Natural Resources staff actively manage invasive species in Oakland County Parks using a variety of chemical and mechanical control methods.

Controlled Burns

Burns of specific park areas are conducted by specially-trained contractors who work in cooperation with local fire departments and parks staff, in order to restore a vital natural process to our natural areas. These prescribed burns are an important tool that the OCP Natural Resources team utilizes to help maintain the health of natural areas within the park system. This spring, the team successfully planned and executed prescribed burns at Addison Oaks, Groveland Oaks, Highland Oaks, Independence Oaks, Lyon Oaks, Orion Oaks, Rose Oaks and Waterford Oaks.

See the maps below for more information about each park:

• Addison Oaks Burn Map
• Groveland Oaks Burn Map
• Highland Oaks Burn Map
• Independence Oaks Burn Map
• Lyon Oaks Burn Map
• Orion Oaks Burn Map
• Rose Oaks Burn Map
• Waterford Oaks Burn Map

Invasive Species Control

Oakland County Parks is a founding member of the Oakland County Cooperative Invasive Species Management Area or OCCISMA. OCCISMA is a state grant-funded project that brings together various county, city, village and township government agencies, non-profit organizations and other conservation stakeholders to develop and fund a coordinated county-wide strategy for combating high-priority invasive species. Details can be found on the Stewardship Network website.

• Natural resources staff and contractors actively remove invasive species from parks to control their spread, utilizing herbicides as an effective tool out of many. Learn more about our use of herbicides.
• Invasive Species in Michigan

In cooperation with the Michigan DNR and USDA APHIS Wildlife Services, Oakland County Parks is controlling invasive Mute Swans on park properties. Follow the links below for more information.

• Oakland County Parks Mute Swan Management
• Michigan DNR: Mute Swan Management and Control Policy

OCCISMA in partnership with Road Commission for Oakland County (RCOC) conducts roadside treatment of invasive Phragmites (Phragmites australis) and invasive knotweed (in the genus Fallopia) on RCOC-owned roads and right of ways August-October. For more information, view the 2024 Right of Way Public Notice.

• 2024 Right of Way Public Notice
• Right of Way Road Treatment Map

The Oakland County Parks are home to a wide array of game and non-game wildlife. Management efforts seek to conserve rare species and maintain wildlife populations in balance with park natural communities.

Eastern Massasauga Rattlesnake (EMR) Protection

• EMR Observation Form
• About the EMR
• Sharing the Parks with Snakes
• Dogs and Snakes
• Oakland County Parks Herpetological Information

Coyotes in Michigan

• Coyote Fact Sheet

Butterflies

• Butterfly Checklist

Birds

• Checklist of Birds in Oakland County
• Feeding Birds Under a Deer Bait Ban

Native Plants

• Garden Kit Planting Guide

Be a Pollinator Protector

• Tips for Helping Birds, Bees, Bats, Butterflies and Other Pollinators

Forest resources within Oakland County Parks range from stands of oak-hickory and beech-maple to hardwood-conifer complexes. The appraised value of Oakland County's inventoried tree population is $50 million. Annual environmental benefits provided by park forests include energy conservation, storm water and air quality improvements and carbon sequestration. To ensure the long-term provision of these benefits, forestry staff focuses management efforts on hazardous tree removals, disease detection and prevention and tree planting programs.

• Tree Inventory – OCP
• Tree Planting Guide

The Oakland County Parks are home to more than 1,200 acres of open water and adjacent wetland habitat. These freshwater resources provide recreational opportunities such as fishing, boating and kayaking to the residents of Oakland County. Lakes, rivers, streams and wetlands also serve as vital habitat for park wildlife such as fish, frogs, turtles, snakes, salamanders, water fowl, wading birds, beaver and muskrat. Stewardship of park water resources includes water quality and water level monitoring, invasive species surveys and aquatic nuisance control.

To help prevent aquatic invasive species, the Oakland County Board of Commissioners purchased two mobile CD3 decontamination stations. Oakland County Parks operates these stations throughout Oakland County annually. Station 1 is located at Cass Lake during the spring and summer season. Station 2 is rotated on various lakes throughout the season.

Learn more about healthy lakes and explore other resources below:

• Aquatic Hitchhikers
• Oakland County Mobile Boat Cleaning Stations
• Map of Boat-Friendly Washes in Oakland County
• Recreational Fishing Opportunities
• Anatomy of a Lake

Stormwater Management

Oakland County Parks is a participating member of the Oakland County Water Resource Commissioner's Stormwater Management Program (SWMP), which identifies the actions Oakland County will take to protect and restore the lakes, rivers and streams of Oakland County. These actions include public education, illicit discharge elimination, watershed-based planning and others.

Parks engage in good housekeeping practices for stormwater pollution prevention by completing relevant annual facility inventories and practicing preventative maintenance to keep potential pollutants out of storm water and parks' freshwater resources.

Oakland County Parks maintains no mow zones and 13 designated native vegetation swales throughout the park system which help to filter storm water from park parking lots and other built infrastructure areas.

Several parks have also been certified by the Michigan Turfgrass Environmental Stewardship Program (MTESP), a voluntary compliance program which recognizes facilities that practice pollution prevention strategies and environmentally sound management practices.

• Michigan Turfgrass Environmental Stewardship Program
• Oakland County Watershed Management Plan, Oakland County Water Resources Commission
• Bioswale Information
• Stormwater Management Information

The Oakland County Parks are home to a wide array of game and non-game wildlife. Management efforts seek to conserve rare species and maintain wildlife populations in balance with park natural communities.

Deer

• Archery Hunting
• Managed Deer Hunts
• Hunting FAQs

Beaver

The need for recreational beaver trapping at select Oakland County Parks is determined by lake elevation data, number and location of active dams and huts within park boundaries, hydrological requirements of rare park wetland communities and impacts of beaver activity on adjacent private parcels and built infrastructure. When a need for trapping is determined, an invitation lottery is initiated.

• Beaver Trapping Rules
• Beaver Information