Newell and Ann Meyer Nature Preserve returns to its past
By John Koski
Correspondent
“Little by little it’s coming back together,” said Jerry Ziegler, southeast Wisconsin land steward for The Nature Conservancy, as he talked about restoration efforts at the Newell and Ann Meyer Nature Preserve south of Eagle.
The 374-acre preserve was acquired by the Nature Conservancy in 2006 through the Meyers’ estate and is the headwaters of the Mukwonago River.
“The Meyer preserve is a remarkable treasure,” Ziegler said, “and is The Nature Conservancy’s first preserve in Waukesha County.”
One by one, former farm fields within the preserve are being restored to native prairie with a 56-acre field scheduled for planting in the next few months. In addition undergrowth and non-native trees are being removed to open up majestic oak savannahs.
“Once we get a layer of snow on the ground and it’s frozen,” Ziegler said, “workers will come and seed the field on a day when they know it will snow the next day. The snow will cover the new seed so that birds won’t eat it and it doesn’t blow around. The snow also helps push the seed into the ground so that I can take off in the spring.
Ziegler said the land would be a good habitat for grassland birds, especially rarer species.
“We have Bobolinks that migrate 5,000 miles from Peru and Argentina and spend the summer in these fields. Their habitat has dwindled and they are in big trouble. So whatever we can do to bring them back is important,” he said.
“The preserve has already become a really good bird-watching place,” Ziegler continued. “We have egrets, great blue herons and sandhill cranes, as well as the grassland and woodland birds. We’ve even seen a cormorant, which surprised me because they usually are seen around big lakes. “
He said the preserve also has 10 bluebird boxes that that were installed in 2008 by high school interns.
“Since then, we have fledged over 100 bluebirds. The nice thing is that Newell and Ann Meyer had a sense of what needed to be done and we’re just following up on their wishes and fine-tuning,” Ziegler said.
“Native prairie is a great improvement for grassland birds compared to corn, soybean and hay fields,” Ziegler noted. “For example, we have 25 species of native grasses and flowers growing here. In addition, when farmers harvest hay, birds are still on the ground and a lot of them get killed.”
“Our ultimate goal here is native prairie punctuated by 45 acres of oak savannah and woodlands,” Ziegler said. “With a prairie restoration you’ve got to plan on five to six years before all of the species get established.”
Assisting Ziegler in his restoration efforts this fall was an eight-person crew from AmeriCorps. The ages of the crewmembers ranged from 18 to 24 and they came from half-a dozen states.
AmeriCorps is a national network of programs that each year engages more than 80,000 Americans of all ages in intensive service to meet critical needs in communities throughout the nation.
“We’ve been doing anything and everything they ask us to do,” said AmeriCorps crewmember Ellen King, who is from Rochester, Ill. “For example, we’re restoring and opening up an oak savannah by clearing invasive undergrowth around the trees.”
“The AmeriCorps crew also helped create a half-mile trail through the woods,” Ziegler said, “removed a dock for winter storage, spread 900 pounds of seed in a prairie restoration area, repaired one of the cabins and built a 10-foot-long bridge for a trail.”
“Working here has really opened my eyes,” said Lorianna Beverly, Colorado Springs, Colo. “People can come here and see how it has been restored to a natural state. Being a part of that accomplishment has been very rewarding.”
“It was important for me to see a native prairie restored by removing invasive and aggressive species and replacing them with native plants,” added Tyler Purcell, Springfield, Vt. “It’s really cool to see and to be a part of it from the ground level.”
For more information about the Newell and Ann Meyer Nature Preserve, go to www.nature.org. To learn more about AmeriCorps, visit www.americrops.gov.
Mukwonago Watershed protection plan
Today, the Conservancy owns 1,410 acres at five preserves in the Mukwonago Watershed, including:
• Lulu Lake Preserve (583 acres)
• Crooked Creek Preserve (197 acres)
• Pickerel Lake Fen (134 acres)
• Newell and Ann Meyer Nature Preserve (374 acres)
To date, the Conservancy has helped protect a total of 1,769 acres in the Mukwonago Watershed. This figure includes lands owned and managed by the Conservancy, conservation easements, government co-ops and assists.
