A Survey for Federally Listed Grassland Birds at First Nations Reserves

We surveyed native and non-native grassland for federally listed grassland bird species at Reserves and/or Treaty Land Entitlements (TLE) belonging to five First Nations in the prairie ecozone of Canada. Ferruginous Hawk (Buteo regalis – of special concern), Loggerhead Shrike (Lanius ludovicianus –...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The Canadian Field-Naturalist
Main Authors: Stevens, Scott D., Wellicome, Troy I.
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: The Ottawa Field-Naturalists' Club 2005
Subjects:
Burrowing Owl
Athene cunicularia
Ferruginous Hawk
Buteo regalis
Loggerhead Shrike
Lanius ludovicianus
Long-billed Curlew
Numenius americanus
Sprague's Pipit
Anthus spragueii
grassland species at risk
habitat assessment
remote sensing
Canada
First Nations
Online Access:https://www.canadianfieldnaturalist.ca/index.php/cfn/article/view/178
https://doi.org/10.22621/cfn.v119i4.178
Description
Summary:We surveyed native and non-native grassland for federally listed grassland bird species at Reserves and/or Treaty Land Entitlements (TLE) belonging to five First Nations in the prairie ecozone of Canada. Ferruginous Hawk (Buteo regalis – of special concern), Loggerhead Shrike (Lanius ludovicianus – threatened), and Long-billed Curlew (Numenius americanus – of special concern) were observed at five of 335, three of 361, and five of 329 survey points within their respective geographic ranges. Sprague’s Pipit (Anthus spragueii – threatened) was observed at 69 of 361 survey points and accounted for 84% of sites with listed birds. Estimates of proportions of native and non-native grassland within 400 m of survey points indicated that Sprague’s Pipit preferred native grassland. Despite special effort, the Burrowing Owl (Athene culicularia – endangered) was not observed, although a nest from a previous year was encountered. We recorded the greatest number of species and individuals on reserves located in mixed and moist-mixed grasslands that contained large portions of native grassland. In many instances, field assessments revealed unsuitable habitat at sites that remote-sensing data classified as suitable.

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