Little birds have big impact on economy

By CARL STODDARD
Capital News Service
LANSING — Little birds have tourists and birdwatchers flocking in big numbers to Northern Michigan, a favorite nesting area for the rare Kirtland’s warblers, which were once nearly extinct. Ilene Geiss-Wilson, the executive director of the Grayling Visitors Bureau, said she has gone on two tours to see the Kirtland’s warblers in their prime nesting areas east of Grayling. And she’s hardly alone. “There’s a lot of interest” in the warblers, Geiss-Wilson said. “We have people contact us.