The Michigan Department of Natural Resources has invited the public to comment on the state Wildlife Action Plan for rare wildlife conservation.
Michigan is home to a variety of unique, vulnerable species that rely on rare habitats that exist almost exclusively in the state. The goal of the plan is to protect these declining species and their habitats. Now they are giving residents across Michigan a chance to weigh in on the plan’s strategy.
Tony Henehan, the state Wildlife Action Plan coordinator with the DNR, said the plan is the state’s roadmap and conservation strategy for rare species.
The plan outlines the species of greatest conservation need. Henehan said these could be species already listed in the last 10-year action plan, ones on the decline the department is proactively looking to protect, and animals the DNR doesn’t know much about and needs to investigate further.
Each chapter of the plan is broken up by habitats, including rivers and lakes as well as wetlands, marshes, caves, islands, grasslands, and four kinds of forests.
The central goal of the plan is to build off of past successes from the previous plan (2015-2025), Henehan said. “But we know that restoring rare species takes time.”
For example, in the beginning of the 20th century, white tailed deer were considered a rare sighting in the north, he said. “We’ve been working on restoring the species for the last hundred years, and today I think we can say we’ve accomplished that goal."
Here are some (but not all) of the rare species that the Wildlife Plan highlights:
- Turtles: Spotted, Wood, Eastern box, Blanding’s
- Butterflies: Mitchell's satyr, Karner blue
- Eastern massasauga snake
- Yellow-banded bumblebee
- Bats: Tricolored, Long-eared, Little brown
- Fish: Arctic greyling, Lake Sturgeon
For this iteration of the plan, Heneham said the DNR has introduced species of plants for the first time.
“This plan is about protecting the unique fish and wildlife that call Michigan home. Not just because they’re rare, but because they’re a reflection of the health of our forests, waters and communities,” said Henehan in a press release from the DNR. “Whether you care about native pollinators, rare birds, or just want future generations to enjoy clean water and great outdoor recreation, this plan matters.”
It takes a village
The DNR works with organizations such as the Michigan Nature Association, zoos across the state, universities and researchers, land conservancies, tribal governments, other state agencies as well as federal agencies on accomplishing the objectives of the 10-year plan.
Heneham said he has seen a variety of changes in Michigan wildlife over the years, both good and bad. One positive outcome was the removal of the Kirtland's warbler off of the rare species list. According to Heneham, the DNR had been working on protecting and restoring the rarest migratory songbird in North America for the past 30 years.
Some long-lived species such as turtles don't respond to impacts on their environment until about 20 to 30 years after the events, Heneham continued. “What we are seeing now is what we call a lag effect." Now the turtles are declining and facing population-level threats as they respond to impacts that occurred in the past.
“It really is a spectrum,” Heneham said. “Some species are declining, and we’re trying to work on understanding why, and some species are getting off the ground and we’re doing well with them. We really understand what’s going on and we’re putting a lot of effort into doing the things that need to be done.”
Many of the rare species included in the plan are focused in the southern Lower Peninsula, according to Heneham. This is because more species are able to live in that environment compared to the northern half, resulting in a greater amount of diversity.
The main component that causes species decline is urban and industrial development, which results in a loss of habitat and negatively impacts the animals living there. “Increased development and increased biodiversity just means you're going to have more rare species in that area,” Heneham said.
Heneham said that by the amount of development and population in the Midwest is expected to only grow larger in the next few decades, so human impact will continue to play a huge role on the wildlife in Michigan.
“I think the saying ‘it takes a village’ is extremely apt when it comes to rare species conservation, because these species aren’t just on state lands. They’re on private land, and people have different expertises and different resources to accomplish our goals,” Heneham said.
Residents have the opportunity to give feedback on the plan, and the 2025 chapters are available for public review by going to the Department of Natural resources website. Heneham is also accepting emails to further discuss any comments residents have on the content of the plan.
Public feedback is due September 12.
