8 minute read
Conservation Innovation
Emma Macek
Emma Macek is a public information officer in the DNR’s Office of Communications.
Rush Creek project takes on climate change
If you’re looking for somewhere near La Crosse to explore the outdoors, all while enjoying beautiful vistas and no crowds, we know the perfect spot: Rush Creek State Natural Area.
With 3,200 acres to explore, the site is often called one of the “crown jewels” of state natural areas because of its unique habitats, including towering 400-foot bluffs that scale the Mississippi River and incredible biodiversity.
“We have fewer and fewer wild places, and at Rush Creek, you can walk a long time without seeing a car or a person,” said Justin Nooker, DNR ecologist and land manager. “You feel like you're in the middle of nowhere.”
As soon as you start exploring, you’ll see why Rush Creek was chosen for an innovative conservation project, a partnership between the DNR and the Natural Resources Foundation of Wisconsin. Started in January 2022, the project aims to restore and reconnect nearly 1,000 acres at Rush Creek and reimagine habitat management to align with climate change projections.
“That site is really important already, and we know it’ll be even more important as the climate changes and species see it as a refuge,” said Caitlin Williamson, director of conservation for the Natural Resources Foundation.
“The goal is to make Rush Creek as resilient to potential climate change impacts as possible.”
The pioneering team at Rush Creek also shares findings with other land managers so they can take care of their lands as climate conditions change.
DIVERSE PLANTS AND ANIMALS
Climate change is already affecting Wisconsin. The 2021 Wisconsin Initiative on Climate Change Impacts Assessment Report shows that the past two decades have been the state’s warmest since accurate statewide records began in the 1890s.
The report also shares that Wisconsin is having more frequent extreme rainfall events, and severe storms could be twice as frequent in the state by the end of the century. Such “gully washers” mean stormwater flows rapidly across the landscape rather than slowly percolating into the soil. This, coupled with increasing dry periods between rain events and less winter snowpack, could lead to droughts.
Researchers think Rush Creek can tolerate some changes because of its unique features. The climate adaptation project aims to make the site even more prepared, using a mix of traditional ecological restoration and newer climate adaptation practices.
For example, fire-adapted oak and prairie native ecosystems may better cope with climate pressures and be more resilient to warmer, drier conditions.
“We are seeing more drought and extreme heat, and the prairie and oak savanna plants at Rush Creek will probably be quite resilient to those changes,” said Amy Staffen, DNR conservation biologist.
“These plant communities do just fine in areas with thin soils and on the steep, rocky, west-facing bluffs where hot and dry conditions prevail.”
Rush Creek’s vegetation also can help with stormwater runoff, which can wash away soils and cause flooding, Staffen added.
“Prairies, woodlands and wetlands help mitigate climate change by intercepting gully-washing storms and slowing down the flow of stormwater,” she noted, pointing to the site’s diverse landforms and species as another plus. “Diversification is important, and Rush Creek has diversification at every level.”
The property’s diverse habitats span about 2 miles, including upland and lowland forests, spring-fed trout streams and globally rare natural communities like dry prairie and oak savanna.
Rush Creek hosts thousands of resident species, including many amphibians, reptiles, invertebrates, insects, birds and plants. It is also on the Mississippi Flyway, an important route for migrating birds.
BUILDING SUPPORT
The Natural Resources Foundation has helped fund Rush Creek management since the organization began and thought the site would be a perfect fit for a project with help from the Wildlife Conservation Society’s Climate Adaptation Fund. Supported by the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, the fund backs projects implementing innovative solutions to climate change for people and wildlife.
In 2020, Staffen worked with the Northern Institute of Applied Climate Science and DNR property managers to create an Adaptation Workbook for Rush Creek. Such a workbook helps land managers navigate climate change and review current management practices.
Once Rush Creek’s Adaptation Workbook was finalized, a three-year climate adaptation proposal was submitted to the Climate Adaptation Fund in 2021. Part of the proposal included developing a “climate-ready” planting list for a former agricultural field slated to be converted to prairie.
Rush Creek was awarded $300,000, which was matched with funds from the Caerus Foundation, Brico Fund, Ed and Patty Neumueller, the DNR and the Natural Resources Foundation to total $600,000 for Rush Creek.
“It’s full circle to see our involvement in the early ’90s and fast forward to today and see how much has already happened on the site,” Williamson said.
ADAPTATION IN ACTION
At the start of the climate adaptation project, Rush Creek had prairie “islands” overgrown and separated by woody vegetation and invasive species. Those are being reconnected to create a consistent prairie habitat and provide corridors for species to move between islands.
These steps will help increase gene flow and species interaction and reduce inbreeding recession for plants and animals.
Creating a gradual transition from open prairie to savanna to forest will reduce the threat of wind at the forest’s edge during severe storms.
“The climate-ready plantings will have much higher numbers of species than typical plantings, with species that tolerate a variety of climate conditions, hedging bets toward successful establishment,” Staffen said.
In addition, the team is restoring oak savanna and woodlands through prescribed fire and tree thinning.
“If we continue to protect forests and allow them to mature, older or slow-growing trees — oaks in particular — are very good at capturing and storing carbon,” which will help mitigate climate change, Staffen said.
The team at Rush Creek shares findings with other land managers, both public and private, using tools such as the Adaptation Workbook and field days. The goal is to provide actionable, climate-smart steps for others to try at their properties.
“Through the workbook, we found that a lot of work we’re doing is climate adaptive, but it made us think outside the box with novel practices that aren't done a lot or are newer,” Nooker said.
To monitor the project’s success, the team will compare vegetation plots before and after treatment, complete bird surveys and survey rare species. Team members also will compare Rush Creek results to the nearby Hogback Prairie State Natural Area, which Nooker manages using traditional methods.
JUST THE BEGINNING
Rush Creek’s climate adaptation project is expected to wrap up in a few years, but the team hopes the project will branch into other opportunities.
“Nearby, there’s Sugar Creek Bluff, Battle Bluff Prairie (both state natural areas) and many private landowners who are hearing about the project and getting energized by it,” Williamson said. “There are lots of opportunities to take this work further.”
With the unpredictability of climate change, some strategies might not work, but protecting natural areas and thinking about management in new ways are essential first steps.
“Climate change is daunting, and this is one way we can make a difference,” Williamson said. “We need to make sure our natural areas and places like Rush Creek are healthy to the best extent possible so wildlife have a place to go and their needs are met as changes happen.”
LEARN MORE
For general information about Rush Creek State Natural Area, check dnr.wi.gov/tiny/2661. For details on the climate adaptation project at the site, see dnr.wi.gov/tiny/2671.
