NORTHPORT -- More than 50 acres of critical bird habitat and close to 1,400 feet of Lake Michigan shoreline at the tip of Leelanau Peninsula will be preserved in a multimillion dollar land deal this summer.
Officials with the Leelanau Conservancy are working to document the diverse wildlife habitat and ancient glacial features of the tract along the eastern boarder of the Leelanau State Park in Northport in advance of a plan to purchase the land by late August.
The $2 million transaction will be paid for through a state Natural Resources Trust Fund grant and Conservancy funding. It will preserve a critical stop for migratory birds traveling between Michigan's upper and lower peninsulas, Conservancy and wildlife experts said.
"That tip of the Leelanau Peninsula is very important because it decreases the travel distance for these birds to cross the lake. If that area gets developed they have to fly further to find a place to rest and that would certainly cause more stress," said Rebecca Lessard, founder and director of Empire-based Wings of Wonder.
"It is a very good place to observe the migration because the birds will kind of collect there before they head north," she said. "It's really cool and in some places there can be thousands of broad-winged hawks gathered together."
Two ancient bluffs on the property will provide visitors with a rare timeline of Lake Michigan's history that is often eroded through farming or development, said Thomas Nelson of the Conservancy.
"In essence, if you walked from the center of the property to the shoreline you would literally be walking through 10,000 years of geologic history," Nelson said.
The parcel will be open to the public and managed by the state Department of Natural Resources as an extension of the current 1,300-acre Leelanau State Park, which includes camping facilities and the historic Grand Traverse Lighthouse.
Tim Schreiner, unit manager for the Traverse City and Leelanau state parks, expects to meet with the Conservancy in the near future to work out a management plan for the property.
"We are going to manage it as a natural area with minimal improvements," he said. "We want to be able to allow the general public to enjoy the property, but that enjoyment is going to be done with protecting the natural resources as the highest priority."
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