The Michigan Department of Natural Resources reminds everyone the annual Winter Free Fishing Weekend is scheduled for Saturday and Sunday, Feb. 16-17. That weekend, everyone—residents and non-residents alike—can fish without a license, though all other fishing regulations still apply.

Michigan has celebrated the Winter Free Fishing Weekend every year since 1994 as a way to promote awareness of the state’s vast aquatic resources and many fishing opportunities. With more than 3,000 miles of Great Lakes shoreline, 36,000 miles of rivers and 11,000 inland lakes, Michigan and fishing are a perfect match.

“Fishing is one of Michigan’s most popular outdoor activities in the winter, and for good reason,” said DNR Director Keith Creagh. “It’s a fun, inexpensive activity anyone of just about any age can pursue—on your own or along with family and friends. We encourage people to get outdoors this February and experience the thrill of the catch, for free!”

Organized Free Fishing Weekend activities are being scheduled in communities across the state. These activities are coordinated by a variety of organizations including constituent groups, schools, local and state parks, businesses and others. A full list of events can be found online at www.michigan.gov/freefishing.

Also available online are tools to assist in planning and promoting local events.

By Ranger Steve Mueller

 Headwaters Saga

A grand saga in the headwaters of nature’s water flow begins where streams first gather water in rivulets. Springs seep from Ody Brook’s stream bank (here in Cedar Springs) creating channels full of aquatic life year around. Upstream, the creek will sometimes extend a mile in meanders like wild strands of hair with split ends. By August no water is found in rivulets upstream except immediately following a heavy rain.

It is my joy and privilege to live where perennial flow starts and holds a wonderland of life. The flow slows to a trickle in the year’s driest weeks but I have stood chest deep in water after 12 inches of rain gathered on the floodplain one fall nearly 25 years ago. Water flooded portions of streets, homes and some businesses in town that year but in spring brings good flow that annually allows trout to migrate in cold water upstream to Ody Brook.

Water will normally rise and fall a foot or two in headwaters, but downstream, runoff from surrounding land regularly creates wide fluctuations in flow. Homes along the Grand River become threatened and inundated when water leaves our small community’s landscape and from neighboring communities to jointly create floodwaters. Water races from impervious roofs, driveways and through drain tiles buried in farm fields in braided streams rapidly increasing flow in rivers. People that live downstream and buy farm crop produce area farms. They also unexpectedly receive increased floodwater from farm fields lined with drain tiles and from added impervious roof, drives, and parking lots.

Birds nesting on the ground or low in streamside shrubs do not foresee coming floodwaters and often lose their homes and offspring. Mice and other mammals nesting streamside lose choice real estate and their families when it becomes necessary to swim for high ground. Increasingly people are forced to higher ground along the downstream rivers when more land in upstream communities is covered with impervious surfaces, filled, or drained. Communities sometimes recognize the impact of development and work to reduce negative impacts for downstream neighbors.

A few years ago the township recognized the value of breaking drainage tiles in abandoned farmlands east of town that were originally wetlands. When drain tiles were installed, native wetlands disappeared along with ducks, geese, kingfishers and other water-loving animals. With that drainage, nature’s flood control was reduced. The recent breaking of drain tiles allowed water to return to former wetlands and was quickly homesteaded by descendents of long dead relatives that had made the wetland home decades earlier. Bird watchers, duck hunters, and the many who revel in the sound of wings, quacks, honks, and frog songs find headwater restoration good. It helps prevent wild water fluctuations downstream and saves the lives of birds, mammals, insects, many plants, and reduces the flood hazard for people living downstream.

Some prefer foregoing flood protection for downstream wildlife or human inhabitants in preference for creating drier fields to grow produce to feed an ever-growing human population. More than 50 percent of Michigan’s wetlands have been drained to meet human wants so the battle of land stewardship continues regarding protection or elimination of wetlands.

Many prefer to share space and time with wild creatures and to protect human and wildlife homes from human caused flooding. In headwaters where I live, wood ducks, green herons, green frogs, and even trout thrive. The trout are limited to spring high water and move downstream during drier summer conditions. The upland and stream floodplain are now full of wild life that rejuvenates my spirit. I write wild life instead of wildlife because wild creatures now live here that could not when a previous owner cared for the land. Back then most of the upland was mowed and the vegetation on the floodplain was cleared to stream’s edge. Today, mowed areas have been reduced so wild plants reclaimed the landscape allowing life that is wild to return to native Nature Niches found here decades ago.

Natural history questions or topic suggestions can be directed to Ranger Steve (Mueller) at the odybrook@chartermi.net Ody Brook, 13010 Northland Dr, Cedar Springs, MI 49319-8433.

Or call 616-696-1753.

From the Montcalm County Neighborhood Watch

With fluctuating temperatures this season, ice on area lakes has not had an opportunity to freeze to a safe thickness. A few precautions and safe habits may prevent a tragedy.

Observe the ice

Look for cracks, breaks, weak spots, depressions, or abnormal surfaces. Avoid going out on the ice, if you see flowing water near or at the edges of the ice or ice that appears to have thawed and refrozen. Ice covered by snow should always be presumed unsafe.

Know what the color means

Color alone should not be solely relied upon. Light gray to dark black means ice is melting. White to opaque ice means that water-saturated snow has frozen on top of ice, forming another thin ice layer, which generally means the ice is weak. Blue to clear indicates the ice is at its highest density and very strong. Clear ice is the strongest.

Test the thickness

Four inches of ice will generally hold an average-sized person on foot. Snowmobiles and ORVs need at least eight inches of solid, consistent ice. When testing ice take at least one other person with you. Also wear a flotation device and use ropes that others can pull on if something goes wrong.

From the Michigan Audubon Society

The Trumpeter Swan is the only native swan that breeds in Michigan. At four and a half feet tall, weighing upwards of 30 pounds with a wingspan exceeding seven feet, it is the world’s largest species of waterfowl. It is also a long-lived species commonly reaching a life expectancy of 20-30 years.

Although their life expectancy is good, the Trumpeter Swan is a Michigan threatened species due to challenges in its life history.  It was widely believed that by 1900 the species had become extinct. Trumpeter Swans were excessively hunted for their skin and long flight feathers.  Additionally, the boom of the Industrial Revolution and the consumption of wetland habitats caused a large decline in population numbers. Only a small population survived in remote parts of the Rocky Mountains and Alaska.

The Trumpeter Swan is the only swan native to Michigan. It is the largest species of waterfowl in the world. Photo by Corey Gildersleeve.

In the 1980’s, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources (MDNR) along with like-minded conservation groups started a swan reintroduction program as part of the North American Restoration Plan. The goal was to have three self-sustaining populations in Michigan of at least 200 swans by the year 2000. Many hours were spent rearing young cygnets until they reached two years of age; at that time they were released into the wild in hopes to rebuild the population. Michigan Audubon’s Phyllis Haehnle Memorial Sanctuary and Bernard W. Baker Sanctuary were a few of the original release sites for these magnificent birds.

The program was a success. In 2000, over 400 individual Trumpeter Swans were counted in Michigan. “One of the greatest successes in the reintroduction program was the availability of quality, natural nesting areas in Michigan,” says Peggy Ridgway, former Michigan Audubon President.

Today, Michigan has over 500 Trumpeter Swans; the numbers look promising but they are still a threatened species in Michigan. Population numbers are challenged by competition for breeding territory, loss of vegetation and invasive species, such as the Mute Swan.

Fortunately, there are three locations in Michigan that are well populated with Trumpeter Swans. Schoolcraft County/Seney National Wildlife Refuge in the Upper Peninsula is home to half of the Trumpeter Swan population in the state. The four-county region of Oscoda, Alcona, Ogemaw and Iosco counties in the Northern Lower Peninsula have great viewing numbers, according to Ridgway, “There are currently 130 plus Trumpeter Swans at the Westgate Overlook along the Au Sable River in Iosco County.” Additionally, several counties in southwest Michigan have also established good Trumpeter Swan populations. Trumpeter Swans are residents of several Michigan Audubon Bird Sanctuaries, including Baker, Haehnle, Otis Farm and Riverbank.

Barb Avers, MDNR, suggests a few ways to help increase Trumpeter Swan populations. “Join a wetland/waterfowl conservation organization, like Michigan Audubon, that helps fund conservation efforts, volunteer on a public wetland restoration project or if possible, restore wetlands on your property.”

You can also help by entering any Trumpeter Swan observations into www.ebird.org, where agency and non-profit conservation organizations like Michigan Audubon can access this information.

First time in nearly 50 years

The Department of Natural Resources has announced anglers will be allowed to fish from shore on the Red Cedar River on the campus of Michigan State University for the first time since an ordinance to ban fishing was passed in the 1960s.

In December 2012, the MSU board of trustees approved a change to that ordinance, permitting hook-and-line fishing on the north bank of the river between the western edge of Brody Complex and the Sparty Bridge. Previously, the river was off-limits to shore fishing because the entire campus of MSU is considered a preserve and, therefore, hunting, fishing and gathering were not allowed. Additionally, there were safety concerns about fishing along the riverbank and bridges due to the amount of pedestrian traffic.

Fishing within the designated area will be allowed during a three-year test period. Available species will include steelhead and suckers in the spring, smallmouth bass in the summer, salmon in the fall, and a host of other native species. “Hopefully, students and citizens will take advantage of this new angling access and opportunity over the next three years and find that it is a successful location,” said Jim Dexter, chief of the DNR’s Fisheries Division. “If so, it would be well worth future consideration to extend access on the Red Cedar.”

The Southern Lake Michigan Management Unit is currently working on a DNR management prescription to stock 3,000 steelhead in the Red Cedar this spring, further enhancing future angling opportunities on campus.
A fishing license is required to fish this section of the Red Cedar. If anglers plan to target trout and/or salmon, they will need to purchase an all-species license.

For more information on fishing in Michigan, visit www.michigan.gov/fishing.

Outdoor recreation doesn’t stop in the winter; for some folks, it intensifies. But because of weather conditions, going outdoors for fun in the winter can require even more attention to safety than at other times of the year. A simple case of getting wet or getting turned around in the woods is much more significant when the thermometer reading is into the single digits. Department of Natural Resources conservation officers remind snowmobilers, off-road vehicle (ORV) riders, hikers, cross-country skiers and fishermen to pay close attention to safety as they pursue outdoor winter hobbies. Their best advice? Make sure someone knows where you’re going, what you’re doing and when you’ll be back.

A Department of Natural Resources conservation officer checks in with riders while on snowmobile patrol in Alger County.

“Always tell someone where you are going,” said Cpl. John Morey, the DNR’s off-road vehicle and snowmobile coordinator. “Tell them your planned travel route and expected time of arrival or return,” he said. “Then, if someone is overdue, whoever has the travel plan can contact 911 and give responders a chance to get out and look for them right away.”

With nearly 6,500 miles of designated snowmobile trails and more than 11,000 inland lakes that offer an appealing frozen surface during the winter – Michigan is one of the top destinations for snowmobile enthusiasts in the Midwest. And although ORVs are often thought of as fair-weather vehicles, they remain popular with some sportsmen who use them during all seasons to get to backwoods hunting or fishing destinations. The two modes of transportation are not always compatible.

“Conflict arises when ORVs operate on a designated snowmobile trail,” Morey explained. “That is not permitted unless it’s designated as an ORV trail as well. In most places, especially in the Lower Peninsula, snowmobile trails are snowmobile trails, not ORV trails.” He noted that many but not all Upper Peninsula snowmobile trails are also designated ORV trails. “It’s the rider’s responsibility to know whether where he’s going is legal for his intended activity,” he said. “Ensure the area in which you intend to operate your snowmobile or ORV is legally open to such activity.”

Morey cautioned riders to make sure their machine is properly registered and that operators are properly licensed.
“Anyone whose driver’s license is suspended or revoked may not operate a snowmobile or ORV,” Morey said. “Youngsters who are less than 17 must be under direct adult supervision (someone 21 years of age or older) to operate a snowmobile, unless they are in possession of a snowmobile safety certificate. “And youngsters under 12 may not cross a road on a snowmobile.”

Morey said that while most safety rules for snowmobile and ORV riders are common sense, they bear repeating. For instance:

• Always wear a helmet.

• Slow down.

• Dress appropriately and wear proper safety equipment (gloves, boots, goggles, etc.).

• Keep your lights on.

• Stay to the right.

• Properly maintain your machine.

• Check the weather conditions.

• Only carry passengers if the machine is designed to do so.

• Carry basic safety and rescue gear – including a cell phone.

• Use the buddy system: always travel with someone else.

Ice fishing is a popular tradition for many Michigan residents, and taking precautions to keep safe is an important part of that tradition. Department of Natural Resources conservation officers routinely patrol the ice to check in with anglers.

Although lakes are highly attractive to snowmobile and ORV users, the DNR says that people should never assume that ice is safe.
“Breaking through the ice is a common occurrence,” Morey said. “People go into areas where they are unfamiliar with the ice conditions, like in areas with current or under bridges where the ice is thinner. Don’t! Know what the ice conditions are and the only way to do that with certainty is to get out and check them for yourself.”
Morey said ice should be checked on foot, as you make your way out. Avoid areas where the ice is discolored or there is vegetation or objects sticking up through it. Use a spud to punch the ice ahead of you (to make sure it is safe) as you walk and carry a rope in case someone should break through. It is also recommended that anglers carry spikes—usually encased in wood or plastic cylinders for handles—so they can grasp the ice with them should they break through. Breaking through the ice into freezing water is an extremely serious situation. Anyone who finds himself immersed in icy water must get his head above the surface immediately, get breathing under control and attempt to breathe normally, and work on getting out. Get to good ice—generally in the direction from which you came—and get your arms up on the ice. Use your arms to pull your upper body onto the ice while you kick your legs in a swimming motion. (This is where ice spikes help greatly.) If you can get out, initially roll or crawl along the ice. Do not get back on your feet right away. Ensure you are on safe ice, and then immediately walk toward heated shelter. If you are unable to get out, reach out as far as you can, hold on, and yell for help.

If you see someone fall through the ice, make sure you do not put yourself at risk when attempting to assist them. “Call 911 immediately,” Morey said.

When attempting to reach someone who has fallen through the ice, distribute your body weight by lying on the ice and toss a rope or reach for them with a pole, branch stick or ladder, which works very well. Do not compound the problem by breaking through the ice yourself.

Morey said there’s no need for Michiganders to hibernate all winter. “Outdoor recreation can be enjoyable, invigorating and fun, but for it to be any of those things,” he said, “it must also be, first and foremost, safe.” To learn more about recreation safety, including class offerings in traditional and online settings, visit www.michigan.gov/recreationalsafety or www.dnr.state.mi.us/recnsearch/.

Hunters will see new signs like these posted on properties that participate in the Department of Natural Resources’ Hunting Access Program. HAP provides greater access to hunting opportunities on private land, especially in southern Michigan. Photo by Michigan DNR.

Michigan’s Hunting Access Program (HAP)—a long-time Department of Natural Resources offering that provides hunters with more places to hunt—had been slipping into oblivion in recent years, but seems to have found a new lease on life. In fact, the latest news is pretty encouraging.

HAP, which began in the late 1970s as a way to give hunters access to private property in southern Michigan, at one time boasted more than 790 farms totaling 188,000 acres. In 2011, HAP included just 45 farms offering some 7,400 acres.

A year later, however, after the DNR decided to reinvigorate the program, HAP includes more than 150 farms that encompass 17,032-plus acres—and all of it accessible to Michigan hunters.

“I could hardly keep up with it,” said Mike Parker, a DNR wildlife biologist who works in the private lands program and oversees HAP. “I was overwhelmed, but it was also a really good problem to have.”

Returning from a successful hunt on a participating mid-Michigan Hunting Access Program farm. Note the yellow “Safety Zone” sign in the background, clearly depicting the boundary of the HAP hunting area. Photo by Michigan DNR.

HAP began in 1977 when Michigan United Conservation Clubs lobbied the Legislature to create a “public access to private land” program. The Legislature responded by passing a law that required every hunter who lived in southern Michigan to purchase a Public Access Stamp, with the money earmarked to lease private farmland for hunters.

Although the Legislature soon changed the program—dropping the stamp requirement and funding it, instead, with a portion of the money raised from the sale of hunting licenses to southern Michigan hunters—the concept took off, peaking in 1982. But it soon went into long-term decline as the idea of leasing land caught on with the hunting public and hunters were often willing to “outbid” the DNR for access rights.

The program rocked along, losing ground, as hunter numbers decreased. Former DNR Director Becky Humphries formed the Hunter Retention and Recruitment Work Group to address decreasing hunter numbers. When the group identified a lack of access to hunting land as a prime cause for decreasing license sales, revisiting the HAP program seemed like a no-brainer.

Although DNR budgets were tight, a provision in the 2007 federal Farm Bill created a program under the U.S. Department of Agriculture to help fund state efforts to provide more hunting access. The DNR applied for a Voluntary Public Access Grant and was awarded $900,000 for three years to expand HAP.

The DNR’s Parker—who at the time was working as a regional biologist with Pheasants Forever—was part of the recruitment and retention work group and helped the DNR write the grant. Soon after, he was hired to coordinate the HAP program. Parker immediately identified one of the key road blocks: payments to landowners were too low.

“We were not paying competitive lease rates,” Parker said. “The rates we were paying had not been increased since 1996, and they probably were not competitive in 1996. We are paying competitive lease rates now.”

 Greater flexibility for landowners

In addition, the DNR changed the types of hunting rights it was leasing. In the past, landowners were required to allow all types of hunting on the property. Now, property owners can determine the types of hunting rights they wish to lease.

“We increased the flexibility for landowners,” Parker explained. “We gave them options to choose from. They could lease us rights to all hunting, youth or apprentice only, small game only, deer only or turkey only. This increased flexibility was very well received by landowners and really helped us add farms that we would not have enrolled otherwise.”

The highest rates are paid to those landowners who lease all rights, and payment rates decrease as access becomes more restricted. All-hunting leases are the most popular option among landowners.

“The majority of our farms are all-hunting, though lately we’ve been picking up quite a few youth and apprentice farms,” Parker said.

Parked noted there are also some small-game-only farms, but the bulk are all-hunting. Some landowners who have chosen small game or turkey limit the lease rights because they want to reserve deer hunting for friends and family members who like to hunt their property.

“I thought it would be the opposite – that people would want to lease out the deer-hunting rights so they could still hunt small game, and we would help pick up the tab for the damage the deer cause,” Parker explained. “But it hasn’t happened that way.”

Now that the bulk of Michigan deer season has passed, HAP properties will appeal mostly to late-season small game hunters pursuing rabbits, squirrels and Canada geese – though archery deer hunters and late-season antlerless deer hunters have until Jan. 1 to participate. Pheasant season runs through Jan. 1 in much of southern Michigan, too.

Better opportunities for hunters

Access to HAP farms is available in two ways. At most, there is a self-service box at the farm for hunters to register. Other farmers require a mandatory check-in where hunters actually knock on the door and get direct permission from the landowner, Parker said.

“Something we’ve tried to do is make the program more hunter-friendly,” he continued. “Our new website lists all the farms in the program and they’re all listed in Mi-HUNT, which includes aerial photos of the properties,” he said. “So a hunter can sit at home in his living room and scout the property and devise a strategy of how he might want to hunt it. I think those aerial photos will really help hunters.”

Parker said he had focused on signing up farms for HAP that were already enrolled in other Farm Bill programs—such as the Conservation Reserve Program—to help ensure the land supports game animals.

“The benefit to that is we’re getting high-quality wildlife habitat,” he said. “I’m thrilled with the quality of these new farms and the hunting opportunities they will provide.

“Response from hunters thus far has been very positive and I’ve heard multiple great success stories, including a young girl who harvested a dandy 9-point buck with her bow,” Parker added. “For me, providing opportunities like this that allow hunters to enjoy the outdoors and help maintain our hunting heritage is what the program is all about.”

Parker said he plans to conduct extensive surveys of both landowners and hunters after the season to get a sense for what worked, what didn’t and what could be improved for the future. The Hunting Access Program has re-emerged as a worthwhile resource for hunters in southern Michigan, and the DNR is working to keep it that way.

To learn more about the Hunting Access Program, visit www.michigan.gov/hap. To explore hunting opportunities and land resources available through the DNR, visit www.michigan.gov/hunting or www.michigan.gov/mihunt.

Do you love watching the birds? Join the 113th Annual Christmas Bird Count with the Grand Rapids Audubon Club, Saturday, December 29 at 7:30 a.m. at the Wittenbach/Wege Center at 11715 Vergennes, Lowell, Michigan.

The Christmas Bird Count entices families, students, birders and scientists, armed with binoculars, bird guides and checklists to leave the comfort of a warm house during the holiday season to venture out in search of birds. Yes, birds! This annual mission has been conducted for over 100 years by dedicated people with the desire to both make a difference and to experience the beauty of nature. Audubon and other organizations use data collected in this longest-running wildlife census to assess the health of bird populations and to help guide conservation action. You can get involved!

Local bird enthusiasts will depart from the Wittenbach/Wege Center at 8:00 a.m. returning around noon for a brown bag lunch. Participants can leave after lunch or continue the census. At 5:00 p.m., section findings will be tallied back at the Wittenbach/Wege Center.

Since the Christmas Bird Count began over a century ago, it has relied on the dedication and commitment of volunteer citizen scientists. In other words, it all starts with you! For more information, please call either Tom Leggett at (616) 249-3382 or e-mail: tomleggett@hotmail.com or Ranger Steve (Mueller) at (616) 696-1753 or e-mail: odybrook@chartermi.net.

The Michigan Department of Natural Resources is reminding snowmobilers of changes to the snowmobile trail signage system on state trails, including the addition of five new sign types and the elimination of 10 sign types used in past years.

The changes were implemented based on recommendations submitted by a DNR citizens’ advisory workgroup, comprised of motorized trail users, trail maintenance organizations, members of the DNR’s Snowmobile Advisory Workgroup and the Michigan Snowmobile Association. Technical support for the workgroup was provided by recreation and law enforcement staff from the DNR and the U.S. Forest Service.

“The changes to the motorized trail signage program are the result of a collaborative process with stakeholder groups and should be a real improvement for trail users,” said Ron Olson, chief of the DNR’s Parks and Recreation Division. “The sign reductions will result in less clutter along the trails and provide for more consistency statewide.”

The workgroup’s recommended changes are designed to improve safety on Michigan’s 6,400 miles of designated snowmobile trails and provide consistent guidance to the 68 nonprofit organizations that partner with the DNR to maintain the trail system.

“Several of the other snowmobile states, and Ontario, have reduced their trail signs and have seen a reduction in accidents. Our objective is to provide a safe, family-oriented trail system for snowmobiling in Michigan,” said Bill Manson, executive director of the Michigan Snowmobile Association.

The following signs have been eliminated and will be removed from state snowmobile trails: Bridge Ahead, Chevron, Deer Crossing, Drift Area, Narrow Bridge, Narrow Trail, Trail Crossing, Truck Traffic, Two Way Trail, Winding Trail.

New signs added to state snowmobile trails in 2012 include:

*Combination Horizontal Alignment/Intersection (left and right). Bright yellow signs with directional arrows give notice of changes in horizontal trail alignment of less than 90 degrees where an intersection occurs within or immediately adjacent to a turn.

*Private Drives Ahead. Warn trail users where driveways cross a snowmobile trail.

*One-Direction Large Arrow (left and right). Large yellow, reflective signs (10 x 12 inches) with a black arrow and border give notice of changes in horizontal trail alignment of 90 degrees or more

*Next (number of) Miles. A supplemental sign that may be used below “Private Drives Ahead” sign to indicate how long the stretch of private drives runs.

*Trail Closed to Wheeled Motor Vehicles Ahead. Used on state or federal land prior to the point where a designated state snowmobile trail enters private property where the use of wheeled motorized vehicles is prohibited.

The DNR will continue to mark 90-degree turns with “sharp turn” warning signs supplemented with a new directional arrow.

For illustrations of the signs that will be used to mark Michigan’s snowmobile trails and more information about snowmobiling in Michigan, including trail maps with downloadable GPS coordinates, visit www.michigan.gov/snowmobiling.

From the Michigan Audubon Society

The Northern Bobwhite is an important and historically interesting bird to Michigan. The Northern Bobwhite, also known as the quail, is a non-migratory ground-dwelling bird found primarily in the Southeastern Lower Peninsula (SLP). While the Bobwhite is more common in southern and eastern states and Mexico, Michigan serves as its northern range.

The bird gets its name from is distinctive whistle, “bob white!” It is a small chicken like bird that stands around 9-12 inches tall and weighs an average of six ounces. The males tend to be larger than the females and are more vibrantly colored, although both genders share tones of brown, buff and grey.

The Northern Bobwhite is the only species of quail in Michigan. This species has struggled with population growth and in the 1970s saw a dramatic decline in numbers, up to 90 percent in some ranges. Major contributors to population decline include the industrialized farming industry and severe winter conditions.

Industrialized farming ridded the bobwhites of their habitat by turning small family farms into large corporate farms, removing habitat variety.  Bobwhites stay within 0.5-1 mile of their natal area and prefer early successional habitats, including active and fallow crop fields, pastures, old fields, native grasslands, hedgerows, brushy fencerows and woodlands with grass and forb ground cover. Since they are non-migratory birds, severe winters have a huge impact on population numbers. Without proper habitat cover, many bobwhites fall victim to freezing temperatures and large snowfalls.

Management of Northern Bobwhites has been implemented in many states. In Michigan, private landowners hold 97 percent of the bobwhite’s range.

Management plans and milder winters have helped numbers steadily grow in the last few decades. Proper management allows Michigan to still have a hunting season for Northern Bobwhites. The season lasts roughly three weeks from mid-November to mid-December in only 27 counties in the SLP. “Interestingly enough, this is Michigan’s only Red List [near threatened] bird that is a game species and has a hunting season,” explains Tom Funke, Michigan Audubon’s Conservation Director.

While the bird is elusive by nature, population growth has increased sightings in Michigan and has demonstrated that effective management and research does pay off. Hopefully soon the Northern Bobwhite can go from a red listed, near threatened species, to a species of least concern.