Grassland for species at risk receives protection in southwest Saskatchewan
“There are no structures for them to nest directly on the Zen-Ridge property itself, but because we do have them in the area and there is a fair number of Richardson's ground squirrels, which is one of their main prey items, we may look to put up an artificial nest platform in the future to provide an actual nest structure for them on the property,” he said.
The landscape on the Zen-Ridge property is very diverse and the wetlands provide an important water source for wildlife in this arid area.
“Some of those wetlands are less permanent and only hold water for a few weeks or a month of the year,” he said. “When those edges drain down, that provides habitat for a federally listed species at risk plant called a dwarf woolly-heads, which has been found close to the property. None of our staff know exactly what we're looking for in terms of that plant. So this coming summer we're hoping to hire a contractor with better knowledge in that area to actually go out to the property and look to see if we do actually have dwarf woolly-heads on the property. The area is also designated as important habitat for other species like northern leopard frogs.”
The NCC did a detailed baseline inventory of the property this past summer. Staff collected information about man-made features and structures such as fence lines and dugouts, they did a full biological inventory, as well as a full rangeland and riparian health assessment to provide a snapshot of how healthy the grassland and wetlands are.
“Now through the fall and winter we're preparing the actual report for the baseline inventory and once that is done and approved, then we move on to the next phase, which is to take that report and distill it down into a five-year property management plan,” Burak explained. “Those plans will include any specific actions that we identify that we think will be beneficial to the property and the conservation of biodiversity in the long-term or at least in that five-year term that we planned for. Any kind of grazing management plans that we develop based on the results of the health assessments will get included in that plan.”
This management plan will include future species survey activities such as the planned survey to look for dwarf woolly-heads on the property as well as plans for habitat enhancement. A portion of the property was seeded with tame grass in the past, and the long-term intention beyond the next five years will be to restore that area back to native grass.
The Zen-Ridge property in itself is not very large as a habitat for species at risk, but it is well located in association with surrounding grassland.
“There is a lot of existing ranch land around it and a lot of that is protected through the Wildlife Habitat Protection Act, because it is Crown land,” he said. “In addition to that, there are the three large former federal Prairie Farm Rehabilitation Act pastures that are right there to the south of it. That includes the Nashlyn, Govenlock and Battle Creek pastures, which are now being designated as a national wildlife area by the federal government. So between the Zen-Ridge property and those three pastures that now form a national wildlife area, there is a lot of land that connects it all together in a bit of a corridor.”
Several NCC partners provided financial support for the acquisition of the Zen-Ridge property. The Canadian government contributed through the Natural Heritage Conservation Program, which is part of Canada’s Nature Fund. The Saskatchewan government contributed through the Fish and Wildlife Development Fund. Individual donors also supported this conservation project through the NCC’s grasslands campaign, which is an ongoing initiative. People can learn more about the campaign or make a financial contribution