Welcome to the Kirtland's Warbler GeoTrail (KWGT). This trail will take you in a loop in central Northern Michigan through the Jack Pine ecosystem, breeding home of the Kirtland's Warbler. This tour takes you to a total of 25 caches with an amazing trackable geocoin as a reward. The KWGT Passport can be downloaded here: https://f81c572e-1d95-4026-befc-8c60f69cbcd9.filesusr.com/ugd/31e003_41b2f3aa918442e8b08c880e746e6946.pdf
State and federal recovery efforts were started in 1957 focusing on breeding habitat creation. The Kirtland’s Warbler was federally listed as an endangered species in 1967, under the Endangered Species Preservation Act of 1966 and was one of the initial species listed under the Endangered Species Act in 1973. The Kirtland’s Warbler Recovery Team was formed soon after and recognized the brood parasitism and lack of enough breeding habitat were the main two threats to recovery. A recovery plan was written outlining steps to protect and increase the species’ population with a goal of 1000 self-sustaining pairs. After the goal of 1000 pairs was reached, it was realized that the Kirtland’s are conservation reliant and would never be self-sustaining because habitat management would need to continue because of fire suppression efforts, and Brown-headed Cowbird control would need to be continued. Conservation reliant species are defined as those who need continued management to address ongoing threats. In 2016, a memorandum of understanding was signed between the Michigan DNR, U.S. Forest Service, and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service committing to the management needed to sustain Kirtland’s Warblers after delisting. In 2016, the Kirtland’s Warbler Recovery Team transitioned into the Kirtland’s Warbler Conservation Team to guide the warbler into the future after delisting, The Kirtland’s Warbler was proposed for removal from the Endangered Species List on April 12, 2018 and officially removed on November 8, 2019. A 12-year monitoring plan was prepared by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to ensure the population remains stable.
How can you help with continued recovery of Kirtland’s Warblers? For more information go to: https://abcbirds.org/donate/kirtlands/
For more information about Kirtland’s Warbler delisting go to: https://www.fws.gov/midwest/endangered/birds/Kirtland/ProposedDelistingFAQsKIWA.html
Cache
To the northwest of the cache location, I banded a hatching year Kirtland’s. A couple of years later near Gwinn in the Upper Peninsula, I recaptured that same bird. It was mated and the pair produced young.