Preserving Wisconsin’s Cherished Habitats

A recent Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources press release announced that “$21,313 (From Cherish Wisconsin Outdoors Fund**) will go towards improving oak savanna, oak woodland, bedrock glade and remnant prairie habitat at Devil’s Lake State Park, Lower Wisconsin State Riverway, and Natural Bridge State Park, as well as associated state natural areas.” That’s cool, but I wondered what that meant exactly, so I went back to the folks at the DNR and asked them if they could give us more information. They were kind enough to send us a more detailed description.

Project Description

“This project will focus on improving oak savanna, oak woodland, bedrock glade, and remnant prairie habitat by controlling invasive species, removing undesirable tree species, installing new fire breaks, and conducting prescribed burns. The sites that will be managed with this and matching funding all contain State Natural Areas, which have been designated because they contain prime examples of Wisconsin’s native plant communities and are home to many species of greatest conservation need (SGCN).

The project areas within South Bluff SNA and Natural Bridge and Rockshelter SNA have not been actively managed while under DNR ownership, and we are excited to begin restoring these sites before they become irrevocably degraded. Much of the work will focus on removing mid-story maples that have out-competed young oak trees due to a lack of prescribed burning since European colonization. Most of the oak in these stands is 100+ year old, and will eventually age beyond seed producing years.

The maples that have thrived in the absence of fire make it impossible for oak seedlings to grow into healthy trees. If we do not take action to remove the maples and return fire to the landscape, we will see a precipitous decline in the amount of oak habitat on these sites – meaning it will transition into forest with a much less diverse understory, less insect, bird and mammal diversity, and much poorer habitat for game species such as wild turkey and white-tailed deer.

The Baraboo Hills are one of only a few places in Southern Wisconsin where we have the opportunity to manage our rapidly declining oak ecosystems on a large scale.”

Properties include South Bluff, East Bluff of Devil’s Lake, Ferry Bluff along the Lower Wisconsin State Riverway, Parfrey’s Glen an SNA adjacent to Devil’s Lake, Natural Bridge & Rockshelter SNAs at Natural Bridge State Park.

**The Cherish Wisconsin Outdoors Fund is a public-private partnership between the Natural Resources Foundation of Wisconsin and the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. The fund helps create permanent support for the management of the public lands and waters loved by all of us.