In 2010, the United States Fish and Wildlife Service awarded Conservation Resource Alliance grants totaling $374,630 through the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative and the Great Lakes Basin Fish Habitat Partnership. Ultimately, these on-the-ground community based projects opened up approximately 150 miles of habitat for native fish species and other aquatic organisms and restored more than 30 miles of instream habitat and 220 acres of riparian corridor habitat.

Staff recently reflected on the last year of work and we came up with a 2013 ‘Top 10’ list of memorable moments and milestones. From trudging through thick alder stands in chest-high water to witnessing the sunset over Lake Michigan on the sand dunes, we saw many unforgettable scenes here in Northern Michigan.

Swifts are a family of highly aerial birds – they are among the fastest fliers and eat on the go catching insects in flight. Chimney swifts once nested in hollow trees but now almost exclusively use human-built structures.These birds got a boost on Beaver Island with the installation of a new educational chimney swift tower.

By Brian Mulherin, Daily News Staff Writer, Ludington Daily News

A new fishing platform is expected to be built on the former Custer lamprey weir site operated by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The platform, according to Kim Balke of the Conservation Resource Alliance will be universally accessible.

While walking through Misty Acres, a 585-acre preserve in Manistee and Benzie counties, you might pass through the mature hardwood forests, delicate wetlands or hear the Belted Galloway cattle from the nearby farm. Soon, you’ll hear the subtle trickle of a Betsie River tributary flowing freely.

Good news came for the Great Lakes and Northern Michigan with the announcement that the fiscal year 2014 spending bill contains $300 million for the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI). Conservation Resource Alliance couldn’t be happier this funding was approved.