DND and WWF-Canada Join Forces to Conserve Tall Grass Prairie Habitat

The DND / WWF-Canada partnership demonstrates both parties’ ongoing commitment to natural resource stewardship. The WWF-Canada grant is supporting University of Manitoba researchers to conduct fieldwork, research and studies that provide a scientific knowledge base for better management of the range.

“DND recognizes the importance of this range and is committed to its preservation in order to ensure the health of the unique flora and fauna that live there,” said Lt.-Col. Jim Kerr, Acting Wing Commander 17 Wing Winnipeg.

“The agreement is a great collaborative effort with multiple mutual benefits,” said Lindsay Rodger, Senior Manager, Biodiversity at Risk for WWF-Canada. “Our common aim is long-term conservation of this ecologically rare and important example of tall grass prairie through working together to study and manage it.”

The SCR is one of the largest and most biologically diverse and productive remaining areas of tall grass prairie in Manitoba. Tall grass prairie is one of the most endangered habitats in North America with only about 1 per cent of the original tall grass prairie remaining in small parcels of land. A number of endangered species thrive at the SCR, such as the small white lady’s-slipper and several new species of insects that have been discovered by University of Manitoba entomologists.