• Home
  • Explore
  • Land Protection
    • Conservation Easements
    • Community Conservation
  • Land Stewardship
  • Projects
    • Saugatuck Township Riverside Park
    • 50th Anniversary
    • Photo Monitoring
    • Project Case Studies
    • Wildflower Guide
  • Give
    • Donate
    • Additional Ways to Give
    • Planned Giving
    • Business Partnership
      • Our Business Partners
  • Get Involved
    • Events
    • Volunteer
  • News & Blog
  • About
    • Our Story
    • Our Team
    • Our Strategy
      • Strategic Action Plan
      • Strategic Conservation Plan
    • Contact
    • Careers
616-451-9476
Donate
  • View landconservancy’s profile on Facebook
  • View landconservancy’s profile on Twitter
  • View naturenearby’s profile on Instagram
  • View landconservancy’s profile on YouTube
  • Home
  • Explore
  • Land Protection
    • Conservation Easements
    • Community Conservation
  • Land Stewardship
  • Projects
    • Saugatuck Township Riverside Park
    • 50th Anniversary
    • Photo Monitoring
    • Project Case Studies
    • Wildflower Guide
  • Give
    • Donate
    • Additional Ways to Give
    • Planned Giving
    • Business Partnership
      • Our Business Partners
  • Get Involved
    • Events
    • Volunteer
  • News & Blog
  • About
    • Our Story
    • Our Team
    • Our Strategy
      • Strategic Action Plan
      • Strategic Conservation Plan
    • Contact
    • Careers
LogoLogoLogoLogoLogo
 

bluebirds Tag

October 15, 2020
in Features

First Nesting Season on The Highlands Bluebird Trail is a Success!

Peggy Falk is a Land Conservancy of West Michigan volunteer and supporter and a member of the Michigan Bluebird Society. She spearheaded a project to install bluebird boxes at The Highlands last fall and monitored them throughout the year.

Read More
Share

Search Blog Posts

Categories

  • Artist Interview Series (29)
  • Events (2)
  • Features (149)
  • Habitat Profile (1)
  • Landowner Stories (12)
  • News (29)
  • Newsletter Archive (95)
  • Photo Monitoring (2)
  • Preserved! (45)
  • Restoration at The Highlands (5)

Tags

50th Anniversary Art back the dunes birding burn Community community conservation Conservation Conservation Agreements conservation easements creativity Facebook Live guest blog Guided health Hike hiking Interview Series Invasive Species Lake Michigan lake michigan shoreline landowner Montague MI native plants Nature Outdoors Painting photography Plein Air prairie restoration Preserved! Preserves Recreation Reflections restoration saul lake bog Saul Lake Bog Nature Preserve second saturdays Stewardship The Highlands volunteer volunteers Water White Lake Wildlife

About Us

The Land Conservancy of West Michigan is a 501(c)3 nonprofit that works to keep nature nearby and conserve ecologically critical land in West Michigan. We protect land by creating public nature preserves, providing support to communities and local governments creating natural areas, and helping private landowners protect their own land.

Contact

237 Steele St, Suite A
Grand Rapids, MI 49534
616-451-9476
  • View landconservancy’s profile on Facebook
  • View landconservancy’s profile on Twitter
  • View naturenearby’s profile on Instagram
  • View landconservancy’s profile on YouTube

Instagram

Open post by naturenearby with ID 17886095637555447
Today is the International Day of Biodiversity. At Brower Lake Nature Preserve, purple lupine is in bloom where less than ten years ago stood a monoculture of one non-native tree species: Scotch pine. At this preserve, the Land Conservancy of West Michigan has been working to restore native oak barrens and oak-hickory forest habitat through selective forest thinning and prescribed fire. Year after year, as we watch habitat become more established, we see more biodiversity in the understory of this woodland. Each new blade and blossom is a heartening confirmation that we are heading in the right direction.

The path we are on is a long one, and we will need to keep showing up to keep our promise of protecting these places in perpetuity. As we celebrate our 50th Anniversary this year, we are taking a moment to appreciate how far we've come. Do yourself a favor: Take a walk at Brower Lake Nature Preserve this weekend and take it all in.

Learn more about Brower Lake Nature Preserve and plan your visit on our website at naturenearby.org/explore. Link in our profile.
24 1
Open post by naturenearby with ID 18104823406871014
Please give a warm welcome to this year's Stewardship Interns! 🌱 Megan Kamper and Emma Wolak have joined the LCWM team to help manage our preserves and conservation easements this season.

Megan is a recent graduate of Hope College and majored in Environmental Science, Environmental Studies, and Spanish. During her time at Hope, she participated in internships in conservation and organic agriculture and spent a semester abroad studying ecology and conservation in Ecuador. Megan is from Holland, Michigan and loves the West Michigan area. She is excited to learn more about the ecosystems of this area and how to care for them!

Emma graduated from Grand Valley State University this year with a major in Wildlife Biology and minor in Natural Resource Management! She is from Jenison, Michigan. She has been interested in nature and animals since she was a little girl, and has always wanted to make the world a better place. "Once I took an Ecological Restoration class in college, I knew I wanted to do something involving restoration, and the LCWM was the perfect opportunity to have hands on experience with that," Emma said. "My favorite part is seeing the transformation and recovery of habitats over time. So excited to be apart of LCWM this year!"
18 0
Open post by naturenearby with ID 18129691711608410
This Memorial Day weekend, West Michigan’s protected lands are open and waiting.

No registration, no cost—just miles of trails, creek access, picnic spots, and some of the most beautiful natural landscapes in the state. Whether you are looking for a shaded forest walk, a boardwalk through a rare bog, or a meadow with trails where the kids can run, we have a preserve for you.

Find your spot at naturenearby.org. Link in bio.

Happy Memorial Day. Stay safe and enjoy the long weekend.

#WestMichigan #MemorialDayWeekend #NatureNearby #LandConservancy #FamilyHike
23 0
Open post by naturenearby with ID 18321582880286558
The next event in our 50th Anniversary Explorathon series, the Preserve Pedal, is made possible by our kind sponsors. We are grateful to LCWM Board Member Tim Stoepker and his wife Jane for their support of this event celebrating 50 years of keeping nature nearby!

“We are thrilled to co-sponsor the Land Conservancy of West Michigan’s 50th Anniversary Preserve Pedal on the morning of June 6, 2026. 

For 50 years, LCWM—with the incredible support of the communities in the 8 counties which it serves—has preserved acres and acres of valuable habitat for species, resulting in countless benefits to the public and natural environment.

LCWM looks forward to its next 50 years as it sustains and perpetuates its mission with your support and encouragement.” —Tim & Jane Stoepker

Thank you, Tim & Jane! Learn more about the Preserve Pedal and purchase your tickets on our website. Link in our profile!
15 0
Open post by naturenearby with ID 17976065829040421
📢 Volunteer support is needed for the next event in the Land Conservancy of West Michigan's Explorathon series! The June 6 Preserve Pedal celebrates the land we've protected together in Kent County across the last 50 years. Bicyclists will choose between a 7-mile, 25-mile, or 50-mile ride to explore this region and its unique habitats.

If you want to be part of the festivities, but not on a bike, volunteering is a great way to get involved. Help out with registration, staff an aid station, or help direct bicycle traffic. Volunteers will enjoy free access to the event, afterparty, and giveaways.

📝 Sign up to volunteer via the form at the link in our bio.
✉️ Email Kendra Larsen, Outreach Coordinator at kendra@naturenearby.org with any questions! 

Thank you!
9 0
Open post by naturenearby with ID 18121686847632420
This Second Saturday, volunteers joined us at Lamberton Lake Fen Nature Preserve to help remove garlic mustard. Did you know garlic mustard is one of the most aggressive invasive plants threatening Michigan’s forest ecosystems? 🌿

Garlic mustard spreads rapidly, outcompeting native wildflowers and disrupting the soil fungi that trees depend on to survive. By pulling it before it goes to seed, our volunteers are giving this rare fen ecosystem a fighting chance!

Keeping these places healthy takes ongoing, hands-on care. That’s where you come in.

🗓️ Our Second Saturday Workdays happen 9 am - 12 pm on the second Saturday of every month. Tools, gloves, water, and snacks are always provided!

Join us at our next workday, link in bio or visit naturenearby.org/events

#LandConservancy #WestMichigan #InvasiveSpecies #GarlicMustard #NaturePreserve
50 0
Open post by naturenearby with ID 18326017174269048
Have you shopped our limited edition 50th Anniversary merch yet? 🧢 Find comfy t-shirts, crewnecks, hats, and more—featuring designs with plants, insects, and wildlife native to West Michigan—on our store! Link in our profile. Your purchases help support the next 50 years of keeping nature nearby!
33 0
Open post by naturenearby with ID 18104083075788551
Please join us in welcoming Alena O'Connor, our Events & Communications Intern, to the team! 🎉

Alena (Lanie), is an incoming senior at GVSU studying Environmental and Sustainability Studies with a Geospatial Technology minor. She is working toward three GIS certificates, a Sustainable Food Systems certificate, and wildland firefighting certifications this summer. She is originally from Orland Park, Illinois and this is her first summer staying in Grand Rapids. 

"I couldn't be more excited to connect with people who believe, like I do, that nature should be accessible to everyone," Lanie said. "LCWM's mission is exactly that, and that's what made me most excited to work with LCWM this summer!"
47 0
Follow @naturenearby

© 2025 Land Conservancy of West Michigan • All Rights Reserved