The Natural Resources Commission hears a presentation by the DNR on Sandhill Cranes. 10/14/21

At the Michigan Natural Resources Commission (NRC) meeting on Oct. 14, 2021, Barb Avers, a DNR staff member, presented the 7-member commission with information on the Sandhill Crane’s population based on the most recent, available data from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.  

Avers offered her interpretation of the data in asserting that the population of the Eastern Sandhill Crane seems to have increased in the state of Michigan while also pointing out that the Midwest — primarily Michigan and Wisconsin — are the core breeding grounds for this species. The USFWS data indicating the number of depredation permits that were issued and the number of cranes killed in the past four years was missing from the presentation.

Our Position

Michigan Audubon’s leadership, chapters, members, and supporters have steadily opposed repeated proposals to remove federal protections and hunt the Sandhill Crane. We believe the majority of Michigan residents would like to continue to see the Sandhill Crane protected as a non-game, migratory bird species in our state. 

More than 50 organizations in total signed on to Michigan Audubon’s letter to the NRC, and Michigan Audubon Executive Director Heather Good offered testimony to the commission, saying, “We cannot discount the natural history of this species, and the fact that the Sandhill Crane’s recently stabilized numbers actually tell a powerful Michigan conservation success story. We should be proud of our conservation efforts, not squandering our opportunity to do more at such a critical time in history.” 

The Logic of Opposing a Crane Hunt in Michigan

Michigan’s Sandhill Crane remains at risk from several human disturbance factors, including: 

  • Fragmented habitats, particularly wetland habitats;
  • The lack of suitable, preserved wetlands due to climate change, poor land use and planning, and human development; 
  • Complex, highly changeable results of climate change on the bird’s range, breeding behavior, and projections related to reproductive success; and
  • Having been hunted to near extinction relatively recently, this species in our state has experienced a genetic bottleneck.

What’s Next

While the commissioners did not vote at the Oct. 14 meeting, we anticipate that this proposal to hunt Sandhill Cranes will resurface again in the legislature. We urge you to share your opinions about this issue with the NRC by emailing NRC@michigan.gov and writing to Governor Gretchen Whitmer and your state representatives. The more your representatives know where you stand about removing federal protections from species in Michigan, the more we can represent the voice of actual conservation science in Michigan policy and natural resources management. 

Michigan Audubon will continue doing our part to advocate for sound, ecological management of our state’s natural resources and the birds and habitats we cherish in our state. 

If you haven’t already, we invite you to sign the petition (see below) supporting the continued protection of the Sandhill Crane in Michigan. While the DNR states this issue is not a priority, the fact that we see it presented to the Governor-appointed NRC, which oversees natural resources in Michigan signals, that watchdog conservation organizations will need to continue offering education, resources, and collaborative support to redirect our state’s conservation efforts towards more sustainable, clear, science-driven priorities. 

Featured photo: Sandhill Crane by Andrea Westmoreland

Petition Opposing Removing Federal Protections from the Sandhill Crane in Michigan

Michigan Residents: Help us ensure your voice is heard in opposing hunting proposals and the removal of federal protections of the Sandhill Crane in Michigan.