Habitat Conservation
Habitat Stewardship Program
The Habitat Stewardship Program (HSP) for Species At Risk was created in 2000. The founding partners, Environment Canada, Parks Canada and Fisheries and Oceans Canada, decided to encourage a voluntary, stewardship-based approach for protecting habitat for threatened species, and support activities, specific to individual species’ Recovery Plans, that would result in significant benefits for species identified at the federal level as being endangered, threatened or of special concern.
What we are doing
As the leading provider of Conservation Agreements in Manitoba, efforts from the MHC have focused largely on the protection of existing habitat in agriculturally developed regions, where habitat loss and disturbance has been most significant. The species we are currently focused on in Manitoba are:
- Buffalograss (Buchloe dactyloides)
- Least Bittern (Ixobrychus exilis)
- Northern Prairie Skink (Eumeces septentrionalis)
- Piping Plover (Charadrius melodus)
- Red-headed Woodpecker (Melanerpes erythrocephalus)
- Silky Prairie Clover (Dalea villosa var. villosa)
- Small White Lady’s-slipper (Cypripedium candidum)
- Sprague’s Pipit (Anthus spragueii)
- Western Prairie Fringed Orchid (Platanthera praeclara)
The majority of native grasslands in Manitoba qualify for conservation under this program.
What we are doing
As the leading provider of Conservation Agreements in Manitoba, efforts from the MHHC have focused largely on the protection of existing habitat in agriculturally developed regions, where habitat loss and disturbance has been most significant. The species we are currently focused on in Manitoba are:
- Buffalograss (Buchloe dactyloides)
- Least Bittern (Ixobrychus exilis)
- Northern Prairie Skink (Eumeces septentrionalis)
- Piping Plover (Charadrius melodus)
- Red-headed Woodpecker (Melanerpes erythrocephalus)
- Silky Prairie Clover (Dalea villosa var. villosa)
- Small White Lady’s-slipper (Cypripedium candidum)
- Sprague’s Pipit (Anthus spragueii)
- Western Prairie Fringed Orchid (Platanthera praeclara)
To qualify for this program we require either a confirmed sighting of a priority species on-site, or a nearby sighting along with the correct type of habitat for the given species on-site.
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How to proceed
If you would like to know more about our Habitat Stewardship Program, please contact your local Habitat Conservation Specialist.