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Priority Landscapes

Great Lakes

A black, white, and rusty-red shorebird with orange legs walking on a sandy shore.
Ruddy Turnstone These calico shorebirds migrate through the Great Lakes region, stopping over to rest and refuel before heading to their summer breeding grounds in the Arctic tundra. © Bitnik Gao/Pexels

Making a Difference in the Great Lakes

For more than 65 years, people like you have helped The Nature Conservancy protect the serene waters of the Great Lakes. We’re building on that legacy by bringing folks together from across the region to help solve tough conservation challenges, from climate change to keeping our water clean.

TNC & Partners

Working Together to Restore Sandusky Bay

Rebuilding a Refuge (3:52) For years, parts of Sandusky Bay have been barren of vegetation due to erosion and poor water quality. Now, the bay and its water quality are seeing a resurgence due to TNC and partner work all along the watershed.
A male Blackburnian warbler perched on a branch against a green background.

Midwest Migratory Birds

Millions of migratory birds are using TNC sites to rest and refuel as they migrate through the Midwest.

Explore Who's on the Move

Explore the Great Lakes

A black bear stands in an open grassy area, silhouetted against the sunset.

Reconnecting the Wild Midwest: Wildlife Corridors in Action

Let the Midwest roam again. See how TNC reconnects forests, prairies, rivers and more, so wildlife from bobcats to butterflies can move and thrive in a changing climate.

A house sits among a field of purple coneflowers.

Plant Your Own Pollinator Paradise

Transitioning your yard’s overlooked and underused spaces to host native plants for nature and people is more approachable—and vital—than ever!

Small white-bellied chorus frog perched perched between two wetland reeds.

Wet and Wild: The Weird, Wondrous and Wicked Cool Creatures in Midwest Wetlands

Wetlands support an incredible diversity of life. Yet they’re in danger: in some states, as much as 90% of wetlands have been destroyed.

A female (left) and male (right) Northern cardinal sitting on a branch together, facing the camera.

Common Midwest Birds in Your Neighborhood

Discover common Midwest birds with easy ID tips, photos, and fun facts. Learn who’s visiting your space and how to spot them.

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A tall white and brown shorebird standing next to a large flock of smaller gray shorebirds.
Migratory Shorebirds While Wilson's phalaropes (the short birds) are more common migratory visitors than American avocets (the tall one), both are seen around the Great Lakes during the spring. © JoesBoy/Getty Images

Visit a Great Lakes State

The Great Lakes region consists of a variety of critical ecological systems. Each chapter works both individually and in tandem to protect and sustain these habitats for future generations.

A dark bird with a bright red mask between its eyes and over its beak standing in shallow water that is reflecting bare branches.
Common Gallinule These unusual birds are summer visitors around the Great Lakes, migrating to the area to breed. Look for them in marshes, wetlands and ponds around open water. © Marco Photos/Getty Images Signature

See the Places We Protect in the Great Lakes

The Nature Conservancy has helped protect more than 100 sites throughout the Great Lakes, including prairies, savannas, forests, wetlands and rivers.

Explore