Parks Canada

Achievement of the population target of 400 +/- 100 individuals, which corresponds to Good ecological integrity. In order to maintain this target, the bison population is surplussed biennially.

The park monitors the population trends of Sage Grouse at leks within the park and on adjacent lands in the greater ecosystem. The actual measure is the sum of the maximum number of males attending each studied lek in a given year.

The Grasslands National Park samples Sage Grouse habitat in a series of randomly located plots in upland grassland and valley grassland ecotypes within an 8 kilometer radius of an active lek. At each plot, a 100 m transect is established, with 24 evenly spaced quadrats.

The Grasslands National Park monitors the area of occurrence of the Black-Tailed Prairie Dog through measuring surface area in hectares of active colonies. Monitoring provides data on the expansion or contraction of black-tailed prairie dog colonies in the park. Active colony areas outside of the...

The Grasslands National Park monitors the nesting attempts and productivity of burrowing owls by measuring the number of nests, number of owlets, and occupancy rate.

The Grasslands National Park uses the Area Burned Condition Class (ABCC) method to evaluate the ecological integrity of fire as a process on the landscape and the success of utilizing fire to maintain a mosaic of vegetative composition and structure for healthier populations of native species.

The Grasslands National Park measures the abundance of Chestnut-collared Longspur as a part of overall grassland bird point count surveys.

The Grasslands National Park monitors daily the peak flow rates of the Frenchman River and Rock Creek every year from March to August; this measure reports on the integrity of a natural disturbance process by comparing the current distribution of peak flow rates to a historic baseline from the...

The Grasslands National Park assesses the riparian health at 31 sample sites along the Frenchman River and Rock Creek watersheds. The overall measure is based on thirteen metrics that are scored subjectively in a semi-quantitative rapid assessment where percent cover is estimated.

The Grasslands National Park measures the abundance of Sprague's Pipit as a part of overall grassland bird point count surveys.

The Grasslands National Park measures the abundance of bison within a fenced enclosure in relation to targets established in the Park Management Plan.

Effort, catch, and biometric fish data are produced using the Summer Profundal Index Netting (SPIN) methodologies developed by the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources. Monitoring is generally conducted generally on a five year cycle, with additional sampling as necessary. Data are from...

Occupancy data for wildlife species are collected from seven snow track transects, where the presence or absence of tracks for each species is recorded every 100m. Tracks are allowed to accumulate for at least 48 hours after transects have been set by a fresh snowfall or a snowmobile pulling a...

This dataset identifies the location and area burned for fires within the current Prince Albert National Park boundary. All fires over 2 ha from 1930--2017 are included and fires under 2 ha are included opportunistically. Multiple sources are used to gather information about each fire. If area...

Counts of nesting pelicans and cormorants at the Lavallee Lake colony are conducted each spring via aerial photography, and mortality is counted each fall by walking transects through the colony. Pelicans and cormorants feed on small and large freshwater fish up to 100 km from the colony and are...

Avian point counts are conducted annually by collecting and transcribing acoustic recordings. Recording stations are located along 11 transects, and are visited on mornings between late May and early July. Songs and calls for all identifiable species are documented. Migratory songbirds are an...

This dataset identifies the location and area burned for fires within the current Prince Albert National Park boundary. All fires over 2 ha from 1930--2017 are included and fires under 2 ha are included opportunistically. Multiple sources are used to gather information about each fire. If area...

Rangeland health takes multiple ecosystem components into account and reflects overall ecosystem function. Forest and grassland sites are scored on criteria such as plant community composition, plant community structure, moisture retention, soil erosion and bare ground, weed cover and...

Water quality data is based around two of the largest lakes in Prince Albert National Park – Kingsmere and Waskesiu. Data is collected monthly from May through September each year, with additional water chemistry sampling in March. Water chemistry and Secchi disk depths are sampled by boat at...

Annual aerial surveys are conducted along transects in late February to monitor the size of the Sturgeon River Plains Bison population, one of the few wild populations remaining in North America. This species is a key grazer of grasslands and a unique part of regional biodiversity in and around...