasslands on the Canadian Prairies have been destroyed by cultivation. Resources: Environment Canada’s Species at Risk Database, Cornell Lab of Ornithology Where to find the Sprague's Pipit:
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