The Eastern Upper Peninsula is a haven for wildlife and is recognized by the Nature Conservancy as one of “The Last Great Places” in the Northern Hemisphere.
The North Huron Birding Trail has five unique birding zones in St. Ignace, Les Cheneaux, DeTour, Drummond Island, and the Pickford grassland area. Rudyard, a rural town off I-75 between St. Ignace and Sault Ste. Marie, is known as the Snowy Owl Capital of Michigan. The vast expanses of open fields and various high perches, including power lines, poles, and barns, allow the owls to hunt throughout the winter as they migrate south from their northern homes.
You may be leky — lucky enough to find a sharp-tailed grouse lek in the area of Rudyard or Pickford. The birds can be found at these competitive breeding display locations throughout the year, but especially during their peak mating season of March through June. In the late fall, you might see a large, dark mass floating in Lake Huron on the north east side of the Mackinac Bridge as you cross. It’s not an oil spill or debris, but a raft of thousands of Redhead ducks. The birds spend several weeks here on their journey south to warmer climes at the start of winter.
The Straits of Mackinac is a superhighway for migrating birds, particularly birds of prey such as owls, hawks, and falcons. The Mackinac Straits Raptor Watch holds bi-annual bird counts from Mackinaw City, St. Ignace, and Mackinac Island. Their researchers also band owls and red-tailed hawks in the spring from Mackinaw City, and continue the owl banding in the fall from St. Ignace.
Those by the water at dawn or dusk may encounter river otters, especially when on Mackinac Island. Other animal sightings in the area may include white-tailed deer, black bears, moose, porcupines, badgers, eagles, beavers, and blue-spotted salamanders.
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