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Lakeshore Natural Resource Partnership

climate challenge: Effects on Habitat & Species

grant award: $250,000; year awarded: 2019

A warming climate, changing precipitation patterns, and increasing severity of invasive pests are already posing challenges to forested and riparian habitats for migratory and resident birds and wildlife in the Lake Michigan coastal ecosystem. These challenges are compounded by existing fragmentation and widespread historic loss of forest cover to agricultural conversion and increasing development pressure. This project will focus on installation of diverse tree species on key conservation lands throughout the lakeshore region, with goals of increasing forested habitat connectivity, supporting habitat for migratory birds along the Lake Michigan flyway, and maintaining shade in riparian areas, where coldwater streams are increasingly vulnerable to warming conditions.