Sponsor SWMLC’s Land Larks
in the 2026 Southwest Michigan Team Birdathon!

Please consider donating to this fun and worthwhile cause by either pledging at a per bird species rate of your choice or making a flat donation. Of course, all donations are tax-deductible and SWMLC will follow up after Birdathon to report on how many species we saw. You can make donations and pledges right up until the day of the competition, Saturday, May 16th, 2026.

What is it and why?
Please read on!

If you want to pledge a certain amount for every bird species the team spots, please send us an email by clicking on the Meadowlark Per-Species icon at left and writing a simple sentence to let us know the amount (for example, “I’d like to give $1 for every bird species the team finds.”). To give a feel for how much a per-bird donation might result in, the Larks have seen 115 – 135 species in past Birdathons.

Thank you!

If you would prefer to make a flat donation (“I’ll give the Larks $50.”), just click the Heron Flat Donation icon at left to go to our secure online Birdathon donation form.

Thank you!

If you want to pledge a certain amount for every bird species the team spots, you would send an email to us by clicking on the Meadowlark Per-Species icon, and writing a simple sentence to let us know the amount (for example, “I’d like to give $1 for every bird species the team finds.”). To give a feel for how much a per-bird donation might result in, the Larks have seen 115 – 135 species in past Birdathons.

Thank you!

If you would prefer to make a flat donation (“I’ll give the Larks $50.”), just click the Heron Flat Donation icon to go to our secure online Birdathon donation form.

Thank you!

On May 16, 2026 . . .

1 county, 5 birders, 18 kinds of snacks, 5 forms of caffeine,

and LOTS of birds!

It’s the 37th annual Southwest Michigan Team Birdathon!

And this year, Southwest Michigan Land Conservancy’s team the “Land Larks” returns with an all-star lineup: Dave Brown (SWMLC), Ashley Cole-Wick (Michigan Natural Features Inventory), Jessica Hagen (The Montessori School), Mitch Lettow (SWMLC), and Kaleigh Winkler (SWMLC). 

The rules are simple: teams have all day (12 a.m. to 7 p.m.) to see as many bird species as they can in Berrien County. On the honor system. Teams from all around the state collect pledges and raise money for conservation projects in their region.

Proceeds from this year’s Birdathon will go toward restoring habitat at Marc’s Marsh, a tiny but mighty refuge preserve in Kalamazoo County. At just 11 acres, the high-quality fen at Marc’s Marsh’s is home to uncommon wildflowers like Prairie Lady’s Tresses and Fringed Gentian – and to a wide variety of turtles, fish, snakes, and frogs. It also supports marsh-loving birds like American Woodcocks, Wilson’s Snipes, Sandhill Cranes, Yellow Warblers, and Swamp Sparrows, plus waterfowl like Buffleheads and Wood Ducks. Our stewardship crew has put a serious dent in a Glossy Buckthorn infestation that is trying to shade out native habitat, but the project ran out of funding before they could finish. Birdathon pledges will bridge the gap to fund removal of the last few acres of buckthorn, a final push the crew is excited to make!

If you’re a Birdathon Superfan, make sure to keep up with the SWMLC Land Larks on Instagram @swmlc on May 16, where we’ll be live reporting our play-by-play birding adventures so you can see the excitement unfold! These “stories” will also be archived so you can read them later.

We hope you’ll chip in to this 37-year-old fundraiser and support birds and birders in southwest Michigan!

As always, thank you for your support and your love of nature (and birds) in southwest Michigan!