Plan a Saskatchewan Birding visit to during the peak of the nesting season when bird song abounds. Saskatchewan is located in Canada near the centre of North America where several bird migration flyways meet. Consequently, this bird-rich province of Canada is home to nesting birds from both eastern and western North America.

Saskatchewan is well known as the duck factory of North America because most species of waterfowl nest in our abundant wetlands. Many shorebirds, pelicans, rails and grebes also nest in our lakes and sloughs. Saskatchewan Birding hotspots for water birds including Last Mountain Lake and Redberry Lake Bird Sanctuaries plus Chaplin and Reed Lakes Important Bird Areas.

Stretching across half of the province, the boreal forest is home to many eastern warblers, woodpeckers, flycatchers and forest hawks. Explore these forest birds at Saskatchewan’s Duck Mountain Provincial Park and in the Nisbet Forest.

The great expanses of arid prairie grasslands attract many special ground-nesting birds. You may observe unique prairie birds at Grasslands National Park, Nature Conservancy of Canada’s Old Man on His Back Plateau as well as Saskatchewan’s Great Sand Hills and many other pastures.

Cypress Hills Interprovincial Park Trails

During your Saskatchewan Birding Trip, you may observe many sub-alpine birds in the east, centre and west blocks of the Cypress Hills. You may also explore riparian habitats along the South Saskatchewan River valley and the Souris River valley.

Do you prefer a Birding Guide or prefer to travel Independently?

If you prefer a Saskatchewan birding guide, CLICK HERE for information about the many birding tours we offer across Saskatchewan at all seasons of the year. You may join one of our group tours or book a private tour.

If you prefer to travel independently during your Saskatchewan Birding trip, we offer advice for finding the many unique birds that occur in Saskatchewan. Because all proceeds support Saskatchewan’s Living Sky Wildlife Rehabilitation charity, you will receive a tax receipt for 50% of the required fee.

Saskatchewan Birding Advice

Full Birding Advice Option

We will spend up to 3 hours with you on the telephone before your tour to review the best birding hotspot locations to find the special birds you seek during your visit to Saskatchewan, Canada. We will direct you to online maps to find the best trails or roads to go birdwatching. We can advise you on the best locations within Saskatchewan’s many parks and publicly accessible sites. We will also advise you where to find convenient motels or campgrounds. Fee: CAD $390 (about US $290). Tax Receipt CAD $195. Fee is payable in advance. Please submit the form below.

Limited Birding Advice Option

We will spend up to 1 hour with you on the telephone before your tour to review the best single birding hotspot locations to find one special bird you seek during your visit to Saskatchewan, Canada. We will direct you to online maps to find the best trail or road to go birdwatching. We will also advise you where to find convenient motels or campgrounds. Fee: CAD $190 (about US $290). Tax Receipt CAD $95. Fee is payable in advance. Please submit the form below.

Special Birds of Interest

During Saskatchewan Birding visits during spring, summer and fall, it is possible to observe over 200 species.

A few special birds of interest include

Ruddy Duck
Sharp-tailed Grouse
Gray Partridge
Western Grebe
Clark’s Grebe
Sandhill Crane
Whooping Crane
American White Pelican
Great Egret
White-faced Ibis
Golden Eagle
Broad-winged Hawk
Swainson’s Hawk
Ferruginous Hawk
Prairie Falcon
Red Knot
Black-necked Stilt
American Avocet
Willet
Marbled Godwit
Long-billed Curlew
Upland Sandpiper
White-rumped Sandpiper
Baird’s Sandpiper
Wilson’s Phalarope
Franklin’s Gull
California Gull
Forster’s Tern
Caspian Tern
Eastern Whip-poor-will
Common Poorwill
Black-billed Cuckoo
Burrowing Owl
Northern Hawk Owl
Great Gray Owl
Red-naped Sapsucker
American Three-toed Woodpecker
Western Wood-Pewee
Eastern Wood-Pewee
Alder Flycatcher
Western Flycatcher
Dusky Flycatcher
Say’s Phoebe
Great Crested Flycatcher
Western Kingbird
Loggerhead Shrike
Blue-headed Vireo
Philadelphia Vireo
Yellow-throated Vireo
Black-billed Magpie
Canada Jay
Violet-Green Swallow
Rock Wren
Sedge Wren
Mountain Bluebird
Eastern Bluebird
Sprague’s Pipit
Golden-winged Warbler
Nashville Warbler
Connecticut Warbler
MacGillivray’s Warbler
Yellow-breasted Chat
Western Tanager
Eastern Towhee
Spotted Towhee
Lark Sparrow
Baird’s Sparrow
Brewer’s Sparrow
Le Conte’s Sparrow
Nelson’s Sparrow
Grasshopper Sparrow
Chestnut-collared Longspur
Thick-billed Longspur
Lazuli Bunting
Western Meadowlark
Yellow-headed Blackbird
Bobolink
Orchard Oriole

CLICK HERE for a complete Saskatchewan checklist.

Monthly Newsletter

Learn about special Saskatchewan Birding offers and new tours.
CLICK HERE to sign up for the monthly electronic Newsletter from Saskatoon Custom Bird Tours.

Testimonial

Just back from my Saskatchewan trip. Many thanks for all your advice! I ended up with 203 species
M. R. North Carolina June 2024

Birding Advice Expert: Your Saskatchewan birding expert has many years of experience finding and observing birds throughout Saskatchewan. For over 30 years, Stan Shadick has been a Saskatchewan birding guide for nature tours around Saskatchewan and other parts of the country that have been organized by Living Sky Wildlife Rehabilitation, Saskatoon Custom Bird Tours, Nature Saskatchewan and the University of Saskatchewan Extension Division.

Stan is past president of Nature Saskatchewan as well as past president and current field trip chairman for the Saskatoon Nature Society. He is a co-editor of the reference publication “Birds of the Saskatoon Area” and contributed significantly to the recently published “Birds of Saskatchewan”.

Stan has volunteered as a regional coordinator for the Saskatchewan Breeding Bird Atlas project and helps with their bird identification workshops. He regularly contributes sightings to e-bird and currently holds the e-bird record for the most bird species seen in Saskatchewan.

Stan volunteers his time leading Saskatoon Custom Bird Tours so that all proceeds benefit the work of Living Sky Wildlife Rehabilitation.

TAX RECEIPT: A tax receipt for 50% of the birding advice fee will be issued to the person paying for this advice.

Saskatchewan Birding Travel Advice Requests

Please complete and submit the following form or email us your full name(s), mailing address, email address and telephone number and your travel dates.

E-mail: birdtours@sasktel.net
Phone: 306-652-5975

Payment instructions will be emailed to you after you complete and submit the form below.

All fees support Living Sky Wildlife Rehabilitation.

If you do not hear back from us within 24 hours, then please email: birdtours@sasktel.net or phone 306-652-5975.

TOP QUALITY BINOCULAR OFFER

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Weir Birding and Walking Tour — White Pelican by Nick Saunders

Saskatchewan Birding Gift Certificates Available Now

Our Saskatchewan birding tours make an excellent Christmas gift, birthday gift, anniversary gift, graduation gift or special gift for a birder, birdwatcher or anyone interested in nature.

GIFT CERTIFICATES: Click here for information about purchasing a gift certificate for this tour or any of our other tours.