Grassland Restoration Research
Landscape Scale Management of
Northwest Pine Barrens

Objectives

The overall goal of the project is to:

1. Develop the management options and techniques necessary for maintaining the rare pine barrens community and forest commodity production at a landscape scale considering both ecological land capability and socioeconomic values for the sand country of northwest Wisconsin.
2. Investigate the use of large block cutting for commercial forest products and various regimes of prescribed burning to mimic wild fires.
3. Evaluate the patterning of core pine barrens areas and connecting corridors of similar habitat.
4. Investigate species at all trophic levels and ecological processes functioning in the barrens community.

Background

The 2.3 million acres of Wisconsin pine barrens have changed enormously since European settlement. Originally a mosaic of fire dependent communities, today's pine barrens contain only a small fraction of the original acreage of the ecosystem's early seral stages. This open habitat is rated rare globally and imperiled in the state.

Fire is extremely important in maintaining the inherently diverse pine barrens system. However, pine barrens have been changed drastically by fire suppression, extensive tree planting, and conversion to agriculture. The small remaining patches of open, grassy barrens have become increasingly fragmented and isolated. These fragments are too small to maintain some dependent wildlife species.

Due to large public ownership and mainly forestry land use, an opportunity exists in northwest Wisconsin to develop the techniques and strategies needed to manage the pine barrens on a landscape scale.

Ultimately, a cooperative and integrated management plan should be developed to allow the restoration and maintenance of all representative seral stages of the pine barrens ecosystem. Income from ecotourism and the development of ecologically sound forest management practices could provide a sustainable economy for citizens in addition to restoring the biodiversity of this region.

For more information on this topic please contact:
David Mladenoff@facstaff.wisc.edu