Northern Prairie and Parkland

Description: The region contains millions of wetland basins that harbor large proportions of the populations of many North American waterbird species. Twenty-four colonial and fifteen non-colonial species of waterbird breed in the region; an additional 32 occur as migrants or winter visitors. Geographic Extent: The region is comprised of two disjunct units. The primary unit arcs southeast from the boreal transition zone in central Alberta to central Iowa, bounded on the south and west by the Missouri River. The second, smaller unit is the Peace Parkland, located on the east-central edge of British Columbia and northwestern Alberta. BCRs: The boundaries of the region are similar to those of BCR 11, and also include portions of BCRs 6 and 10. Bird Habitat Joint Ventures: The region consists of those areas covered by the Prairie Habitat Joint Venture (Canada) and Prairie Pothole Joint Venture (U.S.). Political Units: The region overlaps four Canadian provinces and five U.S. states.

Waterbird Conservation Plans

The Northern Prairie and Parkland Waterbird Conservation Plan
Beyersbergen, G.W., N.D. Niemuth, and M.R. Norton, coordinators. 2004. Northern Prairie & Parkland Waterbird Conservation Plan. A plan associated with the Waterbird Conservation for the Americas initiative. Published by the Prairie Pothole Joint Venture, Denver, Colorado. 183 pp.

Open as PDF files:
Plan Text
Plan Appendices
Cover Pages

The Northern Prairie and Parkland Waterbird Conservation Plan is one of several regional plans to be developed under the auspices of the Waterbird Conservation for the Americas initiative. It fits within the context of continental-scale planning (see the North American Waterbird Conservation Plan) and national-scale planning (available for Canada, see Wings Over Water, Canada's National Waterbird Conservation Plan).

Implementation and Resources

Implementation of the Northern Prairie and Parkland Waterbird Conservation Plan provides the opportuntity for many groups and individuals to partner and develop an integrated, landscape approach to waterbird conservation.

The region's two joint ventures are committed to integrated bird conservation and will form the base for implementation:

• Prairie Habitat Joint Venture (Canada). Coordinator Deanna Dixon, 780-951-8652, deanna.dixon@ec.gc.ca
• Prairie Pothole Joint Venture (U.S.). Coordinator, FIX, 303-236-8155 x252, carol_lively@fws.gov

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's Habitat and Population Evaluation Team (HAPET) Offices will be responsible for development of spatial planning tools and evaluation and implementation of regional waterbird surveys:

• Region 3 HAPET Office -- portions of the region in Minnesota and Iowa
• Region 6 HAPET Office -- portions of the region in Montana, North Dakota, and South Dakota.

Species federally listed as endangered or threatened are managed by Canada's Species at Risk Program and/or the U.S. Fish and Wildlife's Endangered Species Program.

The Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center hosts a wealth of information on waterbirds. Of particular note:

• Colonial and Non-colonial Waterbird Bibliography
• Effects of Management Practices on Wetland Birds Database

A clearinghouse of information on sustainable agricultural practices, including information about conservation programs, is available at http://attra.ncat.org/.