Current and Past LIP Projects
Waukesha County

2009: Ottawa Wildlife Refuge Restoration Work

Project Goal and Site Description:
By providing funding to implement prescribed burns at the Ottawa Wildlife Refuge LIP monies will help establish the initial burning that will be carried out after the life of the grant by the WCLC. This burning will provide one of the processes that will drive the addition of suitable structural habitat to the site that will hopefully increase the species richness within those units. The brush work will be the final initial restoration work before moving on to the maintenance stage of the plan.

Former pastured oak savanna and woodlands: with white, red, black, and bur oaks. Good herbaceous layer of shooting star and wild geranium. Sedge meadows: Overall sedge meadow areas contain few invasive species and many conservative species. Pine areas: beginning approximately 40 years ago thousand pines have been planted in old fields. Pines were cut in February of 08. Great regeneration of oak can be found in this unit with different age classes. Also postage sized remnant prairies exist amongst these pine and wet areas. Remnant tamarack swamps: A total of 100 native Wisconsin species have been identified in these stands. Reed Canary wetlands: In former cropland that was left fallow 20 years ago reed canary has taken over. WCLC has filled some ditches to create some structure in the area. Currently cropland (36 acres): eventually this will all be planted to prairie by 2010. Recently tilled fields (19.6 acres): Some are planted to prairie(USFWS). Others to trees surrounded by woods (WHIP).

2009: Rice savanna and prairie enhancement

Project Goal and Site Description:
We think the site will have a great benefit to grassland birds (savanna birds), prairie flora, and could begin to create more nesting area for blandings turtles over time. We hope this is the start of a restoration project that will not only enhance the wet prairie and savanna communities proposed in this grant, but also eventually bring attention and enhancement to other at risk natural communities/species like the dry prairie and dry bur oak savannas on the eastern portion of the property.

114.5 acres of this site are in a natural state. 14.5 acres are left as an area that is occasional mowed old-field with a vegetable/ and flower garden. Oak woodland dominates the site, which was former Oak savanna. Wet prairie, wet bur oak savanna, and wetlands that range from southern sedge meadow to shrub carr exist. The most pristine portion of the site lies in the south end of the property in units J, M, and I. These areas are wet prairie that grades into wet savanna. In units A, and B good quality dry prairies still exist with great potential for oak savanna restoration. D, H, K, and O still maintain prairie/savanna flora and structure but have developed further along in succession. Units L and N are wetlands that grade from southern sedge meadow to shrub carr. Reed canary has moved into these wetlands and presents a problem. Units G and E are old structural savannas that are now good quality oak woodland.

2009: Senk/Jacobsen's Browns Lake Partnership Restoration

Project Goal and Site Description:
To increase the available habitat for Oak savanna and grassland dependant species in the Browns Lake/Mukwonago River corridor. Keep the threatened/endangered species common on the site and look to provide habitat for other T/E species. Enhance native savanna herbaceous layer on slopes to reduce erosion into Browns Lake. Keep a positive goal orientated approach to the sites so other landowners in the area can get interested in restoration.

On the 30-45 % slopes exists an overgrown Oak Savanna. Buckthorn and honeysuckle have taken over with the demise of fire. The soils on the slope consist of Rodman Casco and are susceptible to erosion. The oak savanna's herbaceous layer contains a good population of kittentails, jacobs ladder, wood betony, columbine, side oats grama grass, little bluestem grass and thimbleweed. Structural Oak savanna exists over the remaining portions of the site. However, the slopes provide the best native herbaceous layer due to lack of grazing. While many animals use this area, one threatened one is the Blandings turtle. Ephemeral ponds also exist on the sites. One kettle wetland lies in the southern part of the Jacobsen property and is good habitat for breeding salamanders, frogs and banding’s turtles. Fen conditions can be found on the Jacobsen site.

Meyer Oak Savanna/Dry Mesic Prairie Restoration

Project Goal and Site Description:
The goal of this project is to increase quality of oak savanna and dry prairie to benefit at-risk species including kittentails, red-headed woodpeckers and Blanding's turtles. Partners for Fish and Wildlife are also working on this property to create a greater impact through combined program resources.

This site includes a unique blend of classic kettle moraine features with uplands of diverse remnant bur oak opening, dry mesic prairie, and lowland fen, sedge meadow and wet kettle pond. The parcel has been designated as a natural area by the South East Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission.

Eagle Centre Prairie

Project Goal and Site Description:
This project will reduce over a 3 years period the percent cover of spotted knapweed by 40% in the hope that this will increase the kittentail population. We would like to keep the kittentail population stable and test to see if restoration activities increase or decrease the species (knowing that our current/proposed monitoring is not sufficient to answer this). We would like to increase numbers and species of grassland/ savanna birds using the site. We would like to manage the site as a last refuge and seed bank for dry prairie/ savanna plants.

Eagle Centre Prairie features a remnant prairie and bur oak opening situated on broken, gravelly interlobate moraine. Scattered, large, open-grown bur oaks with white and black oak are interspersed with prairie-like openings. A moderate number of native prairie and savanna species have persisted, and those that are especially resistant to grazing can still be found in abundance including pasque flower, prairie smoke, and the state-threatened kitten's-tails (Besseya bullii). Other species include purple love grass, prairie dropseed, side-oats grama, death camas, purple prairie clover, bird's-foot violet, whorled milkweed, shooting star, showy goldenrod, silky aster, and thimbleweed. The site is a state natural area. 7.82 acres are owned and managed by the WCLC. 13 acres are privately owned, but under conservation easement held by the WCLC and managed by the WCLC.

Brown Lake Savanna Restoration

Project and Site Description:
This preserve is located in the most pristine watershed in Southeastern Wisconsin the Mukwonago River watershed (.25 miles from river). Home to over 50 species of fish and 12 species of mussels, the Mukwonago River watershed and it's associated wetlands and terrestrial habitats are of extremely high quality. Lakewood Preserve is located on the eastern boundary of Brown's Lake, an NA 2 area of regional significance *(SEWRPC). Brown's Lake is one of the last semi wilderness lakes remaining in the county and provides excellent habitat for many uncommon aquatic and terrestrial species. Through this restoration we hope to expand the existing suitable nesting area for the Blanding's turtle, and grassland birds, and expand the area covered by Kitten tails.

Due to lack of fire and the competitive effects of invasive species, the remnant natural communities of this area are degrading. The WCLC is working here because the site and landscape harbor many species of concern, the site is resilient, and neighbors are interested in enhancing their land. The site will be open to the public for hiking, nature study, birding, and nature photography. The site is also used by Carroll College in the spring for their Restoration Ecology class.