Welcome
Saskatchewan has a wealth of bird watching opportunities ranging from the fall migration of waterfowl to the spring rush of songbirds and shorebirds. We hope that this guide, Saskatchewan Birding Trail Experience will help you find and enjoy the many birding locations in our province.
Some of our Birding Trail sites offer you a chance to see endangered species such as Piping Plovers, Sage Grouse, Burrowing Owls, and even the Whooping Crane as it stops over in Saskatchewan during its spring and fall migrations.
Saskatchewan is comprised of four distinct eco-zones, from rolling prairie to dense forest. Micro-environments are as varied as the bird-life, ranging from active sand dunes and badlands to marshes and swamps. Over 350 bird species can be found in the province.
Southwestern Saskatchewan represents the core of the range of grassland birds like Baird's Sparrow and Sprague's Pipit. The mixed wood boreal forest in northern Saskatchewan supports some of the highest bird species diversity in North America, including Connecticut Warbler and Boreal Chickadee. More than 15 species of shorebirds nest in the province while others stop over briefly en-route to their breeding grounds in Arctic Canada.
Chaplin Lake and the Quill Lakes are the two anchor bird watching sites in our province. These sites are conveniently located on Saskatchewan's two major highways, the Trans-Canada #1 and Yellowhead #16. Both are excellent birding areas!
Oh! ...don't forget, birdwatching in Saskatchewan is a year round activity. While migration provides a tremendous opportunity to see vast numbers of birds, winter birding offers you an incomparable opportunity to view many species of owls and woodpeckers and other Arctic residents such as Gyrfalcons, Snowy Owls and massive flocks of Snow Buntings.
Happy Birding in Saskatchewan!
PRIMARY STATUS
B: Regular Breeding
R: Regular Non-breeding
E: Extinct or Extirpated
S: Stragglers
H: Hypothetical
SECONDARY STATUS
o: Occasional or former breeding
p: Probable breeding
i: Introduced