...And here we go

I am very happy to report that nesting has really picked up in the last couple days. That seems to be how to goes. You find nothing... nothing... then suddenly they all start at once. We've now found a total of 16 nests. Most have been Horned Lark nests so far, so I've decided to put them back in my study. I monitored them last year, but we only found a total of 9 nests, so this year I decided to leave them out. Nine just isn't enough for good statistical analysis. But seeing as we're finding more this year (and we have the time to do it), I've decided to start monitoring them again.

Horned Larks typically lay 3 eggs (though we've found 4), light-colored with small brown speckles completely covering them. They like to nest in very open areas with sparse vegetation. Their nest is an open cup with no roof, typically placed next to a tuft of grass or cow patty. Though the nests are easy to see, they can sometimes be hard to find, as the female will often run along the ground for up to 10 meters or more before flushing. That means you're looking for the nest where the bird flushed, rather than where it actually is.

Today, while rope dragging in one of the Mankota community pastures, I was thrilled to have us find 2 McCown's Longspur nests! Last year we only found 5, two of which were outside my study sites. To find 2 of them in the same plot, on the same day, within about 100 meters of each other, is pretty exciting. McCown's Longspurs are classified as a "species at risk" under Canada's Species at Risk Act (SARA). They have seen a 98% population decrease since 1968, mostly due to the loss and degradation of their breeding habitat. They are endemic to North American prairies, so no prairies equals no McCown's. This goes for many other plant and animal species out here as well.

McCown's Longspurs typically lay 3-4 eggs. Their nests and eggs are almost identical to Chestnut-collared Longspurs, as are the females. The only way to tell the nests apart are by the slight difference in markings on the birds' tails. So if you never get a good look at the adult's tail when it's flushing, you can't identify the nest.

Longspur nests are my favorites. Like Horned Larks, they prefer nesting in open, sparse areas. Their nest is an open cup, again usually placed near a tuft of grass or rock. Unlike the larks, though, longspur eggs have less markings on them, some of which are distinct squiggly lines.

Yesterday I gave the nest crew the day off, and Amy and I decided to go adventuring a bit. We ended up taking a road I've never taken before, and found ourselves outside the park. We came to an almost badlands-type area, with strange mounds of barren dirt rising out of the ground.

On the way back, we got some great looks at a (possibly female) pronghorn antelope. Despite their name, they're actually related to goats, and are the fasted land mammal in North America. Apparently they used to be prey for the now-extinct North American cheetah. Pronghorns are absolutely beautiful animals, and it always makes my heart soar to watch them racing across the prairie.

We also found a new friend while crossing a stream... Western painted turtles are pretty common out here.

We're definitely ahead of schedule for finding nests and dragging plots compared to last year. I suppose having twice the number of people on the nest crew doesn't hurt :)

Early summer days

The last few days have been absolutely beautiful. Out in the sun it's been in the 70's, which I declare to be justified tank-top weather. We've gotten three plots dragged already, which is ahead of last year. Unfortunately, we haven't been finding much. Not beyond a couple of Horned Lark nests. They're very early nesters, and will often have eggs before other species have begun laying. Horned Larks like to build nests in very open, bare ground, often with only a tuft of grass (or less) for cover. When disturbed, they will sometimes run 10 meters or more along the ground before flushing, making their nests more difficult to find. They typically lay 3-4 (sometimes 5) eggs.





Someone asked me to explain rope dragging, so here goes. It is a method developed awhile back to help researchers find nests in a large area. It can only be done in open areas like prairies. The process involves dragging a 20-meter long rope (weighted down with rock-filled cans) back and forth across the ground. The sound of the cans, as well as the rope passing by overhead, scares a bird into flushing from its nest. The grass is thick enough that the rope passes through without harming the nest or eggs. It simply causes the bird to flush, allowing us to see where the general area of the nest is. Even so, most nests are ridiculously difficult to find. They have to be, in order to prevent them being found easily by predators, like this Richardson's ground squirrel.




The area around here has a rich history, from early First Nations people, to homesteaders struggling to scrape a living from the harsh prairie sod. Evidence of their passing can be seen from time to time.




Besides the decades- and sometimes centuries-old signs of human habitation, there are often bones left behind by animals (mainly cows and deer) that lived and died here. Sometimes these remains resemble a sort of graveyard, with the only signs of life being the teeth-marks left by coyotes.




Some of the flowers have also begun to bloom. The nice thing out here is that each flower blooms at a different time during the summer, meaning that each week there is a different brush of color against the brownish-green background.

The migrant sparrows at our feeder all seem to have left for the next stage of their long journey. The grackles and cowbirds have still been gorging, though. Likely they'll continue to be daily visitors for the remainder of the summer. Yesterday a Vesper Sparrow stopped by. They breed here in the prairies, and are one of my study species. Out here, they are distinguished from the other 7 or so sparrow species by the dark cheek with a lower white border.

I was also asked to define what a life bird (or lifer) is. It is a term used by birders to recognize a species they have never seen before. Typically the "rules" are that it has to be wild, alive, and unrestrained to be counted. Many birders keep life lists, to keep track of how many species they have seen. Many different types of lists can be kept, including North American, country, state/province, county, town, or even backyard lists. Year lists are common as well. Typically I only keep a life and North American list, though since coming to Canada I've also kept Manitoba and Saskatchewan lists. My life list currently stands at 441, while my Saskatchewan list is 108 (over 30 of which were lifers!).

Tomorrow my crew will go out and drag another plot. The nests we are hoping to find belong to these species: Baird's Sparrow, Savannah Sparrow, Vesper Sparrow, Chestnut-collared Longspur, McCown's Longspur, and Sprague's Pipit.

Commence nest dragging!

Today we finally broke our house-bound streak and went out into the sunshine. It was a beautiful day: warm, sunny, with just a slight breeze (which is rare on the prairies, where gusty winds are the norm).


I took Josh (the nest camera guy) and my assistants into the park for the first time since we've been here. Our field house is technically in the Mankota community pastures. The park is a few kilometers down the road. I was really excited to show them around a bit, because I love the park and I think it's absolutely beautiful.



We rope dragged one of my nest plots, but found no nests. Just walking around beforehand, though, I found a Western Meadowlark nest, and Amy found what we think was an abandonded Sharp-tailed Grouse nest with 13 eggs in it. Neither of those are species I'm studying, so the data isn't very useful. I think we'll wait another day or two before dragging again. In the meantime, we'll probably practice more bird ID out in the field.



Meanwhile, the birds have discovered our feeder with a vengeance! In just a few short days, we've gone from no birds to over a dozen at a time.



I've never seen so many White-crowned Sparrows before. They're only migrating through, but there have been dozens of them hanging around the shelter belt and the feeder.



Even more exciting, there have been several Harris's Sparrows hanging around. I had only seen one before this, and that one was in winter plumage. A Harris's in full breeding plumage is a stunning thing to see.




There has also been a Lincoln's Sparrow or two, a Spotted Towhee, a House Finch (apparently very rare in this area), a Brown Thrasher, and oodles of Common Grackles, Brown-headed Cowbirds, and Red-winged Blackbirds. Here you can see the cowbirds on top, the blackbirds (all females) on the bottom.



I hope the snow is gone for good, and look forward to more beautiful days like this. I just hope the nesting picks up soon.

Migration continues

Most of today has been spent getting the new crew members used to the field station and going over protocol. Our full crew now includes:

Maggi - a 2nd-season grad student who acts as field manager. Studying the differences in bison and cattle grazing on songbird diversity. Originally from near Buffalo, NY.

Alexis - a 1st-season grad student studying the effects of wildfires on songbird diversity. Originally from near Ottawa, Ontario.


Tonya - a 2nd-season incoming grad student studying the effects of cattle grazing on vegetation structure and diversity. Originally from Winnipeg, Manitoba.

Adrienne - a 2nd-season incoming grad student studying the effects of bison and cattle grazing on vegetation structure and diversity. Originally from Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.

Emily (me) - a 2nd-season grad student studying the effects of cattle grazing on songbird nesting success. Originally from near Rochester, NY.


Josh - an incoming 1st-season grad student studying nest predation through the use of cameras. Originally from the the St. Paul/Minneapolis area.

Bonnie - an assistant on the bird/plant crew. Originally from Senkiw, Manitoba.

Chris - an assistant on the nest crew. Originally from Burlington, Ontario.

Amy - an assistant on the nest crew. Originally from Eyebrow, Saskatchewan.

Barb - an assistant on the bird/plant crew. Originally from Saskatchewan.

All of us grad students are at the University of Manitoba, studying under Dr. Nicola Koper.


Today I went over some basic nest searching and monitoring information with Amy and Chris. But beforehand we went out birding at the pond again, because it was relatively nice out (and no snow!).

There was quite a group of shorebirds, including Spotted Sandpiper, Willet, Marbled Godwit, Semipalmated and Least Sandpipers, and this Lesser Yellowlegs.



There were several Wilson's Phalaropes as well, which breed here in the prairie. Last year we found a nest. Unlike most birds, the female in this species is more colorful.

A couple times the birds would all flush, signalling the presence of a Northern Harrier overhead.

We also lucked out by spotting a couple migrating songbirds, an American Pipit and this Northern Waterthrush, both of which were life birds for me.


Unfortunately with all the meltwater from the week's snow, the creeks have risen quite a bit. Sometimes the only way across is straight through, leaving us soaked to the knees. There are many creeks criss-crossing the prairie.

Tomorrow we have to head to the West Block for some orientation training. Hopefully by Wednesday or Thursday the roads will be dry enough to get out and start looking for some nests!

Birds galore!

The bad news: still house-bound. The good news: migration is in full swing here in Grasslands! Yesterday was a (comparatively) beautiful day... the first without snow all week. Consequently, we spent a bit of time outside birding. On the road next to the shelter belt was a group of sparrows, including this Song Sparrow.





I also got some great looks at a couple Lark Sparrows, which are very handsome birds.





There's a small pond near our field house, with one of the few full-size trees around. It's always a good spot for ducks, and this time of year, it's also great for shorebirds. These Short-billed Dowitchers are a rare migrant through the northern prairies.

Also stopping by are some warblers like this Yellow-rumped Warbler, several of which have been seen near the pond and the shelter belt. Today I also saw a single Black-and-white Warbler, another rare migrant.

Some birds are residents of the pond, like this Great Horned Owl. There's a pair that successfully raised two chicks last year, and will likely nest again this year.

Another resident is this Killdeer, made popular by their broken-wing display when their nest is approached.

And even better news: yesterday I found my first nest of the year! I ran into it randomly while walking to the pond. It was a Western Meadowlark nest. It's not one of my study species, and the nest wasn't anywhere near my study sites, so it isn't data I can use. But it's still exciting, because it means the birds have definitely started nesting, even despite the bad weather. This nest had 5 eggs in it and the female was flushed from it, so obviously she didn't abandon due to the snow. It makes me even more eager to get out and start working!

The sunset was beautiful, as it typically is out here.

Blue grama grass (Bouteloua gracilis) is one of the distinguishing vegetation of the northern mixed-grass prairie. These dried seed heads from last year show the plant's distinctive "eyelash" shape.

As if to say "psyche!", I woke up to a blizzard this morning, which quickly turned into a wet, slushy drizzle. Not very fun. Driving to Mankota to direct our remaining crew members back to the house, I stopped to take photos of these Yellow-headed Blackbirds.

The foul weather seems to have brought in the falcons, because on the way to Mankota and back we saw 2 American Kestrels, a Merlin, and a Peregrine Falcon.


Well, the full crew is finally here. Hopefully in another couple days we'll actually be able to get out and start working!

Cabin fever continued

We're entering our fourth day of being house-bound. Although the snow has been minimal, the temperatures have caused it to melt each afternoon, leaving the prairie extremely wet and difficult to traverse. Walking across the ground in this condition could cause permanent damage to the grassland, so we need to keep off as much as possible. And since our vehicles (4-wheelers, also known as quads) have yet to arrive, we have no way of getting around regardless.

Yesterday we spent some time just outside the field house, practicing with compasses and GPS units. Some of us then practiced some plant identification, while others of us practiced IDing some bird songs. It was great to hear some of the birds I haven't heard since last summer: Sprague's Pipit, Chestnut-collared Longspur, Horned Lark, and Savannah Sparrow.

Meanwhile we've been entertaining ourselves as best we might inside the house. Between the 7 of us currently here, we have (with some overlap of course) 3 violinists, 3 singers, 3 guitarists, and 1 accordionist. Since last summer, we've joked about our "Blue Grama Grassland Band." Impromptu jam sessions spring up fairly often, and we practice for open-mic nights that, last summer, occurred every 2 weeks in the next town over, Val Marie.

Meanwhile, birds have continued to visit our house. If you look closely above, you can see this female Sharp-tailed Grouse peeking her head out of the grass.

Occasionally a Common Grackle will show up amongst the dozens of Brewer's Blackbirds that hang around the house. Several Black-billed Magpies have been carousing around as well, possibly looking to use our shelter belt as a nesting spot.

Hopefully the snow hasn't affected the early-blooming plants, like this Moss Phlox (Phlox hoodii), that have begun their yearly efforts of procreation. With insects being few and far between in this environment, most prarie plants depend upon wind for pollination. And we definitely have that in spades out here! I'm also hoping the snow hasn't harmed any birds that may have begun nesting already. As I'm studying nesting success out here, I'm always rooting for my little guys.

With Adrienne home and Maggi and Tonya gone to Winnipeg to pick up an RV, the house is definitely quiet today. I think we'll enjoy the solitude, as come Sunday, this 4-bedroom house will be packed with 10 people. Although with half the crew gone, the phones still not working, the internet only working intermittenly, and no vehicles besides my van, it's definitely feeling a little isolated. I'm definitely looking forward to the field season beginning in earnest.

Prairie spring - or not?

I have recently arrived back at the East Block of Grasslands National Park in Saskatchewan, Canada. This will be my second field season conducting research for my master's thesis. My research examines the effects of grazing intensity on the nesting success of prairie songbirds. It is certainly the most rewarding field work I have done so far, as my data may help to shape future management plans for this park (I hope!).



Just as last year, I have arrived to find the prairie concealed by a fine layer of snow. Originally from an area where freezing temperatures in May are virtually unheard of, I still find this new climate difficult to adjust to. At the moment there are 7 of us in the field house, with 3 more arriving on Sunday. Training was meant to begin on Tuesday, but the weather has had other plans.The near-constant blizzardy conditions have forced us to remain house-bound for the last 2 days, and it looks as if we will face the same for the remainder of the week.




It has been a slow couple of days, with large amounts of down time interspersed with bird and plant ID training. This sort of knowledge comes quickest in the field, however, so we must hope for better conditions soon.

The upside of the unpredictable weather, however, is that a rain shower on the night of my arrival (May 3) gave way to the most spectacular rainbow any of us had ever seen.

And even though we've been itching to get outside and see some birds, a few of them have saved us the hassle and visited anyway. This Western Meadowlark is one of many that we'll see this summer. Their beautiful songs can be heard from long distances, and their awkward belly-hanging-out flight never ceases to amuse me.

The shelterbelt around the house, originally planted as a windbreak, tends to attract a range of tree-loving species not seen in the surrounding prairie landscape. This Merlin stopped by for a few minutes, perhaps scoping out our birdfeeder (which so far has a visitor count of 0).

Until next time!