Wisconsin Forest Legacy Program

Forest Legacy Areas

The Baraboo Hills Forest Legacy Area

This area meets all of the established criteria. Although individual tracts are smaller than in the northern portions of the State, the term "large" is relative; tracts are large for this region. The tracts within this area are significant in the role they play for flora and fauna, the underlying structure of the area is unique, and past work of conservation groups as established connectivity with the area that FLP can augment. The area has national and even global significance, established private landowner programs and conservation groups in the area and contains some unique habitats for this part of the state.

The Baraboo Hills area encompasses 144,000 acres in an elliptical shape. It is approximately 27 miles long and 14 miles wide. The Bluffs, within the area, are a remnant of a very old monadnock or outcropping of quartzite. The Bluffs are the largest surface deposit of quartzite in the Midwest, and thus as both a landform and mineral perspective, have significance.

This area contains 27 distinct plant communities, 15 of which are rare in the state. There are 915 native vascular plant species, 307 non-vascular species, 171 aquatic invertebrate species, 135 breeding bird species, 50 fish species, 39 mammal species, and 29 amphibian and reptile species. The relatively large, non-fragmented forests of the Bluffs provide vitally important habitat for forest-interior songbirds for nesting and breeding (Jellinek, 1995).

A large number of private trust and conservancy organizations have a history of cooperating in the area with public recognition, management, and support efforts. These include the private land trusts, Baraboo Range Preservation Association, The Riverland Conservancy, and the Ice Age Trail. Government programs are working in the Wisconsin DNR's Devil's Lake State Park, State Natural Area Program to enhance management and protection of this area. There is also a new special designation applied to the area created to minimize the forest fragmentation resulting from the re-construction of US Highway 12. As a part of the Highway 12 agreement, Sauk County has also established a Purchase of Development Rights program to provide some assistance in protecting the Baraboo Hills forests.

We expect any and all of the above listed organizations to be active in the monitoring of the FLA.

Values within this FLA of primary concern are rare or unique communities, cultural resources, water quality, fish and wildlife habitat, rare species and recreational opportunities.