New wetlands expand habitat

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This article first appeared in INHF's Summer 2008 magazine.

INHF recently transferred three wetland sites to the Iowa Department of Natural Resources — the kinds of places that soak up floods and ask for more.

The sites include a 40-acre addition to the Owego Wetland Complex in Woodbury County, which was funded through the Wetland Reserve Program (WRP), administered by the Natural Resources Conservation Service, and a North American Waterfowl Conservation (NAWCA) grant administered by Ducks Unlimited.

A 160-acre addition to Christopherson Slough in Dickinson County, when restored, will contain 97 acres of upland prairie plus 33 acres of wetlands with 10 prairie potholes. The project was funded by WRP plus a NAWCA grant that is administered by the Iowa DNR. This particular grant was leveraged by private donations towards Anglers Bay, a joint INHF/Iowa DNR project on Big Spirit Lake.

A new 278-acre wetland complex was acquired in Kossuth County. It also received funding through the DNR’s NAWCA grant. Additional funding came through a Habitat Stamp grant, thanks to a new program that matches NAWCA grants. This site also features about 10 prairie pothole wetlands, including one topping 40 acres. Such sites provide outstanding wildlife habitat, particularly for wetland birds.

“Any time you get a pothole in the 40-acre range, you’re looking at great brooding and migration habitat,” said Todd Bishop, Special Projects Coordinator with Iowa DNR. “We get real excited about those!”

 

For more information, e-mail Cathy Engstrom, Communications Director, or call (515) 288-1846.