Watershed Health

The Les Cheneaux area watershed is highlighted by the 200 mile stretch of shoreline rimming both the north shore of Lake Huron and the Les Cheneaux chain of islands.  The northern shoreline of Lake Huron at Les Cheneaux can be considered the watershed's most fragile biological indicator.  It has been identified in a report of the State of the Lakes Environmental Conference (SOLEC), Land by the Lakes: Nearshore Terrestrial Ecosystems, as one of the priority "Biodiversity Investment Areas" in the Great Lakes basin.  This area was similarly identified in The Nature Conservancy's report, Conservation of Biological Diversity, as an important resource, as well as one of the Conservancy's first Last Great Places in the western hemisphere.

Biological inventories of the shoreline show nine globally-rare natural communities (for example, Great Lakes marsh, cobble beach, dune and swale, northern fen, alvar) that provide habitat to thirteen federally-listed threatened or endangered species (including bald eagle, grey wolf, Houghton's goldenrod, Hart's tongue fern, Hines emerald dragonfly and hillside daisy), and more than 60 state-listed species. 

Due to the size of the water bodies and the delayed phenology of the coast, the forested northern shores of Lake Huron provide important stopover areas where neotropical migrant birds concentrate during fall and spring migrations.  The coastal marshes and remaining high quality wetlands are important to the health of Great Lakes’ waterfowl and fisheries, where they provide nesting and spawning grounds, forage, and protection for numerous species.  In addition, the area contains several Michigan Department of Environmental Quality designated "environmental areas" which are ecologically unique areas that are maintained in their natural state and sheltered from development.  

These resources provide a unique quality of life for year-round residents and draw thousands of visitors each year for aquatic recreational opportunities.