June 2022 | Volume 14 Issue 6 |
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Happy June, Grassland Enthusiasts!
There's lots going on in June, it's Pride Month and National Indigenous History Month, so there's lots to appreciate, celebrate and recognize. Our favourite week of the year is in June and that's Native Prairie Appreciation Week! All the details are below. If you are interested in joining the tour in Eastend, make sure to register by tomorrow, June 8th! You can register here.
We have one Native Prairie Speaker Series webinar planned in June, during Native Prairie Appreciation Week about lichens! You can register here! Troy McMullin will provide the basics about lichens and their ecological functions, as well as some common and interesting species occurring in the Canadian Prairies.
We had one Native Prairie Speaker Series webinar in May, Julia Put discussed the timing of agricultural activities based on bobolink breeding. The recording is available on PCAP's YouTube Channel!
And finally, we would like to thank our sponsors for their generous support: Camp Wolf Willow, Canadian Forage and Grasslands Association, EcoFriendly West, Enbridge, Information Services Corporation, Mosaic Company, Saskatchewan Cattlemen's Association, SaskEnergy, SaskPower, SaskTel, SaskWater, Wildlife Habitat Canada and Environment and Climate Change Canada, as well as the continuous support of all the PCAP Partners.
Have a great month!
Carolyn Gaudet, SK PCAP Manager
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Native Prairie Appreciation Week!
Native Prairie Appreciation Week 2022 (June 19th-25th) is coming up fast!
We will have one webinar on Prairie Lichens! You can join Troy McMullin, from the Canadian Museum of Nature, on June 21st at noon. You can register here. And here's more information.
We'll also be doing our Native Prairie Photo Contest again this year! We can't wait to see your photos on social media! Categories: Best Native Prairie Wildflower,
Best Wildlife in Action and
Best Native Prairie Landscape.
Send your best shot to npawcontest@gmail.com by June 17th to be entered into the Social Media Photo Contest. The picture with the most votes in each category will be the winner!
Caitlin is working on a social media campaign that includes information about prairie species at risk, flowers in bloom and fun facts about native prairie. We've also reached out to our partners to submit quotes about "What does Native Prairie mean to you?" so we're excited to share those with you! Also please feel free to join in and share what does Native Prairie mean to you and use the hashtag #NPAW22 !!!
We're also doing our Youth Poster Contest! The deadline for submissions has passed but we're excited to see and judge the submissions! We'll post the winners in the July edition of the newsletter.
We've also been planning a NPAW tour with the Society for Range Management - Prairie Parkland Chapter in Eastend, SK, June 22-23. You can find the schedule here.
We will be handing out packets of native wildflower seeds at various farmers' markets during NPAW! We are attending :
Regina Farmers Market on June 18th
Swift Current Farmers Market on June 25th
Moose Jaw Farmers Market on June 25th
We would like to thank our Presenting Sponsor for Native Prairie Appreciation Week:
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EcoStress Regina offers free 8-week sessions to discuss distress caused by environmental threats and losses. Groups meet for two hours weekly by Zoom. Group meetings are facilitated and include conversation and sharing of our experiences, as well as instruction and practice of coping and self-care knowledge and skills. The group also discusses moving forward, meaningful ways to take action, and building community. If you are interested in further information or to be put on their contact list, please email ecostressregina@gmail.com
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NPRRW Sponsor Spotlight:
Eastern Irrigation District
Eastern Irrigation District Aquatic Invasive Species Prevention Program
The Eastern Irrigation District encompasses an area of 1.5 million acres in southeastern Alberta and owns approximately 600,000 acres of this land with the majority being native grassland. The balance within the District’s boundaries mostly consists of deeded dryland pasture and irrigated agriculture. Land owned by the Eastern Irrigation District is privately owned but managed with a multi-use philosophy, with the majority of this land being leased to community grazing associations in support of our irrigators and the local cattle industry. Energy development, selected industrial development, wildlife habitat development, and public access are also allowed on our private lands in support of the local economy.
In 2018, the Eastern Irrigation District initiated an Aquatic Invasive Species (AIS) Prevention Program to protect our reservoirs and infrastructure, and to educate and create awareness of invasive species. All watercraft owners wishing to access EID reservoirs must follow approved prevention procedures and complete a watercraft information form stating they will not knowingly spread aquatic invasive species. In addition to managing access to our reservoirs, the EID completes monthly substrate monitoring, veliger sampling, and irrigation infrastructure inspections to check for aquatic invasive species, specifically zebra and quagga mussels.
Aquatic invasive species are extremely detrimental to Alberta irrigation and the environment. Established populations have the potential to:
• disrupt the management and operation of water conveyance and irrigation infrastructure:
- permanent maintenance will be required to unclog
irrigation outlets/intakes, pipelines, and screens,
- millions of dollars in infrastructure damage and control
measures will be incurred,
• deplete the quality of water, risking food and crop production, • restrict water availability for municipalities and rural residences, and
• destroy native ecosystems.
The Eastern Irrigation District is dedicated to providing water security to the area and managing the District’s diverse resources in a manner that will provide the greatest economic, social, and environmental benefit.
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Plan to attend our upcoming Native Prairie Speaker Series webinars! |
An Introduction to Lichens with a Focus on Prairie Species
Speaker: Troy McMullin, Canadian Museum of Nature
Tues June 21, 2022 12PM
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SAVE THE DATE
for the July webinar:
Topic: Habitat selection and prey composition by great horned owls
Speaker: Victoria Hartley-Cox, MSc Student, University of Regina
Tues July 19 @12 PM
More information is on the way!
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June 5-7, 2022
Assiniboia, SK
June 17-19, 2022
Regina, SK
Livestock and Forage Centre of Excellence Field Day and Sask Forage Council AGM
June 21, 2022
June 22, 2022 1-4 PM
Gladmar, SK
June 22-23, 2022
Eastend, SK
Leafy Spurge Beetle Collection
July 5-6, 2022
Besant Campground, Mortlach, SK
Contact MJRWS to register
July 9, 2022
Willner-Elbow Community Pasture, SK
July 12-15, 2022
Sask Pasture Tour
August 4, 2022
St Brieux area
Aug 16-18, 2022
Penticton, BC
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2022/23 Education Programs:
Presenting Sponsors:
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2022/23 Education Program Supporting Sponsors
Camp Wolf Willow
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Carolyn Gaudet, Editor, Saskatchewan Prairie Conservation Action Plan Newsletter |
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SK PCAP gratefully acknowledges financial support in 2022-2023 from:
Camp Wolf Willow, Ducks Unlimited Canada, EcoFriendlySask.ca, Environment and Climate Change Canada, Parks Canada - Grasslands National Park of Canada, Saskatchewan Cattlemen's Association, Saskatchewan Ministry of Agriculture, Saskatchewan Ministry of Environment - Fish and Wildlife Development Fund, SaskEnergy, SaskPower, SaskTel, SaskWater, University of Regina, University of Saskatchewan - College of Agriculture and Bioresources, Water Security Agency and Wildlife Habitat Canada.
SK PCAP gratefully acknowledges in-kind support for 2022-23 from:
Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada - Science and Technology Branch, Canadian Parks and Wilderness Association, Environment Canada - Canadian Wildlife Service, Friends of the Royal Saskatchewan Museum, Meewasin Valley Authority, Native Plant Society of Saskatchewan, Nature Conservancy Canada, Nature Saskatchewan, Parks Canada - Grasslands National Park, Prairie Wind & Silver Sage, Ranchers Stewardship Alliance Inc., Redberry Lake Biosphere Region, Saskatchewan Association of Rural Municipalities, Saskatchewan Association of Watersheds, Saskatchewan Bison Association, Saskatchewan Burrowing Owl Interpretive Centre, Saskatchewan Cattlemen's Association, Saskatchewan Environmental Society, Saskatchewan Forage Council, Saskatchewan Ministry of Agriculture, Saskatchewan Ministry of Environment, Saskatchewan Ministry of Energy and Resources, Saskatchewan Ministry of Parks, Culture and Sport, Saskatchewan Stock Growers Association, Saskatchewan Stock Growers Foundation, Saskatchewan Wildlife Federation, SaskEnergy, SaskOutdoors, SaskPower, Society for Range Management - Prairie Parkland Chapter, South of the Divide Conservation Action Program Inc., University of Regina, University of Saskatchewan - College of Agriculture and Bioresources.
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