Sprague’s Pipit
We are currently working to build a genoscape for the Sprague’s Pipit (Anthus spragueii), a cryptically-colored grassland bird known for its high-altitude aerial song flights. Generously funded by the Knobloch Family Foundation, our main partners include Nancy Mahony of Enivronment and Climate Change Canada, Andy Boyce of the Smithsonian National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute, and the Bird Conservancy of the Rockies.
Grassland birds are one of the fastest declining groups of birds in North America. The Sprague’s Pipit has been listed under the Orange Alert category by the Road to Recovery Initiative on their Tipping Point Species list. Tipping point species require immediate scientific action to understand their population declines and develop conservation strategies. Orange listed species, such as Sprague’s Pipit, have experienced large population loss (~60% since the 1970s) and continue to be in decline (~21% in the last decade). In Canada, the Sprague’s Pipit is listed as a Species At Risk.
If you are interested in collecting or donating Sprague’s Pipit samples from any location across its range, particularly during the breeding and wintering seasons, please contact Amanda Carpenter to learn more!