Great Lakes Echo (https://greatlakesecho.org/tag/wildlife/page/12/)
Alewives are a Great Lakes invasive fish that baffle native fish reproduction but give imported Pacific salmon — the target of a profitable fishery — something to eat. What’s a Great Lakes fishery manager to do? Sept. 2, 2009
Alewives: Should Great Lakes managers kill ‘em or keep ‘em? Fishery managers have made little progress in restoring lake trout, the Great Lakes’ dominant predator until the species collapsed in the 1940s and 1950s.
(MI) Detroit Free Press – The state Department of Natural Resources last week reminded northern Michigan residents that yearling bear cubs are on the loose — and that means extra precautions. This is the time of year mother bears leave their cubs in preparation for the breeding season. The young bears are attracted to food sources in yards. More
(MI) The Flint Journal – The under-construction former Durant Hotel may not seem like the most romantic rendezvous spot — but that’s where peregrine falcons Barry and Majestic were found nesting a few weeks ago. And their chick, who was born on the downtown landmark’s ledge, has kind of become a University of Michigan-Flint mascot. She was aptly named Maize. More
By Allison Bush, bushalli@msu.edu
Great Lakes Echo
June 2, 2009
Environmental groups praise a New York Supreme Court justice’s recent decision to uphold that state’s new ballast water treatment requirements, and the shippers say that the standard is just too high. But they both agree on one thing: There should be some federal action taken to regulate ballast water. Ballast water is carried in ships to provide stability. It is taken on when a ship unloads cargo and is discharged when it is loaded up again. It has been blamed for carrying from foreign ports many of the invasive plants and animals altering the Great Lakes ecosystem.
By Jeff Gillies, gilliesj@msu.edu
Great Lakes Echo
June 1, 2009
A mysterious ailment that’s already wiped out more than a million North American bats is headed to critical Great Lakes hibernation sites. White-nose Syndrome, named for the tufts of fungus growing on the faces and wings of afflicted bats, was first spotted in New York in February 2006. The disease has since spread through New England, Pennsylvania and Virginia. Conservationists worry it could spread as far as Mexico. “As quick as it has spread, it’s most likely going to hit the Great Lakes region within one to two years, potentially wiping out 90 percent of bats that hibernate in the region,” said Rob Mies, director of the Michigan-based Organization for Bat Conservation.
(WI) Milwaukee Journal Sentinel – Jody Barbeau wades into a shallow pond in woods less than a mile from shoppers at Mayfair Mall and commuters on congested U.S. Highway 45 – to glimpse a bustling community of other creatures. Two mallard ducks cautiously paddle away from Barbeau, but there is no indication of aquatic life until he lifts a net out of the water. Reddish dots on the fabric are water mites, he said. More
(ON) The Toronto Star – The province has rightly committed to protecting the woodland caribou, a threatened species that lives in a remote part of northern Ontario. However, the government’s plan may fall short of its objective. Public consultation on the draft Caribou Conservation Plan wraps up today. Environmentalists and wildlife advocates have dismissed it as inadequate. They say the Ministry of Natural Resources is trying to address conservation concerns without sufficiently holding back the logging industry.
(MI) Traverse City Record-Eagle – The caterpillars tend to appear in waves, but it’s hard to predict when their numbers will be strongest. In years like this one, when the caterpillars are particularly abundant, it’s not surprising to see their telltale silk webs appear in other types of trees or plants. “It is very unusual for them to be as numerous as they have been for two years in a row,” said Duke Elsner, an agricultural educator for the Michigan State University Extension office in Grand Traverse County. “It’s not as widespread as last year, but where it is, I think it’s much worse.” More
(ON) The Toronto Star – First she gutted it. Then she had the heart pulled out of its furry, flabby carcass. Finally, she swallowed a slice of the mammal’s dripping organ. And when it was all over Gov. Gen. Michaelle Jean wiped the blood of a freshly slaughtered seal off her crimson-spattered fingertips. The Governor General made a graphic gesture of solidarity with the country’s beleaguered seal hunters on the first day of a week-long Arctic visit yesterday.
(MI) The Detroit News – Federal officials dealt a setback to opponents of a proposed nickel mine in the Upper Peninsula Monday by declining to place a trout species that spawns in the area on the endangered species list. Conservation groups looking to block Kennecott Minerals Inc. from mining 160 acres of state land near Marquette had hoped the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service would designate the Coaster Brook Trout for federal protection. That designation may have forced Kennecott to revise its permit applications seeking state approval for the project. But three years after the Sierra Club and Huron Mountain Club petitioned for the trout to receive endangered species status, the federal government announced Monday it would not do so. More