Wildlife Habitat Capacity on Farmland

Summary

• Canada's farmland provides important wildlife habitat. Most habitat is in the form of natural and semi-natural types of land cover such as woodland, wetland and managed grassland.
• Natural and semi-natural habitat also provides services such as crop pollination, pest control, improved soil and water quality and reduced carbon in the atmosphere.
• The Wildlife Habitat Availability on Farmland indicator measures how much habitat there is for Canada's farmland wildlife and whether this is changing over time.
• Canada's farmland has a Moderate or High amount of wildlife habitat and this has been STable over time. Some regions of Canada are areas of concern. This is because of a decrease in natural and semi-natural land cover and an increase in annual cropland.
• Farm planning and Beneficial Management Practices can help farmers improve farmland wildlife habitat while keeping costs in mind.

Wildlife habitat on farmland: why does it matter?

Healthy natural habitat and wildlife populations can provide important services on farmland, known as ecological goods and services. These include such things as crop pollination, natural pest control, improved water quality and storage and carbon sequestration as well as cultural services such as improved spiritual, mental and physical health.

Canada's farmland provides habitat for about 550 species of birds, mammals, reptiles and amphibians. Each species has unique feeding and breeding habitat requirements. Only 3% of these species can meet all their needs on annual cropland alone. Most species depend on natural habitat such as forest, wetland and grassland. They can only thrive if these habitats are available.

Half of Canada's land animal Species at Risk use farmland at some stage in their life cycles. Species at Risk are species that are in danger of disappearing from Canada. To help protect these species, it is important to understand how farming impacts their habitat. In some cases, Provincial or Federal regulations (such as the Species at Risk Act or the Migratory Bird Convention Act) might also require protection of these species or their habitats.

The Government of Canada must also report on the condition of farmland wildlife and wildlife habitat. This helps the public and other countries know if Canada's wildlife populations are healthy and where improvements need to be made.

How do farming activities affect wildlife habitat?

Farming activities can have major impacts on wildlife. Specific farming activities can degrade farmland wildlife habitat: converting natural habitat to cropland or pasture, draining wetlands, removing windbreaks, using chemicals and by grazing livestock at too high a density. These changes can reduce the amount and the quality of the habitat.

On the other hand, farming activities can improve wildlife habitat by retaining, or restoring, natural and semi-natural areas. For example, cropland can provide better wildlife habitat if other types of land cover are also present nearby. This includes such cover types as native grasslands (in Western Canada) and unimproved pasture (in Eastern Canada).

Wildlife Habitat Availability on Farmland: the indicator

The Wildlife Habitat Availability on Farmland indicator measures how much habitat there is for wildlife on Canada's farmland. It also measures whether this is changing over time.

To assess this, first, the indicator determines the land cover types each species needs for feeding and for breeding. Second, the indicator measures the amount of each land cover type in the Canadian agricultural landscape. This is done using satellite imagery and Canada’s Census of Agriculture. The indicator measures the following land cover types: settlement, vegetated settlement, cropland, managed grassland, woodland, woodland regeneration (following harvest), woodland regeneration (following fire), wooded wetland, wetland, water, and other land.

The Government of Canada calculates The Habitat Capacity indicator every five years. It helps the Government know how the amount of farmland wildlife habitat is changing over time. This helps to identify where changes to farming practices are needed.

Wildlife habitat in Canada: amount and change over time

Wildlife Habitat Use

Natural and semi-natural land are very important to wildlife (Woodland, Wooded Wetland, Wetland, Water, Managed Grassland and Unimproved Pasture). In 2015, these cover types accounted for 62% of farmland. They provide feeding and breeding habitat for most farmland species. Cropland (35% of farmland), on the other hand, only provides breeding habitat for 3% of species.

Wildlife Habitat Capacity

On average, Canada’s agricultural landscape was rated moderate for breeding habitat capacity in 2020: 40% was rated high or very high while 39% was rated low or very low. Feeding habitat capacity was rated moderate for the same period: 52% was rated high or very high and 33% as moderate. In general, wildlife habitat capacity was the lowest on land with a high area of cropland.

Wildlife Habitat Capacity for Breeding in the Agricultural Landscape, 2020 

Wildlife Habitat Capacity for Feeding in the Agricultural Landscape, 2020

Between 2000 and 2020, on average, habitat capacity for breeding and feeding was rated as stable/slight change in Canada. Despite this, there were differences across the country: breeding habitat capacity declined on 22% of land and feeding habitat capacity declined on 6% of land.

Change in wildlife habitat capacity for Breeding in the agricultural landscape, 2000 to 2020

Change in wildlife habitat capacity for Feeding in the agricultural landscape, 2000 to 2020

Areas of concern

The decline in habitat capacity over time is largely due to three factors: loss of natural and semi-natural cover (primarily managed grassland, woodland and wetland), loss of perennial cropland and unimproved pasture, and gain in annual cropland and settlement.

Coastal areas (British Columbia and the Maritimes)

Areas of concern include British Columbia’s lower mainland, central river valleys of the Thompson Okanagan Plateau, central Prince Edward Island, and Nova Scotia Annapolis-Minas lowlands. Decline in habitat capacity was caused by three major factors. Loss of woodland was caused mainly by regional forest harvest (most of which did not take place directly on farmland). Loss of perennial cropland and gain in settlement (mainly urban expansion in British Columbia’s lower mainland) were also factors.

Prairies

Much of the Prairies has a low or very low wildlife habitat capacity so many areas are of concern. The decline in habitat capacity was caused by the loss of managed grassland, unimproved pasture, wetlands and perennial cropland and the gain in annual cropland.

Central Canada

Areas of concern include Ontario’s Manitoulin-Lake Simcoe and Lake Erie lowlands and Quebec’s St. Lawrence lowlands. The decline in habitat capacity was caused by the loss of perennial cropland, unimproved pasture and woodland, and gain in annual cropland and settlement.

How can farmland wildlife habitat be improved?

Most of Canada’s farmland is privately owned. Therefore, the activities of farmers can have important impacts on Canada’s wildlife habitat. Maintaining wildlife habitat on farmland can be challenging. Some very profiTable types of agriculture require removal of natural and semi-natural land cover. However, wildlife depends on these land cover types the most.

Many programs exist in Canada to encourage farmers to retain or restore wildlife habitat. Through environmental farm planning, farmers learn how their decisions impact farmland wildlife. Beneficial management practices can help producers maintain, or improve, wildlife habitat on farmland while keeping costs in mind. Examples of beneficial management practices include:

• managing riparian areas and woodlots
• converting marginal cropland to permanent cover
• planting or maintaining shelterbelts and hedgerows
• delaying haying
• conserving wetland and wetland buffers
• conserving natural and semi-natural land

Glossary

Settlement

built-up and urban land cover

Vegetated settlement

vegetated areas near settlement

Cropland

land used to grow annual crops (crops that need to be seeded each year such as corn) or perennial crops (crops that do not need to be seeded each year such as fruit trees)

Managed grassland

natural grasslands and shrubland used for cattle grazing

Woodland

areas covered by trees

Woodland regeneration after harvest

areas where forest is regrowing after being cut less than 20 years ago

Woodland regeneration after fire

areas where forest is regrowing after a fire less than 20 years ago.

Wetland

areas where soil is saturated with water at least part of the year and emergent vegetation is present

Wooded wetland

areas where soil is saturated at least part of the year and emergent trees or shrubs are present

Water

areas covered with water with no emergent vegetation

Other land

non-vegetated land such as rock, beaches, ice or barrens

Unimproved pasture

natural areas used for pasture

Natural land cover

areas not modified by human actions including woodland and wetland

Semi-natural land cover

areas not planted by humans but influenced by human actions such as managed grassland

Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada's agri-environmental indicators (AEIs) provide a science-based snapshot of the current state and trend of Canada’s agri-environmental performance in terms of soil quality (soil organic matter, soil erosion, soil salinization), water quality (nitrogen, pesticides, phosphorus, coliforms), air quality (particulate matter, ammonia, greenhouse gas emissions) and farmland management (agricultural land use, soil cover, wildlife habitat). While indicator results are presented individually, agro-ecosystems are complex, so many of the indicators are interrelated. This means that changes in one indicator may be associated with changes in other indicators as well.

Additional sources and downloads

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