 Breeding evidence |
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Click on plot to view table of mean abundance
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Number of squares
Long-term BBS trends
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Mean abundance (number of birds detected per 5 min. point count) and percentage of squares occupied by region Bird Conservation Regions [abund. plot]
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Atlas Results
Sightings of Red-naped Sapsuckers were restricted to the Cypress Uplands, as far as east as Pine Cree Regional Park and Bone Creek. Red-naped Sapsuckers were observed near forests areas of the Cypress Hills Interprovincial Park and wooded coulees nearby. Breeding was confirmed in five squares and probable breeding was observed in another two. Care was taken to confirm the identity of each bird as Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers are also present in the region, having been observed in three squares.
Excerpts Adapted from the Birds of Saskatchewan:
The Yellow-bellied Sapsucker once included 3 species: the Red-breasted, Red-naped, and Yellow-bellied, but genetic and behavioural studies (Johnson and Zink 1983, Johnson and Johnson 1985) have shown that they are distinct. The Red-naped Sapsucker is a bird of western North America, breeding from central and southeastern British Columbia, west-central and southeastern Alberta, southwestern Saskatchewan, western and central Montana, and southwestern South Dakota south to east-central California and extreme western Texas. It winters from southern California, southern Utah, and central New Mexico, south to central Mexico.
Restricted to the southwest. In the Cypress Hills the Red-naped Sapsucker is found throughout the mixedwood and aspen-dominated forests. In the Great Sand Hills birds have been seen in the aspen groves that dot the region.
Due to the split of the species complex in the 1980s, much more is yet to be learned about the status and distribution of the Red-naped Sapsucker. Godfrey (1950) did not record Red-naped in the Cypress Hills, even though the species is readily found there today throughout the hills east to Eastend. It has recently been recorded in the Great Sand Hills (Rob Wapple and ARS) and along the South Saskatchewan River near Leader (Brenda Flood, Rob Wapple).
Original text by Alan R. Smith. Text adapted by Daniel J. Sawatzky
Read more about the Red-naped Sapsucker in the Birds of Saskatchewan here.
Recommended citation: Latremouille, L. M. 2025. Red-naped Sapsucker in Latremouille, L. M., S. L. Van Wilgenburg, C. B. Jardine, D. Lepage, A. R. Couturier, D. Evans, D. Iles, and K. L. Drake (eds.). 2025. The Atlas of the Breeding Birds of Saskatchewan, 2017-2021. Birds Canada. Saskatoon, Saskatchewan https://sk.birdatlas.ca/accounts/speciesaccount.jsp?sp=RNSA&lang=en [14 Nov 2025]
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