 Breeding evidence |
 Relative abundance |
 Probability of observation |
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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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1.39 (0.623 - 2.26)|
Mean abundance (number of birds detected per 5 min. point count) and percentage of squares occupied by region Bird Conservation Regions [abund. plot]
[%squares plot]
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Atlas Results
Swainson's Hawks were a common sight across southern Saskatchewan, with reports from 1,277 squares. As with other tree nesting raptors, finding active nests was easiest in the spring before leaf-out, with an impressive 343 square reporting breeding confirmations. Well-adapted to the open landscapes of the plains and absent from the boreal forest, the heart of their Saskatchewan range lies in the uplands and grasslands of the southwest. Atlas results show their probability of observation tapering off steeply in the Aspen Parkland, with relatively few sightings in the Boreal Transition ecoregion.
Excerpts Adapted from the Birds of Saskatchewan:
The Swainson's is the quintessential Saskatchewan hawk and the most common large raptor on the Great Plains. They follow moving farm implements, especially hay mowers, and catch the ground squirrels, mice, and voles that are flushed. Swainson's flocks are helpful again when they switch prey species and gather on fields to devour immense numbers of grasshoppers in preparation for fall migration. Breed across western Canada and US from Alaska to northern Mexico and winter in Argentina.
The Swainson's Hawk is most common in areas of grassland with scattered trees for nesting, least common in intensively cultivated areas. In some PFRA (Prairie Farm Rehabilitation Administration) community pastures, where grass fires were rare, aspen was the most common nest tree. Outside of those pastures, nest trees were mainly in abandoned farm sites. While most nests have been found in trees and tall shrubs, Spreadborough found a nest on a cutbank, and Wayne Renaud documented a second cliff nest in 1978 in the Boundary Plateau along the Montana border (Gollop and Gollop 1982).
A common summer resident of the grasslands and adjacent aspen grove subregion, but at best uncommon in the aspen woodlands (Smith 1996). In Alberta and Saskatchewan, the ranges of this hawk and the Richardson's ground squirrel coincide almost exactly (Houston 1990a).
Original text by C. Stuart Houston. Text adapted by Daniel J. Sawatzky
Read more about the Swainson's Hawk in the Birds of Saskatchewan here.
Recommended citation: Latremouille, L. M. 2025. Swainson's Hawk 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=SWHA&lang=en [14 Nov 2025]
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