Michigan’s Powesheiks Are Endangered-So We Have to Buy Them A Fen
The most endangered of all the creatures in Michigan is not Bigfoot. There's plenty of those around. Have you ever seen "Finding Bigfoot"?
Nope - the most endangered critter in Michigan is the "Powesheik skipperling", a small, brown butterfly with a one-inch wingspan. It's found primarily in Michigan in a place called Davis Lake Overlook, made up of 37 acres in Oakland County. According to the Detroit Free Press, during a survey in July to find out how many are left in the wild, Oakland County had 43. The only other place with more Powesheiks was in Manitoba, Canada. They had 51. The Powesheik is so bad off, the next category down for it is "extinct".
And twenty years ago, these things were EVERYWHERE! What the heck happened?
These butterflies like to live in fens - which are like bogs, but less acidic. And there's not many of those around anymore. So, North Oakland Headwaters Land Conservancy is launching a "Big Help for a Little Butterfly" fund-raising drive to buy property near the Davis Lake Overlook. After buying it, they want to return the property to being a fen.
C'mon - it would be worth it just to be able to say to your confused friends, "I'm going to the fen, to see the skipperlings".