Rare white-faced ibises were captured in this photo by Zachary Branigan.

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IT'S A BIRD...TRAIL: Saginaw Basin Land Conservancy Flies into Action

November 10, 2013
By: Dave Rogers

Birding (aka bird watching) is hot stuff these days.

County environmental and community development director Laura Ogar calls birding "an economic bonanza" because of the numbers of birders expected to be be attracted here once the word gets out that this is a birder's paradise.

Saginaw Basin Land Conservancy advocates are promoting the Saginaw Bay Birding Trail, noting:

The Saginaw Bay contains the largest contiguous freshwater coastal wetland system in the US.

It is a critical stopover point for migratory birds.

It is not uncommon to see as many as 75 species in one day by visiting the many protected lands along the Saginaw Bay shoreline during migration (we saw 101 on Wednesday).

Birder Joe Soehnel has seen 199 birds in 2013 in Bay County alone.

Habitat is the #1 reason for the loss of wild birds.

Founded in 1997, the SBLC now protects 6,000 acres of land, most of which is funded and maintained for reasons rooted in wild birds.

Ten nature preserves owned by the SBLC are open to the public, 7 of which (soon to be 8) are part of the future Saginaw Bay Birding Trail, and exist in coastal areas.

The Saginaw Bay Birding Trail is a 142-mile bird watching paradise stretching from Port Austin to Tawas, being co-promoted by the National Audubon Society.

The SBLC is grassroots, member supported, with 90 percent of donations going to programs and mission-related activities.

According to Rob Clark of The Bay City Times, SBLC Executive Director Zachary Branigan and land protection specialist Trevor Edmonds, spotted a flock of rare white-faced ibises, and one even rarer glossy ibis, near Pinconning last spring.

The sighting was reported to the Cornell University Ornithology Lab that documents such things. Word came down that this may be the largest flock sighted in this part of the country.