Karner Blue Meadow

State Natural Area (No. 327)

Location: Waushara County. T20N-R11E, Section 28 NE¼SE¼. 40 acres.

Access: From the intersection of Highways 22 and A north of Wild Rose, go east on County A 3.0 miles, then south on 22nd Avenue 0.5 mile to a parking area in the southeast corner of the site.

Description: Karner Blue Meadow features a dry sand prairie that is home to a strong population of the federally endangered Karner blue butterfly (Lycaeides melissa samuelis). The Karner blue is one of many plants and animals native to the sandy oak savannas and dry prairie habitat that have declined dramatically over the past several decades. Historically, the Karner blue occurred from eastern Minnesota, across the Great Lakes and into New England but has now disappeared from numerous states due to habitat loss, fragmentation, and a lack of natural disturbance, such as wildfire. The Karner blue is restricted to habitats that contain wild lupine, a beautiful purplish-blue flowering plant -the larval butterfly’s only food plant. A plant of dry sand prairies and other open communities, lupine is abundant throughout this natural area. Other plants include blazing-star, flowering spurge, wormwood, spiderwort and New Jersey tea. The natural area borders Bonneville Lake, a 15-acre seepage lake surrounded by marshy vegetation. The lake supports a diverse aquatic invertebrate fauna, including several species of dragonflies. The Wisconsin DNR is working in conjunction with multiple corporate and private landowners to ensure that management activities, such as fire, brushing, and mowing, help ensure the long-term protection of the Karner blue butterfly. Karner Blue Meadow is owned by the DNR and was designated a State Natural Area in 1998.