The Natural Thing To Do

Mary Whitmore Conservation Easement

Mary with Kelly, Ned, and Jackson on her protected land.

Mary Whitmore recently placed a conservation easement on 38 acres of her land in Friendship Township, Emmet County. As a biologist and director of the local environmental education center, SEE-North, Mary is a compelling voice for our local natural world.

One reason for placing the easement on this particular parcel is that I promised the previous
owner, who was a long-time resident of this area, that I would preserve it if I purchased it.

I also knew from talking to realtors and appraisers that parcels like this one would be especially sought in the next wave of building. At the same time, I knew that because it was a relatively large parcel, it might be especially important from a biological standpoint: larger parcels are often more likely to provide either a variety of habitats or a significant expanse of one type of habitat.

In addition, I was also motivated and impressed by the work in planning and recreation that people in my township, Friendship Township, have undertaken recently. Many of my neighbors are volunteering their time and energy to help make this township a beautiful and peaceful place to live. I wanted to do something in some small way to contribute to that outcome.

I feel as though I owe much of my energy and good spirit to the land I walk each day. I have seen some amazing sights in my short stay here - three newly fledged Great Gray Owls, representing the first documented breeding of that species in the Lower Peninsula; a black bear 10 feet from my front door on the Fourth of July one year; a coyote den occupied by playful pups and adults who minded their own business and respected my sheeps’ right to life, and who treated me to an occasional howl when the moon was just right; a snowshoe hare that jumped 10 feet straight up when startled by a grouse that exploded out of a nearby snow drift. These memories are my very own gems from nature, and I carry them with me wherever I go. They help inspire my own work in environmental education and conservation biology. I am glad to help preserve the place that all of us - furred, feathered or fleeced - call home.

Many plants and animals that we identify with northern Michigan are imperiled. Protecting them isn’t solely the job of government or legislators or civil servants. It falls to each of us to give life to our ethics. I feel very satisfied now as I walk over this land. I know that I have made a decision that is in harmony with my beliefs about nature and citizenship. It may sound trite, but placing this easement was simply a “natural” thing for me to do. I am grateful that the Little Traverse Conservancy is available to help like-minded citizens take action for the benefit of land preservation, and I look forward to working with them again when the time is right.