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CollaborationFish, Birds and AnimalsGreat Lakes News CollaborativeIllinoisLatest NewsNewsScience, Technology, ResearchA record year for Great Lakes piping plovers
-The Great Lakes piping plover recovery effort has been ongoing since the mid-1980s when the population got as low as a dozen nesting pairs. This year, the number reached 85 nesting pairs for the first time.
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Counting the Kirtland’s warbler
-Volunteers and conservation groups and agencies are in the jack pine forests this week, counting the Kirtland’s warbler which almost went extinct in the 1980s because of loss of habitat.
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Fish, Birds and AnimalsHistory and CultureLatest NewsNewsRecreation and TourismScience, Technology, ResearchTourismWisconsinWhite throated sparrow takes first place in fattest bird competition
-A very round white throated sparrow is the heavyweight champion of the 2025 Wisconsin Fat Bird Week contest.
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AuthorsDetroitDetroit RiverFeature HomepageFish, Birds and AnimalsJohn HartigLatest NewsMichiganNewsRegionScience, Technology, ResearchWater Quality and Restoration EffortsGreat Lakes Moment: Detroit River common terns under threat
-Known for their aerial acrobatics, common terns are designated as a threatened species in Michigan.
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Feature HomepageFish, Birds and AnimalsLatest NewsMichiganNewsPoints NorthProtectScience, Technology, ResearchPoints North: Birds of Paradise
-Alison Vilag pays attention for a living. She counts migrating ducks at Whitefish Point Bird Observatory, near Paradise, Michigan. It’s key to getting a pulse on different bird populations. But for Alison, counting ducks is more than just science – it’s an escape from the expectations of others.
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AuthorsCitizen ScienceDetroitDetroit RiverFeature DetroitFeature HomepageFish, Birds and AnimalsHistory and CultureJohn HartigLake ErieLake Erie-EPALatest NewsMichiganNewsRecreation and TourismRegionScience, Technology, ResearchTourismGreat Lakes Moment: A community science survey
-“Volunteers reported 17 bald eagles on the ice, an estimated 20,000 Canvasbacks, about as many Redheads, a smattering of other ducks, and Tundra and Mute swans.”
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AuthorsDetroitDetroit RiverFeature DetroitFeature HomepageFish, Birds and AnimalsHabitat RestorationJohn HartigLatest NewsMichiganNewsRegionScience, Technology, ResearchWater Quality and Restoration EffortsGreat Lakes Moment: The great blue herons of Stony Island
-It can be quite unsettling to hear the unexpected “frahnk frahnk” of a startled great blue heron who just had its fishing expedition disrupted.
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Feature HomepageFish, Birds and AnimalsLatest NewsMichiganNewsProtectScience, Technology, ResearchThe Catch
Record number of piping plovers
-Of the region’s 72 breeding pairs, 48 were in Michigan, and Michigan’s nests produced a record number of chicks.
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Climate ChangeDetroit RiverFeature HomepageFish, Birds and AnimalsGreat Lakes News CollaborativeHabitat RestorationIndustry, Energy, Economic DevelopmentJohn HartigLake ErieLake OntarioLatest NewsMichiganNewsOntarioResearch, Data and TechnologyScience, Technology, ResearchSt. Lawrence RiverWater Quality and Restoration EffortsGreat Lakes Moment: Chemical contaminant in St. Lawrence River herring gull eggs traced to Detroit River
-“Although the rate that these contaminants are transported downstream is slow, the cumulative effect over years can cause measurable increases in fish and wildlife downstream.”
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Feature HomepageFish, Birds and AnimalsGreat Lakes News CollaborativeHabitat RestorationIllinoisIndianaLatest NewsMichiganNewsOhioPolitics, Policy, Environmental JusticeProtectResearch, Data and TechnologyScience, Technology, ResearchWater Quality and Restoration EffortsWisconsinWhy are mallard duck populations falling in the Great Lakes region?
-Mallard duck populations are down about 16 to 17 percent since the early 2000s. New technology might help determine why.
