Many of the plants and animals in the Hale Wildlife Area are sitting dormant this winter. Local conservationists, however, have been very active.
This January the Jones County Conservation Board, partnering with the Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation and the Twin Rivers Pheasants Forever chapter, added 60 acres of restored prairie and woodland to the wildlife area near Wyoming.
Once crop ground, the land was enrolled in the Conservation Reserve Program by its owners, Keith and Carol Hagen, before acquisition. Now, the land has been restored to upland and lowland prairies and swales that provide healthy habitat for wildlife and native plants.
“The project provides diversity to an existing area through its landforms and plant communities, and also by connecting watersheds,” said Jones CCB director Larry Gullett. “The Hale Wildlife Area sits on a ridge that separates two different watersheds, which makes it a prime corridor for wildlife.”
The site is open to public use – an aspect that Twin Rivers PF Habitat Chairman Matt McQuillen found very attractive.
“It’s not just a hunting property; it’s a very diverse recreational area – fishing, hiking, sightseeing, walking, and other activities are all popular there,” he said. Gullett also mentioned the wildlife area as a prime spot for mushroom hunting.
Twin Rivers PF had hopes to expand the Hale Wildlife Area even before Jones CCB approached the chapter and INHF in the fall of 2008. PF and INHF’s roles with acquiring the site freed the CCB to plan and develop the site.
“This project was marked by great partners; everyone does what they can and it was a good collaborative effort,” McQuillen said. “We couldn’t have done it without each other.”
McQuillen credited Gullett with the site’s high quality.
“This site is not just well-restored,” he said. “Larry Gullett went above and beyond in creating such a high quality habitat area.”
INHF purchased the property from the Hagens in December 2008 and transferred the land to Jones County in January 2010. INHF is a nonprofit conservation group that works with private landowners and other partners to protect Iowa’s land, water and wildlife. Since its founding in 1979, INHF has helped protect more than 110,000 acres of Iowa’s wild places.
Twin Rivers PF organized fundraising for the site, an effort which eventually included the Delaware County and Dubuqueland chapters, the PF state trust fund, the Jones County Endowment Fund and several chapters of Whitetails Unlimited, including the Wapsi Bottoms Chapter near Oxford Junction, Maquoketa Chapter, Cedar River Chapter (Lisbon/Mount Vernon), Cedar Rapids Chapter and National Organization of Whitetails.
“The Hagens have been great to work with, and the project is a great addition to Hale Wildlife Area,” Gullett said.
Hale Wildlife Area is located on 62nd Street, about 2.5 miles southwest of Wyoming, about 15 miles southeast of Monticello.
Past INHF projects in Jones County include Whitewater Canyon and Indian Bluffs.For more information, visit www.inhf.org or call 515-288-1846.