Sept 15 IBA Ceremony- Detroit River, Lk Erie Metropark

[Caleb Putnam]

Birders-

Please distribute this announcement as you wish, and please attend!


Public Invited to Sept 15 Ceremony Recognizing the Lower Detroit River and 
Lake Erie Metropark as Important Bird Areas (IBAs)

BROWNSTOWN MI, The Michigan Important Bird Areas (IBA) Program, Detroit 
Audubon Society, and the Detroit River International Wildlife Refuge will 
hold a formal ceremony to recognize the lower Detroit River and Lake Erie 
Metropark as IBAs that provide essential habitat for breeding, wintering, 
and/or migrating birds.  The IBA Program is a global effort to conserve 
habitats for birds and other biodiversity.  The ceremony will take place 
Saturday September 15 at 4:00 PM as part of the Hawkfest at Lake Erie 
Metropark.

The lower Detroit River, one of the region’s key waterbird stopover sites, 
is home to large numbers of migrating and wintering Canvasback ducks 
(representing up to 10% of the estimated global population some years) and 
Tundra Swans (up to 1,900 individuals), and has supported approximately 275 
Common Tern nests in recent years.  Lake Erie Metropark is a key bottleneck 
point for migrating raptors (such as hawks, eagles, falcons, and vultures), 
annually averaging over 150,000 Broad-winged Hawks and from 7,000 to 9,000 
Sharp-shinned Hawks, as they pass southward around Lake Erie.  Both sites 
are considered crucial to the long-term survival of these and other bird 
species.

The ceremony will be held at Hawkfest that is held during the peak of the 
autumn raptor migration, and visitors can expect to see many migrating hawks 
and to observe and photograph up close many live raptors.  Speaking at the 
ceremony will be U.S. Congressman John Dingell, Michigan State 
Representative Kathleen Law, Lake Erie Metropark staff, and John Hartig, 
Refuge Manager of the International Wildlife Refuge.  There will also be a 
formal ribbon-cutting, and a sign unveiling.  No RSVP is required for these 
activities.

“This IBA recognition is an excellent example of the partnerships we are 
establishing to build, monitor, and manage North America’s only 
international wildlife Refuge,” notes Congressman John Dingell.  “This IBA 
Program will help us set science-based priorities for habitat conservation 
and provides unique opportunities for participation by volunteers and 
citizen scientists.”

“This IBA recognition for the lower Detroit River and Lake Erie Metropark 
provides further evidence of the uniqueness of our Downriver wildlife and 
habitats,” notes Michigan State Representative Kathleen Law.  “We are so 
fortunate to have these natural resources right in our backyard that provide 
the foundation for our growing ecotourism economy.”

The IBA Program is a global initiative of BirdLife International. It is 
administered in the United States by Audubon and in Michigan by a consortium 
of conservation organizations: Audubon, Michigan Audubon, Detroit Audubon, 
and the Kalamazoo Nature Center.  The program seeks to identify and conserve 
the world’s most crucial sites for bird conservation.

For more information about the IBA Program:

Caleb G. Putnam
Michigan Important Bird Areas Coordinator
cputnam at audubon.org
http://www.audubon.org/bird/iba/
www.birdlife.org

For more information about HawkFest:

Paul Cypher
President, Southeast Michigan Raptor Research
paulcypher at comcast.net
http://www.smrr.net/events.shtml

For more information about the Detroit River International Wildlife Refuge:

http://www.fws.gov/midwest/DetroitRiver/



Caleb G Putnam
Grand Rapids, MI
larus10 at hotmail.com

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