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Western Great Lakes Projects

Featured Habitat Project – Wisconsin Forest Wildlife Specialist Program

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by Jon Steigerwaldt – Western Great Lakes Forest Conservation Director and Jared Elm – Wisconsin Conservation Coordinator This year marked eight years of our Forest Wildlife Specialist Private Lands Program in Wisconsin – a first of its kind partnership between RGS & AWS and the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) in the nation. With 58% of forestlands in Wisconsin in private ownership, private lands play an important role in landscape-scale habitat restoration, especially where they interface with public land ownership. According to Forest Inventory Analysis data collected by U.S. Forest Service over the past 120 years, the largest decline in young aspen,...

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Wisconsin Habitat Restoration Project Update

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RGS & AWS Drummer Funds assisted in financing a habitat restoration project in Brule, Wisconsin. The project was performed in collaboration with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources and implemented on Brule River State Forest property. The project aims to rejuvenate old alder stands by shearing areas of alder to create three age classes. This practice will improve the woodcock, ruffed grouse, golden-winged warblers, deer, bear and snowshoe hare habitat. A wood turtle protected nesting area was also added to the project to assist in the reproduction of this species, which is listed as threatened in Wisconsin. Learn more about the Eastern...

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WI Coverts (Wisconsin)

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Agreement Narrative: WI Coverts Primary Funder: Wisconsin Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI) SFI Implementation Committee (SIC) Location: UW-Madison Kemp Natural Resources Station, Woodruff, Wisconsin Innovation:  The Wisconsin Coverts Project began in March 1994 with the funding of a 3-year proposal by the Ruffed Grouse Society & American Woodcock Society (RGS & AWS). Most recently, the project has been the recipient of (6) 2-year (2013-14, 2015-16, 2017-18, 2019-2020, 2022-23, 2024-2025) Wisconsin Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI®) Implementation Committee (SIC) grants which have included matching contributions from RGS & AWS as well as support from the Department of Forest & Wildlife Ecology at UW – Madison, University of...

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WI NRCS Forest Wildlife Specialist Private Lands Program (Wisconsin)

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Agreement Narrative: WI NRCS Forest Wildlife Specialist Private Lands Program Primary Funder: Natural Resources Conservation Service  Location: Northern, Central, and Driftless Forest Priority Regions of WI  Innovation: With 58% of forest lands in Wisconsin being privately owned, engaging private non-industrial forest landowners in active management as part of a broad conservation strategy is an absolute necessity. Gathered across ownerships in Wisconsin, Forest Inventory Analysis (FIA) data shows that over the past 40 years, the largest loss of young forest habitat in aspen, oak, and hardwood forests inhabited by ruffed grouse and American woodcock has happened on privately held forest lands. Forests on private...

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Minnesota Hunter Walking Trails, Public Land Recreational Access (Minnesota)

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Agreement Narrative: Minnesota Hunter Walking Trails, Public Land Recreational AccessPrimary Funder: Environment and Natural Resources Trust Fund through Legislative Citizen Commission Minnesota Resources Location: Throughout northern Minnesota Innovation: Approximately 1,000 miles of hunter walking trail networks across about 250 sites across state, federal and county lands exist in Minnesota.  Most were created in the 1970’s through 1990’s, often utilizing logging access routes and intending to be maintained to facilitate both recreational walking traffic and future disbursed timber harvests.  Many of these trail systems were established with support of RGS.  Long term or dedicated maintenance funding and maintenance planning have not been established. ...

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East Zone Forest Habitat Management Project, Lemonade Timber Sale (Minnesota)

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Agreement Narrative: East Zone Forest Habitat Management Project, Lemonade Timber Sale

Primary Funder: Chippewa National Forest (Stewardship)

Location: Deer River Ranger District, Chippewa National Forest, Minnesota

Innovation: This is a non-timber short-form stewardship agreement. Through this short-form agreement, the U.S. Forest Service is providing RGS & AWS with Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) funding to conduct supplemental timber marking contracting on the Deer River Ranger District of the Chippewa National Forest. The specific timber marking project areas land on a portion of the forest within the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe (LLBO) Reservation. Using this funding, RGS & AWS will likely contract a tribal…

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