On the Ground: Volunteers Join Conservation Partners in Enhancing Elk Habitat in the Pigeon River Country State Forest
Kristina Kennedy • September 28, 2023
Volunteer Zach Dalton waters a newly planted oak tree in the Pigeon River Country State Forest.
On Saturday, September 23, 2023, a motivated group of volunteers put in some major sweat equity in the Pigeon River Country State Forest by improving habitat for elk and other wildlife.
MUCC joined Michigan Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation
for their Annual Fall Rendezvous and Habitat Workday in partnership with the Michigan Department of Natural Resources
. At this fall kick-off event, 47 volunteers planted and fenced more than 60 oak, apple, and serviceberry trees, took down hundreds of feet of old fencing that enclosed an apple orchard, and removed encroaching red pine saplings from this newly-acquired Storey Lake unit. Even better, this site will eventually be home to a new ADA-accessible elk viewing platform!
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Habitat improvement projects like this one would not be possible without the many dedicated volunteers who show up ready to work for wildlife. A huge thanks goes out to all of the volunteers, project partners, and the National Wildlife Federation for their generous sponsorship through the Great Northwoods Initiative, a collaborative conservation program dedicated to preserving biodiversity and sustainable forest management, and promoting the mitigation of climate change and inclusivity in recreation.
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The Natural Resources Commission (NRC) met for their May meeting today at Lansing Community College West Campus. The commission voted to return antlered opportunities to the Independence and Liberty hunts at the May Natural Resources Commission meeting. The amendment to restore this opportunity passed after Commissioner Walters withdrew his amendment from April to only partially restore antlered opportunity during these hunts. MUCC testified for the complete restoration of antlered opportunity during these two hunts, per a member passed policy from our 2025 Annual Convention. The commission also voted on, and ultimately accepted, a proposal to allow archery antlerless take in the high snowfall zone in the Upper Peninsula. Additionally, the commission also chose to leave on the table and postpone indefinitely the order to reopen the illegally partially closed coyote season. This prevents the order from dying after today's meeting and makes it eligible for action at a later date. This amendment will remain postponed until the June meeting at the earliest. MUCC has created the Coyote Coalition to assist in unifying the voice of conservationists in support of Proposal G. To join the Coyote Coalition, visit https://www.mucc.org/coyotecoalition . The commission did adopt proposed fall turkey regulations unanimously. The June commission meeting is Thursday, June 12 in Bay City. To ensure our natural resources remain protected and managed thoughtfully and our outdoor heritage defended, join Michigan United Conservation Clubs today: http://bit.ly/JoinMUCC .
In total, volunteers improved about 6 acres of habitat and planted around 6,000 trees in this stand to continue regeneration.
Our student volunteers have been hard at work improving wildlife habitat on public lands! MUCC’s On the Ground Junior (OTG Jr.) program, a subset of the On the Ground program, is a fully funded field trip program that brings grade-school classrooms into the outdoors to improve fish and wildlife habitat in their local communities. Through activities like native plantings, brush pile building, and invasive species removal, students gain hands-on experience with conservation and positively impact the world around them. Students also participate in educational activities like predator-prey tag to teach them about population dynamics and other natural resources concepts. So far this spring season, MUCC welcomed 69 students, teachers, and chaperones who participated in multiple OTG Jr projects with more on the way! In total, they improved over 12 acres of wildlife habitat. Read on for a recap of each OTG Jr project and see what all our awesome student volunteers have been up to.