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Michigan Audubon's First Sanctuary
 Bernard W. Baker donated the original 491 acres of the sanctuary that bears his name to Michigan Audubon Society (MAS) in 1941. (See Founding of Baker Sanctuary.) The Big Marsh, as it was known then, was one of the primary nesting areas for the Sandhill Crane in southern Michigan. In 1943, 83 more acres were donated to the Sanctuary by MAS members. The Kresge Foundation donated 110 acres in 1961. Since then MAS has purchased the rest of the acreage.
Appropriately, the Greater Sandhill Crane has become the symbol of Baker Sanctuary. In 1947 there were only 27 known pairs of Sandhills in lower Michigan. By 1987 630 pairs were found in the Lower Peninsula. In 1998 over 4,000 sandhills were counted by observers during an official count. While the Greater Sandhill Crane, a resident and migrant at Baker Sanctuary, is not threatened now, many of its migratory staging areas are disappearing. National Wildlife Refuges and sanctuaries such as Michigan Audubon Society's Baker Sanctuary continue to play a vital role in maintaining stable populations of these magnificent birds.
 Flora and Fauna
Plant and animal life abounds in this area of diverse land forms. Nearly every type of Great Lakes flyway waterfowl can be seen seasonally. In recent years flocks of as many as 6,000 Greater Sandhill Cranes have been seen. Warblers, rails, bitterns, herons, woodcock, grouse, hawks and owls are all to be found. Species that have been recorded nesting in the sanctuary include Canada Geese, Wood Ducks, Blue-winged Teal, Black Ducks and Mallards, the Least Bittern and Green Heron, rails, Common Moorhen, the Marsh Wren and Henslow's Sparrow, Blue-winged and Prothonatory Warblers, Northern Harriers and others. Mammals seen include deer, raccoon, mink, muskrat and red fox. The swamp-dwelling Massasauga rattlesnake is a Baker resident. The extirpated (locally extinct) Trumpeter Swan was recently reintroduced and an osprey nesting platform has been installed.
Habitat
The landscape features of Baker Sanctuary are remarkably varied. It contains examples of virtually every type of southern Michigan habitat.
See topographical map below.
Cattail marsh covers much of the sanctuary and is virtually inaccessible except during winter months. It is good habitat for muskrat, mink, rails and bitterns.
 Tamarack swamp, characterized by the tamarack trees growing in the spongy sphagnum moss mat atop a peat bed. The bog at Baker Sanctuary is a quaking bog, so named because the peat bed is floating on the remnants of an ancient lake that has been filled in over the eons with decomposed organic matter. The bog is a good winter browse for deer and rabbit. Orchids grow here in the summer. American larch (tamarack) and red and grey dogwoods are abundant in the bog.
Old marsh succession is represented along the Doty Native Wildflower Trail by the ponds that have evolved from an old lake bed overgrown with sedges and shrubs as the bog was formed. Red-osier, prickly ash, hawthorn, aspen and tamarack can be seen along the trail. A wide variety of summer wildflowers can be observed. American Woodcock can be seen at dusk during April and early May. Other birds found are Wilson's Snipe, Yellow Warblers and Common Yellow-throats.
 Old marsh succession is represented along the Doty Trail by the ponds that have evolved from an old lake bed overgrown with sedges and shrubs as the bog was formed. Red-osier, prickly ash, hawthorn, aspen and tamarack can be seen along the trail. A wide variety of summer wildflowers can be observed. American Woodcock can be seen at dusk during April and early May. Other birds found are Wilson's Snipe, Yellow Warblers and Common Yellow-throats.
Flood plain forest can also seen from the Doty Native Wildflower Trail. It's the best spot for spring wildflowers, warblers and thrushes. Rufus-sided Towhee can be seen on the ground and Turkey Vultures are often in the air. Black ash, bass wood, red and silver maples dominate this area.
Oak Opening is a region of high ground in the marsh dominated by Oak and Hickory. It's a favorite nesting and drumming spot for Ruffed Grouse as well as deer and Fox Squirrels.
Wet Meadow is the treeless grassland portion of the sanctuary often partially covered by water. Gentians and Common Snipe can be found there. Years ago a stream ran through the meadow connecting the marsh to Ackley Lake. It was dammed to form Big Marsh Lake.
Flooding is maintained by a dam to form Big Marsh Lake. It is best seen from the Kiwanis Youth Recreation Area. The afternoon, when glare is reduced, is the best time to see Sandhill Cranes, Canada Geese and a wide variety of waterfowl. Shorebirds are common on the mud flats when water is low during the summer. Herons and deer can be seen feeding on the shorelines. Large turtles, raccoon and muskrat can also be found. The Northern Shrike is a regular visitor in winter, and Northern Orioles, Yellow-billed Cuckoos and Bluebirds are common in the summer.
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