Jessica Mathews / news@whmi.com


A Milford man charged with killing two strictly protected birds has entered a plea.

Adam Steslicki has pleaded guilty to two misdemeanor counts of discharging a firearm following an incident on September 17th.

The Detroit Free Press reports a woman contacted Milford Police after hearing gunshots in Oak Grove Cemetery and then seeing two sandhill cranes lying dead by the Huron River. She reported the shots came from a home near Franklin Street.

Officers made contact with Steslicki, who initially denied but later admitted to shooting the birds.

Local ordinance prohibits the discharge of firearms in the Village.

Sandhill cranes are large migratory birds that are both state and federally protected. Throughout the fall, they migrate south for the winter. They can regularly be seen at Kensington Metropark and the Waterloo Recreation Area.

They are often referred to as "ribeye of the sky" as some compare the taste to beef steak. Some states allow hunting of them, but not Michigan.

Steslicki is scheduled to be sentenced on December 8th in 52-1 District Court in Novi.