Volunteers are needed to plant jack pine trees to help the Kirtland’s warbler on the third annual Jack Pine Planting Day sponsored by the Kirtland’s Warbler Alliance and Huron Pines in partnership with the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, Fairmont Santrol and Saving Birds Thru Habitat.This year’s event will be held Saturday, May 7. Volunteers will gather at the northeast corner of Crawford County Road 612 and Manistee River Road at 9 a.m. with the goal of planting about 2,300 trees over a 2-acre site in about three hours. The site is about approximately 4 miles west of Frederic, Michigan.
“The goal of this event is to help people connect to the Kirtland’s warbler by giving back,” said Abigail Ertel, community program lead for Huron Pines. “There’s a real sense of satisfaction in doing something concrete to help a species so unique to our region of Michigan and a beacon of healthy resource management. Imagine how awesome it feels to see a Kirtland’s warbler sitting in a tree that you personally planted or think of a Kirtland’s nesting under the branches of a tree that you planted.”
Those unfamiliar with the Kirtland’s warbler should know that this rare bird is a Michigan conservation success story. The tiny warbler spends its summers in the northern Michigan jack pines and winters in the Bahamas. In the mid-1980s the species teetered on the brink of extinction with a population estimated at fewer than 400 birds. Today, the population is estimated at more than 4,000 birds because of good stewardship by partners like the Michigan DNR, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the U.S. Forest Service.
Still, the Kirtland’s warbler depends on us to create new habitat. This Jack Pine Planting Day is an effort to connect people with the “why” and “how” behind jack pine management by the DNR and the Forest Service. It’s also an opportunity for people to do something tangible for a bird that is such an important part of the jack pine ecosystem and northeastern Michigan’s economy.
“This is an opportunity to do something that makes a difference,” Ertel said. The DNR annually cuts and replants hundreds of acres of jack pine forests in northeast Michigan to support a variety of wildlife including wild turkey, snowshoe hare, white-tailed deer, upland sandpiper and of course the Kirtland’s warbler. As part of the process, the DNR now reserves 2 acres for volunteers to plant.
Volunteers should know that early May weather is unpredictable, so please dress according to the weather forecast. No matter the weather, volunteers must wear sturdy boots as they will be stepping over old tree stumps, limbs and trenches. Work gloves are optional but helpful. The level of effort is considered moderate; there is no heavy lifting, but there is considerable bending, stooping and digging.
Coffee and snacks will be provided onsite by M&M Excavating, and volunteers will receive a 10-percent discount at the Frederic Inn—a local restaurant—for lunch after the event. RSVPs are kindly requested by emailing rsvp@huronpines.org or by calling 989-448-2293, ext. 21. Please RSVP by Friday, April 29.
Huron Pines is a nonprofit organization with a mission to protect the Great Lakes by conserving the forests, lakes and streams of Northeast Michigan. Learn more about our work to benefit our region’s water, wildlife and communities and get involved at www.huronpines.org/events.
The Kirtland’s Warbler Alliance is dedicated to raising awareness of support for the Kirtland’s Warbler and the conservation programs necessary for the health of the species and jack pine forests where it nests. The Alliance meets this mission a developing and administering a variety outreach programs, developing strategic partnership and dedicated fundraising efforts. Learn more at www.kirtlandswarbler.org.
