Huron National Forest, MI: Video of Kirtland's Warbler

Posted by Don Crockett on May 18, 2012

For Endangered Species Day I added Kirtland's Warbler as a life bird by visiting the Huron National Forest. I took the guided tour offered by the U.S. Forest Service from the ranger station in Mio, MI. I've included a video below with a few brief clips from some of the sightings we had.

Video of Kirtland's Warbler in Huron National Forest, MI

Sequence of 3 Video Clips of a Kirtland's Warbler in Huron National Forest, MI

The U.S. Forest Service offers Kirtland's Warbler Guided Tours from its Mio, MI ranger station. The tours cost $10/person and start at 7 a.m. with a short video presentation at the ranger station. The video discusses the Kirtland's dependence on young Jack Pine habitat and how various agencies in Michigan are actively managing the forests to provide this needed habitat. Kirtland's have gone from an estimated low of less than 400 individuals in the early 1960's to over 4,000 today. Quite a success story.

After the video, participants follow the tour guide by car to the tour location, which was about a 20 minute drive east of the ranger station. We walked about a half mile round trip through a managed Jack Pine habitat that was planted in the early 2000's. Most of the Jack Pines were around 4-5 feet tall. Mixed in with the Jack Pines were some cherry and oak trees. We ended up seeing around 3 Kirtland's and hearing around 3-4 more that we didn't see. The above video has 3 clips of the same inidividual that was the most cooperative.

Map of Huron National Forest, MI

View U.S. Forest Service Kirtland's Warbler Tour in a larger map