When the North American Waterfowl Management Plan (NAWMP) was launched in 1986, its visionaries recognized that the Canadian Prairie Parkland Region would be crucial to its success. Shortly thereafter, the Prairie Habitat Joint Venture (PHJV) began implementing habitat programs across the Region — in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba — signalling the clear intent to retain, restore and manage the natural wetland and upland habitats needed to sustain healthy waterfowl populations. Strong partnerships among conservation agencies and other organizations and individuals emerged, and remain today.
The PPR plays host to 314 different bird species, many of which rely on wetland habitats for breeding or for important rest stops during migration. The PHJV has identified species that rely on these habitats for breeding, including lesser scaup, piping plover, yellow rail and horned grebe – all of which are listed as Species at Risk in Canada. The PHJV also has identified 12 waterbird and shorebird priority species that breed in the Boreal or Arctic regions but rely on wetlands in the Prairie/Parkland region as important places to rest and replenish reserves during migration. Many of the priority species in the PHJV align with priorities in several partner states. For example, the Kansas State Wildlife Action Plan identifies 85 bird species of greatest conservation need. Of these, 43 are also listed as priority species in Bird Conservation Region 11, which is the Prairie and Northern Region of the Prairie Potholes of Canada.
