Grasslands National Park Special

Downhill into the valley

As we approached the arid, southwest corner of Saskatchewan, I was reminded of the American folk classic, "Home on the Range" (sing along if you know the tune!).

"Oh, give me a home where the Buffalo roam

Where the Deer and the Antelope play;

Where seldom is heard a discouraging word,

And the sky is not cloudy all day."

About the Park

A small herd of bison gallop
through the grassland

The park protects one of the last remaining undisturbed mixed-grass/shortgrass prairie grassland in Canada. It is divided into two main blocks (East and West), with the most accessible parts of the Park located in the West Block near the village of Val Marie. The Park is surrounded by ranchland and wheat fields, and the fact that there are very few visitor facilities within it, makes it a controversial topic, especially with some of the locals. Jaime and I think it is great that such a fascinating piece of natural heritage has been locked away from agricultural development.

The Wildlife

The sleek and curious Racer
(Photo Jared Hobbs)

With an abundance of rare and endangered species, there is no denying how unique the Park really is. Pronghorn (an antelope-like deer), Greater Sage-Grouse, Prairie Rattlesnakes, Black-tailed Prairie Dogs, Short-horned Lizards, and Burrowing Owls are common, and in recent years, Plains Bison, Black-footed Ferrets (North America’s rarest mammal) and Swift Foxes have been successfully 

A prairie dog sits on his mound

reintroduced after being persecuted to the brink of extinction many years ago.

The Scenery

Chestnut-collared
Longspur takes flight

Descending into the canyon-like Frenchman River Valley, sagebrush plains encircle vast towns of prairie dogs, and the taller shrubs and trees along the river shade the bison. Nearby cliffs help guard the valley, and at the bases of these cliffs, rattlesnakes find refuges to survive the harsh winter.

A more fitting song for Grasslands National Park there is not.

New Birds:
264. White-faced Ibis
265. Tundra Swan
266. Orange-crowned Warbler
267. White-crowned Sparrow
268. Ferruginous Hawk
269. Sora
270. Chestnut-collared Longspur
271. Lapland Longspur
272. Mountain Bluebird
273. Eurasian Collared-Dove
274. Baird's Sparrow
275. Golden Eagle
276. Gyrfalcon
277. Greater White-fronted Goose
278. Rough-legged Hawk
279. Gray-crowned Rosy-Finch

New Mammals:
24. American Badger
25. Thirteen-lined Ground Squirrel
26. Pronghorn
27. White-tailed Jackrabbit
28. Mule Deer
29. Black-tailed Prairie Dog
30. Least Chipmunk
31. Northern River Otter

New Reptiles:
6. Prairie Rattlesnake
7. Yellow-bellied Racer

New Amphibians:
6. Boreal Chorus Frog