Beneficial Management Practices for Saskatchewan Species at Risk: Piping Plover Endangered

1. Beneficial Management Practices for Saskatchewan Species at Risk:Piping PloverEndangered

2. Pale, sand-colored back & head • White breast & rump • Orange legs & bill with black tip on bill • Single black band on breast and forehead • Clear-toned “pipe” call Randy McCulloch

3. Nest in sparsely vegetated, moist, gravelly or sandy shorelines along saline or prairie lakes • Eat freshwater invertebrates along the shoreline • Located in the central and southern portions of the province

4. Status: Endangered Declined due habitat loss, changes in water levels, human use of beaches and predation 1,420 birds in Saskatchewan

5. Beneficial Management Practices Grazing Keep livestock away from plover nesting sites during breeding season Graze shorelines only in late summer or fall or possibly early spring

6. Altering Waterbodies Avoid draining wetlands Avoid constructing dams or dugouts that divert water away from natural waterbodies Avoid constructing dams or diversions that result in flooding during plover breeding season

7. Water Level Management Provide off-site watering for livestock Stagger timing of withdrawal if using more than one waterbody Drawdown water 2-3cm/week in spring and summer Reflood dry waterbody or hardpan shorelines 2-3 cm/week