Great Lakes Echo (https://greatlakesecho.org/tag/wildlife/page/11/)
LANSING, Mich. — Hunting may soon have new guidance if the state Department of Natural Reseources and Environment approves its draft deer management plan.
The plan to manage 1.8 million deer goes to the agency director, Rebecca Humphries, on April 8.
Final approval would come on May 6; the agency would begin implementing parts of the plan immediately.
The first falconry field meet in North America was in 1938 in Pennsylvania. It’s a sport that continues to be cherished throughout the Great Lakes states.
“It’s like a front row seat to an I-max movie to nature,” said Kory Koch, communications director of the Michigan Hawking Club.
Little Black Creek in Muskegon, Mich., has a long history of abuse. And one of the stream’s biggest threats rushes in every time it rains. Rain is shunted into storm drains that lead straight to the stream.
Facing an inhospitable habitat, fish have to move or die, says Bryan Pijanowski of Purdue University. “Some of the fish live in aquatic systems that are completely compartmentalized – they’re dammed off,” he says. “So they can’t move.”
By Megan Durisin
Jan. 25, 2010
LANSING, Mich. — A new bill would increase hunting opportunities by annually auctioning off five bear and elk licenses. Rep. Jim Stamas, R-Midland, the primary sponsor and vice chair of the House Tourism, Outdoor Recreation and Natural Resources Committee, said the aim is two-fold. “We’re trying to find a way to help lower the licensing fees for those in state,” Stamas said.
The Great Lakes states are home to 155 coal-fired power plants that discharge wastewater into local lakes and streams. That wastewater can carry heavy metals and other dangerous contaminants, and has gone largely unregulated for the past 27 years. Now the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is preparing to step in with new rules to fend off environmental concerns. Join the Great Lakes Echo for a four-day series unpacking the problems with power plant wastewater in the Great Lakes. Day 1. Great Lakes states spotty on coal limits; some water contaminants ignored. Day 2.
By Nick Mordowanec
Dec. 13, 2009
LANSING, Mich. — Ever since the emerald ash borer swept through Michigan in the summer of 2002, the state has spent tens of millions of dollars to subdue it. But the exotic beetle thought to have come to the United States through airplane or ship cargo remains rampant. Adult beetles cause minimal damage by nibbling on foliage, but the larvae feed on the inner bark of trees, disrupting nutrient and water flow.
By Mehak Bansil
Nov. 27, 2009
LANSING–Lake sturgeon, one of the oldest surviving species from prehistoric times, is making a small comeback in the Great Lakes region. “They’ve increased about a couple of percent since their lowest numbers, but at least the populations aren’t going down anymore,” said Bruce Manny, a fishery biologist for the U.S. Geological Survey’s Great Lakes Science Center in Ann Arbor. The increase is due in part to a spawning project in Black Lake, an inland lake in Cheboygan County. According to a report in the Journal of Applied Ichthyology, 40 percent of the lake sturgeon released into Black Lake as part of the project survived their first winter, but Manny said, there are no estimates on the actual number due to a lack of comprehensive studies.
What do cologne and Indiana’s great blue herons have in common? They both contain chemicals that are increasingly worrisome to Great Lakes officials. A list of contaminants of emerging concern includes synthetic musks and perfluorinated compounds, or PFCs. Musks are a key ingredient of perfume. PFCs have had a bevy of industrial uses including fire-fighting foams and stain-resistant Scotchgard.
Click each park to see its threats. View Great Lakes Parks in Peril in a larger map
By Haley Walker and Yang Zhang
Nov. 4, 2009
Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore is among U.S. national parks most vulnerable to climate change, according to a recent report. The park on the southern end of Lake Michigan faces an increase in flooding, overcrowding and air pollution and a loss of wildlife, plants and fish. Other parks in the Great Lakes region are also at risk of these effects.