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We’ve been talking migration a lot lately, but It’s been a while since we’ve checked in with the park’s mammalian wildlife on our Devil’s Lake Critter Cams. Oh, and a bit of good news for our park wildlife, they are free to roam for the first time since 1942. Really? Well, check it out!
So first with the critter cams! We’ve had many of our usual suspects to the cameras since our last check-in early February. Lots of deer, raccoons, and rabbits running around our bluff location. Meanwhile, our wetland camera has been pretty quiet other than for a few fuzzy deer and one waddling opossum. As you can see (above) one of the two beautiful coyotes we’ve been watching over the winter has been back to check out the small cave. They never stay long. This is why many other critters still use the shelter as well, including this fox who stops by every few weeks.
What really caught our eye this time around was the appearance of this weasel-like critter. These guys can be hard to ID without good size comparisons and worse, with blurry night shots. What’s your call?
But wait! We also captured this weasel (below) at another camera. If you ask me, the one in the video is much smaller than the one in the stills, but again it’s hard to tell!
Weasels are great neighbors! They help keep down the number of rodents that carry ticks which as you know can carry Lyme disease. Weasels are primarily mouse eaters, but they will also eat chipmunks, ground squirrels, insects, small birds, frogs, and snakes. You can learn more about Wisconsin’s weasels in this great article from Wisconsin Natural Resources Magazine.
Free To Roam!
And lastly, this #WildlifeWednesday, I was going to share with you a bit of good news for the park’s wildlife. Way back in October of 1941, it was announced that the construction of a powder and acid works plant would be built by the US Army on the southern border of Devil’s Lake State Park. In 1942 75,000 feet of 8-10ft fencing was erected around approximately 7,500 acres of the land that would become Badger Ordinance, some of which we know today as the Sauk Prairie Recreation Area. Well, over the last year or so, the section of fence that separated Devil’s Lake State Park’s wildlife from the lower prairies is pretty much gone. What good news for our local wildlife can move freely for the first time in over 75 years!
Fence Posts 
Border of DLK & SPRA
What effect did that fence have on wildlife populations, access to food, genetic diversity, etc.? I’m sure we’ll never know. So seeing that fence go down is a rare win for our local wildlife in a park where wildlife conservation and management to date, has not been a priority. We hope this changes as part of a revised master plan being developed for the park right now.
For nearly 2 decades the Skillet Creek blog has focused on 3 main goals; To inspire you to visit and explore the Devil’s Lake region, to help you get the most your visit by sharing tips, events, and other helpful information. Lastly to advocate for our environment & wildlife and talk about how we can keep our natural areas amazing now and into the future! That last goal can sometimes cause controversy, but it’s the only way we can accomplish the first two. – Derrick Mayoleth, Owner.
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