Southern Prairies priority place
Location
Situated in the Prairies Ecozone, the Southern Prairies Place encompasses those portions of the Red River, South Saskatchewan, Winnipeg, Whitemouth, Birch and Missouri River Basins in Canada. The Milk River is unique in that it is the only waterbody in Canada to flow south into Gulf of Mexico via the Mississippi drainage basin. The hydrologic system within these watersheds is complex, and is influenced by many natural and human forces, and controlled through a myriad of federal, provincial, state and local laws, regulations, rules, ordinances, and international arrangements. Overall, the Prairies Ecozone is home to high numbers of threatened and endangered wildlife species, and its native ecosystems are among the most endangered natural habitats in Canada.
Key threats
The Prairies encompass important watersheds that are impacted by various anthropogenic activities, such as water management, hydroelectric dams, agriculture practices, and recreation. These activities can result in threats such as habitat degradation, reduced water quality and/or quantity, and habitat fragmentation. These threats are often multiple cumulating impacts throughout an individual species distribution. Prairie species are also sensitive to climate change (e.g. high variability in water level due to variation in temperature). Invasive species are also a threat in the prairies, from Zebra Mussel to Asian Carp. It is important to protect species at risk to maintain balance and biodiversity in the prairies ecosystem.
Within the Milk River, the 1909 Boundary Waters Treaty between Canada and the United States, administered by the International Joint Commission, imposes a water management regime which creates alternating unnaturally high flows and low flows, which can be unsuitable for native species in the Milk River system.
Aquatic SARA Schedule 1-listed species at risk found in the Southern Prairies priority place
| Priority Places and Marine Threats | Species, Population | SARA status |
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Examples of recovery activities that DFO is seeking to support in the Southern Prairies priority place
- Identification of local threats to species and habitats (i.e. surveys, inventories, monitoring)
- Remediation or mitigation of threats to habitat (i.e. improve fish passage through/around water control structures, build bridges/other structures to keep anthropogenic activities out of the water, install fencing/off-site watering stations to keep animals out of the water, etc.)
- Restoration or creation of suitable habitat in key areas (i.e. removal of non-functioning anthropogenic barriers, reinforcement of riparian areas/water banks to reduce sedimentation into the water, ensure access to critical habitat areas, etc.)
- Support for partnerships, relationship building, and the establishment of venues for continued collaboration, and information and knowledge sharing to support recovery actions
- Targeted outreach to improve awareness and increase opportunity for stewardship/partnership activities (presentations to environmental non-government organizations, recreational fishers, Indigenous groups, etc.)
Learn more about projects in this area
Engaging farmers and ranchers to improve ecosystems for aquatic species at risk in the Southern Prairies
Engaging farmers and ranchers to improve ecosystems for aquatic species at risk in the Southern Prairies
Recipient: ALUS Canada
Project goal: The objective of this four-year project is to increase stewardship and recovery actions for aquatic species at risk in the Southern Prairies Priority Area, within the South Saskatchewan River and the Assiniboine River watershed basins. The project aims to partner with farmers and ranchers where the agricultural landscape intersects with key freshwater aquatic habitats for aquatic species at risk.
The project involves partnering with farmers to promote restoration or enhancement of waterbodies and waterways. This includes the establishment of riparian buffers and the construction of wetland areas.
Project activities are reducing agricultural runoff and sedimentation thereby improving aquatic habitat downstream and immediately adjacent to project actions. Project actions are enabling an entire suite of ecosystem services, including additional wildlife habitat, clean water and carbon sequestration.
Educational resources are being developed through collaboration with community Partnership Advisory Committees and technical advisory groups. The resources emphasize the impacts of agriculture and need to apply Beneficial Management Practices to reduce and reverse the adverse effects of agriculture on aquatic species at risk.
Fund Allocation: $983,000
Time Frame: 4 years
Species that benefit from this project:
Media announcement:
The Government of Canada Takes Action to Protect Aquatic Species at Risk in the Southern Prairie
Bridging research and management to reduce invasive species threats to aquatic species at risk
Bridging research and management to reduce invasive species threats to aquatic species at risk
Recipient: Invasive Species Centre
Project goal: This four-year project supports invasive species prevention and management activities in the Southern Prairies Priority Area across the three Prairie provincial partners, Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba, that will benefit aquatic species at risk. Activities include (1) working to identify needs and opportunities in invasive species risk assessment, management, and communications with a view to aligning with species at risk recovery actions; (2) providing risk assessment and analysis, impact assessment, screening level risk assessment and socio-economic analysis support to inform management approaches for priority species at risk; (3) supporting invasive species prevention and monitoring programs to increase frequency of sampling and program capacity; and (4) reviewing communications to enhance messaging effectiveness and increase outreach.
As the project progresses and needs are further identified by the participating Provinces, new tools will be developed and existing tools will be enhanced. These will include consideration of (1) support for training and communications on freshwater mussel identification, species at risk identification, invasive species identification, mussel control methods, reporting and mapping tools, citizen science and invasive species prevention; (2) liaisons that provide most recent, relevant evidence-based information to partners; and (3) support for dissemination of a toolkit of templates, instructions and tools for future use beyond the 4 year scope of this project.
Fund Allocation: $983,000
Time Frame: 4 years
Species that benefit from this project:
- Carmine Shiner
- Silver Chub
- Bigmouth Buffalo
- Mapleleaf
- Plains Minnow
- Mountain Sucker
- Rocky Mountain Sculpin
- Western Silvery Minnow
Media announcement:
The Government of Canada Takes Action to Protect Aquatic Species at Risk in the Southern Prairie
Assessment of two listed species in the Upper Assiniboine and lower Qu'Appelle Rivers
Assessment of two listed species in the Upper Assiniboine and lower Qu'Appelle Rivers
Recipient: Manitoba Agriculture and Resource Development
Project goal: This four-year project is examining how select species at risk use the Assiniboine and Lower Qu'Appelle rivers. This information will guide the recovery of these species as well as inform the management of these two river systems.
The project is built on three basic areas of work including: 1) animal movement tracking to help understand how these large fish are using the environment; 2) genetic assessment using tissue samples from resident fish to describe genetic (dis)similarity between the sample groups; and 3) habitat features evaluations and working to better understand habitat use by the studied species.
This information will contribute to and inform the protection and recovery associated with human induced changes to the river systems and its impact on two species of fish. The project will thus inform decision making for development of protection and recovery documents for these species at risk.
Fund Allocation: $365,000
Time Frame: 4 years
Species that benefit from this project:
Habitat restoration and enhanced fish passage within Frenchman River, Qu'Appelle River, and Morgan Creek Watersheds
Habitat restoration and enhanced fish passage within Frenchman River, Qu'Appelle River, and Morgan Creek Watersheds
Recipient: Water Security Agency
Project goal: This four-year project is focused on restoring and creating suitable habitat for multiple aquatic species at risk found within the Southern Prairies Priority Area. This project is creating wetland habitats, improving fish passage and reducing of sediment in targeted river systems.
A comprehensive analysis and document detailing and prioritizing barriers to fish passage for rehabilitation is being developed and includes new information on species distribution and habitat suitability for the targeted species at risk.
Additionally, the project is facilitating the development of recovery plans through the detailed study, assessment and survey of aquatic species at risk within the Qu'Appelle, Battle, Frenchman, and Morgan Creek Watersheds.
Fund Allocation: $1,787,052
Time Frame: 4 years
Species that benefit from this project:
Media announcement:
The Government of Canada Takes Action to Protect Aquatic Species at Risk in the Southern Prairie
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