Michigan Audubon Society
Kirtland's Warbler
The tiny Kirtland's Warbler isn't Michigan's official state bird, but for all practical purposes-in the hearts and minds of many state residents, from youngsters in school to senior birdwatchers in the field-it is just that. Once living on the brink of extinction, the Kirtland's Warbler has taken some steps toward recovery, yet it remains on the endangered list. A few counties in the northern Lower Peninsula represent its primary nesting area, but in recent years some nesting pairs have been spotted in the Upper Peninsula, as well as in Wisconsin and Ontario. The Kirtland's Warbler winters in the Bahamas.
Michigan Audubon is working with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and U.S. Forest Service to survey Michigan's Upper Peninsula for nesting Kirtland's Warblers. Kirtland's Warblers have been growing in numbers and have recently expanded their range into Michigan's Upper Peninsula. Numerous volunteers, coordinated through our conservation director, will fan out across the UP in search of nesting Kirtland's. If you are interested in volunteering, surveys take place the second week of June 2010. Contact Thomas Funke, Conservation Director, for more information.
Additional information about the Kirtland's Warbler and conservation efforts is available from these sites:
- Kirtland's Warbler Species Page (Michigan Department of Natural Resources)
- Sightings in Breeding Season (Michigan Department of Natural Resources)
- Comprehensive Conservation Plan (U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service)
- Rare Experiences - An Elusive Warbler in Michigan by John Pancake (National Wildlife, Aug./Sept. 2009)
- Kirtland's Warbler: Jacked About Pines by Sarah Rockwell (Smithsonian National Zoological Park, December 2008)
- The Secret Life of the Kirtland's Warbler by Chuck Hagner (Nature Conservancy, Spring 2006)
