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ESCANABA -- The Upper Peninsula debut of the first-ever traveling Michigan Wildlife Photo Mosaic Wall is planned during a two-day visit to Escanaba today and Saturday at the Upper Peninsula State Fair. It will allow people of all ages to become part of a once-in-a-lifetime experience celebrating our state's outdoor heritage in a fun and innovative format that will be preserved for posterity.
People of all ages – from young children and families to teens and grandparents – are invited to pose for free, live-event, real-time photos illustrating how people are necessary for wildlife management. Sponsored by the Michigan Wildlife Council, this is the mosaic wall's only stop in the U.P. and part of a statewide celebration of the nationally heralded efforts the state is making to ensure Michigan's wildlife and natural resources are preserved for future generations.
At the fair's Michigan Wildlife Council booth, participants will have photos taken that automatically print their facial image as a sticker. They can then place their photo sticker on the mosaic board, which will appear as an 8-foot-wide by 4-foot-tall artistic image of a lake sturgeon, one of Michigan's many wildlife success stories. Participants will also receive a free souvenir 4-by-6-inch photo.
More than a thousand people have already taken part in the creation of peregrine falcon and Kirtland's warbler photo mosaics at Detroit's Comerica Park and Grand Rapids' John Ball Zoo. The events highlighted that Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and the Michigan Legislature declared July as "Michigan Wildlife Conservation Month."
After the statewide tour, the final versions of each Michigan Wildlife Photo Mosaic Wall will be displayed at the Michigan History Center in Lansing.
The proclamation of July as "Michigan Wildlife Conservation Month" reflects that July 1 marked the 81st anniversary of the effective date for the Pittman-Robertson Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act, which ensured wildlife management projects nationwide would be funded by the purchase of hunting equipment.
The proclamation also coincides with the five-year anniversary of the creation of the Michigan Wildlife Council, which is a bipartisan-approved panel tasked by the Legislature with conducting a public education campaign emphasizing the importance of wildlife management and the role hunting and fishing play in protecting and enhancing Michigan's wildlife and natural resources.