For 35 years, Meewasin and the Saskatoon Nature Society have been monitoring when the first pelican of the season lands on the river.

The Saskatoon Media Group newsroom told you earlier this week about the first pelican of 2024 landing between the CPR Bridge and the Weir on the South Saskatchewan River. And Meewasin CEO Andrea Lafond says, officially, this year, it was April 8th at 11:48am.

“We’ve had late arrivals into the third week of April… I think April 4th is the earliest. I’m assuming weather plays a factor into how spring-like it feels and when they return.”

Every spring, about 5000 pairs of pelicans return from their winter holidays in Guatemala, California, Mexico, and Florida to breed at Redberry Lake, about 70 km northwest of Saskatoon.

Lafond says each day they make the 140-kilometre round trip from their breeding grounds to the weir at Saskatoon for fresh food.

“I always want to encourage folks to get outside, and a great opportunity to do that is to go see the pelicans because they return daily.”

She adds that pelicans used to be on the endangered species list, and to see their numbers come back is a good indicator of conservation efforts across North America.