10 Assiniboia Times, Assiniboia Saskatchewan -- July 17, 2020
Who’s That Shrieking in My Back Yard? The Shrikes hatched!
“Now is the best time to see the adult Loggerhead Shrikes, because they are constantly on the search for food, to feed their ravenous nestlings,” said Shirley Bartz, Habitat Stewardship Coordinator with Nature Saskatchewan. Photo submitted by George Tosh
Golden South Wind (GSW) Third Community Liaison Commi�ee (CLC) Mee�ng Summary COVID-19 Protocol Updates Borea Construc�on and Poten�a Renewables Inc. (PRI) employees are returning into the Town of Assiniboia. They are observing Saskatchewan’s requirements that mandate travelers from out of the province self-monitor for 14 days and self-isolate at the first sign of even mild symptoms.
Construc�on Updates • Access roads, turbine founda�ons and direc�onal boring of collector lines are 100% complete • Construc�on of the substa�on began in April 2020 and is currently around 25% complete • Started to receive deliveries of turbine parts and installa�on of the wind turbines is an�cipated to start in mid-July Upcoming construc�on ac�vi�es: • Installa�on of spur line by SaskPower is expected to start this summer • Installa�on of collector lines is expected to be completed by the end of summer 2020 • Substa�on is expected to be completed in September 2020 • The Opera�ons and Maintenance (O&M) building is expected to be completed in late fall 2020 • A new MET tower near Hwy #2 is expected to be installed in the upcoming months • More deliveries of turbine parts are expected in the next 6 months, which will cause some minor delays in traffic • 80% of the turbines are expected to be installed by the end of 2020
Mee�ng Q&A Q: There is a rumour in the community that 49 turbines are now to be installed instead of 50. Is this true? A: This rumour is false. There will be 50 turbines installed, as originally planned. Q: Large transformers were recently no�ced being unloaded, are these for the substa�on? A: Yes, these are the two main power transformers and they are key components of the substa�on. Q: Ini�ally the project comple�on date was set for December 2020, and now it seems to be later. Why has there been a delay and when is the new target comple�on date? A: COVID-19 has impacted the supply chain, par�cularly related to turbine parts, so there are some delays. The project is now targe�ng to declare commercial opera�on of all 50 turbines around March 2021.
Please visit our website for the presenta�on and mee�ng minute:
www.goldensouthwind.com
By Shirley Bartz Hungry babies are insistent, but these babies sure do make a lot of noise. Loggerhead Shrikes (a.k.a Butcherbirds) have particularly noisy little ones and they just might startle if people aren’t ready for them. The little masked bandits will steal away your quiet lazy afternoons and have you looking around for these culprits. These migratory songbirds are a threatened species and Saskatchewan is an important part of their breeding ranges. They return to the Canadian Prairies each spring from their wintering grounds in southern Texas and Mexico; and in early summer, their chicks are nosily hatching. “Now is the best time to see the adult Loggerhead Shrikes, because they are constantly on the search for food, to feed their ravenous nestlings. While some chicks are in the nest growing feathers and muscle in preparation for flight, others have jumped ship and are clumsily following their parents out on hunting expeditions, said Shirley Bartz, Habitat Stewardship Coordinator with Nature Saskatchewan. “The adults’ hunting strategies include perching high on a twig, hovering above a field and diving onto prey, or walking on the ground, while flashing their white wing patches to startle prey into movement.” The shrikes provide natural pest control, as their diet consists largely
of grasshoppers and other insects. They also eat mice, voles, frogs, small birds and even snakes. Shrikes will sometimes take prey larger than they are. However, with their little songbird feet, they are unable to grip their prey and tear pieces off like a hawk would. To get around this, shrikes impale their prey on thorns or barbedwire then use their hooked beaks to tear off edible bits. “This is how they got the name Butcherbird,” Shirley further explained, adding “Because they hang their meat like your neighbourhood butcher.” Loggerhead Shrikes are slightly smaller than a robin, with a white breast and belly, a grey back and contrasting white markings on their black wings and tail. They have distinctive black-eyed “masks” and a black-hooked-beaks. Adults Loggerhead Shrikes perform songs composed of short bubbling trills, as well as various rasps and clacks. When alarmed, Shrikes give distinctive highpitched shrieks. Nature Saskatchewan delivers a voluntary stewardship program called Shrubs for Shrikes working with rural landowners to conserve this species at risk. Call the Shrub for Shrikes toll free line for sightings in rural Saskatchewan at 1-800-667-4668 to help them monitor the population. “Personal information is never shared without permission,” Bartz added.
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