Download the Central Lake Michigan Coastal chapter [PDF] of the Ecological Landscapes of Wisconsin. This chapter provides a detailed assessment of the ecological and socioeconomic conditions for the Central Lake Michigan Coastal. It also identifies important planning and management considerations and suggests management opportunities that are compatible with the ecology of the landscape. The tabs below provide additional information.
Please note that each of these topics is covered in much more detail in the Central Lake Michigan Coastal chapter [PDF].
Physical & Biotic Environment | Socioeconomic Conditions | Considerations for Planning & Management
| Physical & Biotic Environment | |
|---|---|
|
Size |
2,742 square miles (1,755,089 acres), representing 4.9% of the land area of the State of Wisconsin. |
|
Climate |
The climate in the eastern part of this Ecological Landscape is moderated by its proximity to Lake Michigan, leading to warmer temperatures in the fall and early winter and somewhat cooler temperatures during spring and early summer that influence vegetation and other aspects of the ecology. Lake effect snow can occur in areas along the Lake Michigan coast during the winter. Mean growing season is 160 days (second longest in the state), mean annual temperature is 45.1 deg. F, mean annual precipitation is 31.1 (second lowest in the state), and mean annual snowfall is 43.4 inches. There is adequate rainfall and growing degree days to support agricultural row crops, small grains, and pastures which are prevalent land uses here. Learn more from the chapter [PDF] |
|
Bedrock |
Bedrock is mostly Silurian dolomite. It underlies all the counties along Lake Michigan, extending as far west as Lake Winnebago. It often appears as ridges or cliffs where surrounding bedrock has been eroded. Maquoketa shale occurs in a narrow strip along the Green Bay shoreline. West of Green Bay, the land is underlain by dolomitic rock with strata of limestone and shale. Further inland, bands of sandstone lie roughly parallel to the shore. An area in western Outagamie and eastern Shawano counties is deeply underlain by Precambrian granitic rocks. Where overlying glacial deposits are thin enough (e.g., in parts of the Door Peninsula), bedrock characteristics can directly affect the vegetation, especially where the substrate is strongly calcareous. Plant nutrients derived from limestone and dolomite have contributed to the development of unusual plant communities, and these in turn support rare or uncommon plants adapted to habitats containing high levels of calcium. Where dolomitic bedrock is close to the surface, runoff laden with sediments and pollutants can move quickly and over long distances through fractures in the rock. Learn more from the chapter [PDF] |
|
Geology & Landforms |
Landforms are mostly glacial in origin, especially till plains and moraines, reworked and overlain in the western part by Glacial Lake Oshkosh. Beach ridges, terraces, and dunes formed near the shorelines of this glacial lake when sandy sediments were present. At other locations boulder fields were formed when silts and clays were removed by wave action. Along Lake Michigan coastal ridge and swale complexes, drowned river mouths (freshwater estuaries), and clay bluffs and ravines occur. The Niagara Escarpment is a prominent bedrock feature that runs along the east sides of lower Green Bay and the Fox River Valley. Learn more from the chapter [PDF] |
|
Soils |
Most upland soils are reddish-brown calcareous loamy till or lacustrine deposits on moraines, till plains, and lake plains. The dominant soil is loamy or clayey with a silt loam surface, with moderately slow permeability, and high available water capacity. Learn more from the chapter [PDF] |
|
Hydrology |
Lake Michigan is a key ecological and socioeconomic feature. It influences the climate, created unique landforms, and is responsible in part for the presence and distribution of rare species. The shoreline constitutes a major flyway for migratory birds. Most of the major cities in this Ecological Landscape are located at the mouths of rivers entering Lake Michigan or Green Bay. Inland lakes are scarce, and all are small. The Fox River drains Lake Winnebago and runs into Green Bay. The other major rivers here run directly into Lake Michigan, and include the Ahnapee, Kewaunee, East Twin, West Twin, Manitowoc, Sheboygan, and Milwaukee. Learn more from the chapter [PDF] |
|
Current Landcover |
Agriculture is the dominant land use here by area, and there are several medium sized cities. Some large forested wetlands occur in both the eastern and western parts of the Ecological Landscape. The Wolf River bottoms are especially important in the west. Extensive marshes persist in southwestern Green Bay. The ridge and swale complex at Point Beach contains the largest area of coastal forest (with associated wetlands, dunes, and beaches) and constitutes an extremely important repository of regional biodiversity. Learn more from the chapter [PDF] |
|
Socioeconomic Conditions
(based on data from Waupaca, Outagamie, Brown, Kewaunee, Calumet, Manitowoc, Sheboygan, and Ozaukee counties) |
|
|---|---|
|
Population |
814,770, 14.5% of the state total |
|
Population Density |
199 persons/ sq. mile |
|
Per Capita Income |
$36,555 |
|
Important Economic Sectors |
The sectors producing the most jobs were: manufacturing (non-wood) (14.5%); tourism-related (11.1%), government (9.5%) and retail trade (9.1%) in 2007. Agriculture and urbanization have the largest effect on the natural resources of the Ecological Landscape. |
|
Public Ownership |
Public lands include Point Beach State Forest, Harrington Beach and Kohler-Andrae State Parks, several State Wildlife Areas (including several units of Green Bay West Shores, C. D. Besadny, Collins Marsh, Brillion Marsh, and Navarino), State Fishery Areas, and State Natural Areas. UW-Green Bay owns Point Au Sable on Lower Green Bay and land along lower Fischer Creek in Manitowoc County. Sheboygan Marsh is owned mostly by the county, but partly by the DNR. Other county ownerships include Maribel Caves (Manitowoc), Lily Lake (Brown), and at least part of the Cat Island chain in Lower Green Bay (Brown). A map showing public land ownership (county, state, and federal) and private lands enrolled in the Forest Tax Programs can be found in Appendix K at the end of this chapter. |
|
Other Notable Ownerships |
Woodland Dunes Nature Center (private), Bay Beach Wildlife Sanctuary (owned by the City of Green Bay). |
| Considerations for Planning & Management | |
|---|---|
Fragmentation, especially of forested habitats, is severe in this Ecological Landscape. Many remnants of native vegetation are small and isolated, and there is not much public land. Where feasible, steps need to be taken to increase effective habitat area, and minimize isolation by connecting scattered remnants, especially along shorelines and waterways. Additional stopover sites for migratory birds are needed along the Lake Michigan shoreline. Invasive plants are a major problem in both upland and wetland vegetation types. The Lower Green Bay ecosystem continues to change rapidly; it seems unlikely that this area will stabilize in the immediate future. There is a need for an updated and expanded inventory of natural features here. Learn more about management opportunities from the chapter [PDF] |
The following species are listed according to their probability of occurring in the Central Lake Michigan Coastal Ecological Landscape, based on the findings in Wisconsin's 2015 Wildlife Action Plan.
See the key to association scores [PDF] for complete definitions.
(Please see also the Significant Flora [PDF] and the Significant Wildlife [PDF] sections in the Central Lake Michigan Coastal chapter).
| Amphibians | Score | |
|---|---|---|
| Four-toed Salamander | Hemidactylium scutatum | 3 |
| Blanchard's Cricket Frog | Acris blanchardi | 1 |
| Pickerel Frog | Lithobates palustris | 1 |
| Ants, wasps, and bees | Score | |
|---|---|---|
| American Bumble Bee | Bombus pensylvanicus | 1 |
| Confusing Bumble Bee | Bombus perplexus | 1 |
| Indiscriminate Cuckoo Bumble Bee | Bombus insularis | 1 |
| Rusty-patched Bumble Bee | Bombus affinis | 1 |
| Yellow Bumble Bee | Bombus fervidus | 1 |
| Yellowbanded Bumble Bee | Bombus terricola | 1 |
| Aquatic and terrestrial snails | Score | |
|---|---|---|
| Cherrystone Drop | Hendersonia occulta | 3 |
| Ribbed Striate | Striatura exigua | 3 |
| Black Striate | Striatura ferrea | 2 |
| Deep-throated Vertigo | Vertigo nylanderi | 2 |
| Dentate Supercoil | Paravitrea multidentata | 2 |
| Hubricht's Vertigo | Vertigo hubrichti | 2 |
| Transparent Vitrine Snail | Vitrina angelicae | 2 |
| Appalachian Pillar | Cochlicopa morseana | 1 |
| Bright Glyph | Glyphyalinia wheatleyi | 1 |
| Brilliant Granule | Guppya sterkii | 1 |
| Eastern Flat-whorl | Planogyra asteriscus | 1 |
| Sculpted Glyph | Glyphyalinia rhoadsi | 1 |
| Beetles | Score | |
|---|---|---|
| A Hydroporus Diving Beetle | Heterosternuta wickhami | 3 |
| A Predaceous Diving Beetle | Cybister fimbriolatus | 3 |
| A Predaceous Diving Beetle | Ilybius angustior | 3 |
| A Riffle Beetle | Stenelmis quadrimaculata | 3 |
| A Riffle Beetle | Stenelmis musgravei | 3 |
| A Riffle Beetle | Stenelmis fuscata | 3 |
| A Riffle Beetle | Stenelmis antennalis | 3 |
| A Water Scavenger Beetle | Agabetes acuductus | 3 |
| A Water Scavenger Beetle | Hydrochara leechi | 3 |
| A Water Scavenger Beetle | Cymbiodyta toddi | 3 |
| Cantrall's Bog Beetle | Liodessus cantralli | 3 |
| Hairy-necked Tiger Beetle | Cicindela hirticollis rhodensis | 3 |
| A Predaceous Diving Beetle | Agabus discolor | 2 |
| Northern Barrens Tiger Beetle | Cicindela patruela patruela | 2 |
| Robust Dubiraphian Riffle Beetle | Dubiraphia robusta | 2 |
| A Straight-snouted Weevil | Eutrichapion huron | 1 |
| Ghost Tiger Beetle | Ellipsoptera lepida | 1 |
| Hairy-necked Tiger Beetle | Cicindela hirticollis hirticollis | 1 |
| Sandy Stream Tiger Beetle | Ellipsoptera macra | 1 |
| Birds | Score | |
|---|---|---|
| American Woodcock | Scolopax minor | 3 |
| Black Tern | Chlidonias niger | 3 |
| Black-crowned Night-Heron | Nycticorax nycticorax | 3 |
| Bobolink | Dolichonyx oryzivorus | 3 |
| Cerulean Warbler | Setophaga cerulea | 3 |
| Common Tern | Sterna hirundo | 3 |
| Dickcissel | Spiza americana | 3 |
| Eastern Meadowlark | Sturnella magna | 3 |
| Forster's Tern | Sterna forsteri | 3 |
| Great Egret | Ardea alba | 3 |
| Least Flycatcher | Empidonax minimus | 3 |
| Peregrine Falcon | Falco peregrinus | 3 |
| Prothonotary Warbler | Protonotaria citrea | 3 |
| Purple Martin | Progne subis | 3 |
| Red-headed Woodpecker | Melanerpes erythrocephalus | 3 |
| Upland Sandpiper | Bartramia longicauda | 3 |
| Vesper Sparrow | Pooecetes gramineus | 3 |
| Acadian Flycatcher | Empidonax virescens | 2 |
| American Bittern | Botaurus lentiginosus | 2 |
| Caspian Tern | Hydroprogne caspia | 2 |
| Eastern Whip-poor-will | Antrostomus vociferus | 2 |
| Golden-winged Warbler | Vermivora chrysoptera | 2 |
| Grasshopper Sparrow | Ammodramus savannarum | 2 |
| Henslow's Sparrow | Ammodramus henslowii | 2 |
| Hooded Warbler | Setophaga citrina | 2 |
| King Rail | Rallus elegans | 2 |
| Least Bittern | Ixobrychus exilis | 2 |
| Loggerhead Shrike | Lanius ludovicianus | 2 |
| Piping Plover | Charadrius melodus | 2 |
| Rusty Blackbird | Euphagus carolinus | 2 |
| Short-eared Owl | Asio flammeus | 2 |
| Western Meadowlark | Sturnella neglecta | 2 |
| Wilson's Phalarope | Phalaropus tricolor | 2 |
| Yellow-crowned Night-Heron | Nyctanassa violacea | 2 |
| Yellow-headed Blackbird | Xanthocephalus xanthocephalus | 2 |
| Black-necked Stilt | Himantopus mexicanus | 1 |
| Brewer's Blackbird | Euphagus cyanocephalus | 1 |
| Common Nighthawk | Chordeiles minor | 1 |
| Long-eared Owl | Asio otus | 1 |
| Red-shouldered Hawk | Buteo lineatus | 1 |
| Rufa Red Knot | Calidris canutus rufa | 1 |
| Yellow-breasted Chat | Icteria virens | 1 |
| Butterflies and moths | Score | |
|---|---|---|
| Phyllira Tiger Moth | Grammia phyllira | 2 |
| Columbine Dusky Wing | Erynnis lucilius | 1 |
| Gorgone Checker Spot | Chlosyne gorgone | 1 |
| Mottled Dusky Wing | Erynnis martialis | 1 |
| Semirelict Underwing Moth | Catocala semirelicta | 1 |
| Swamp Metalmark | Calephelis muticum | 1 |
| Caddisflies | Score | |
|---|---|---|
| A Fingernet Caddisfly | Wormaldia shawnee | 3 |
| A Fingernet Caddisfly | Wormaldia moesta | 3 |
| Dragonflies and damselflies | Score | |
|---|---|---|
| Hine's Emerald | Somatochlora hineana | 3 |
| Double-striped Bluet | Enallagma basidens | 2 |
| Slaty Skimmer | Libellula incesta | 2 |
| Smoky Rubyspot | Hetaerina titia | 2 |
| Swamp Darner | Epiaeschna heros | 2 |
| Clamp-tipped Emerald | Somatochlora tenebrosa | 1 |
| Delta-spotted Spiketail | Cordulegaster diastatops | 1 |
| Forcipate Emerald | Somatochlora forcipata | 1 |
| Incurvate Emerald | Somatochlora incurvata | 1 |
| Lilypad Forktail | Ischnura kellicotti | 1 |
| Mottled Darner | Aeshna clepsydra | 1 |
| Plains Emerald | Somatochlora ensigera | 1 |
| Pronghorn Clubtail | Gomphus graslinellus | 1 |
| Spatterdock Darner | Rhionaeschna mutata | 1 |
| Unicorn Clubtail | Arigomphus villosipes | 1 |
| Fishes | Score | |
|---|---|---|
| Lake Sturgeon | Acipenser fulvescens | 3 |
| River Redhorse | Moxostoma carinatum | 2 |
| Shoal Chub | Macrhybopsis hyostoma | 2 |
| American Eel | Anguilla rostrata | 1 |
| Lake Chubsucker | Erimyzon sucetta | 1 |
| Longear Sunfish | Lepomis megalotis | 1 |
| Redfin Shiner | Lythrurus umbratilis | 1 |
| Grasshoppers and allies | Score | |
|---|---|---|
| Blue-legged Grasshopper | Melanoplus flavidus | 3 |
| Club-horned Grasshopper | Aeropedellus clavatus | 3 |
| Scudder's Short-winged Grasshopper | Melanoplus scudderi | 3 |
| Seaside Grasshopper | Trimerotropis maritima | 3 |
| Stone's Locust | Melanoplus stonei | 3 |
| Ash-brown Grasshopper | Trachyrhachys kiowa | 2 |
| Clear-winged Grasshopper | Camnula pellucida | 2 |
| Crackling Forest Grasshopper | Trimerotropis verruculata | 2 |
| Huckleberry Spur-throat Grasshopper | Melanoplus fasciatus | 2 |
| Lake Huron Locust | Trimerotropis huroniana | 2 |
| Black-striped Katydid | Scudderia fasciata | 1 |
| Bog Conehead | Neoconocephalus lyristes | 1 |
| Bruner's Spur-throat Grasshopper | Melanoplus bruneri | 1 |
| Delicate Meadow Katydid | Orchelimum delicatum | 1 |
| Forest Locust | Melanoplus islandicus | 1 |
| Handsome Grasshopper | Syrbula admirabilis | 1 |
| Mermiria Grasshopper | Mermiria bivittata | 1 |
| Obscure Grasshopper | Opeia obscura | 1 |
| Rocky Mountain Sprinkled Locust | Chloealtis abdominalis | 1 |
| Short-winged Grasshopper | Dichromorpha viridis | 1 |
| Speckled Rangeland Grasshopper | Arphia conspersa | 1 |
| Spotted-winged Grasshopper | Orphulella pelidna | 1 |
| Leafhoppers and true bugs | Score | |
|---|---|---|
| A Leafhopper | Limotettix elegans | 3 |
| A Leafhopper | Destria crocea | 1 |
| Mammals | Score | |
|---|---|---|
| Big Brown Bat | Eptesicus fuscus | 3 |
| Little Brown Bat | Myotis lucifugus | 3 |
| Northern Long-eared Bat | Myotis septentrionalis | 2 |
| Silver-haired Bat | Lasionycteris noctivagans | 2 |
| Northern Flying Squirrel | Glaucomys sabrinus | 1 |
| Prairie Deer Mouse | Peromyscus maniculatus bairdii | 1 |
| Water Shrew | Sorex palustris | 1 |
| Woodland Jumping Mouse | Napaeozapus insignis | 1 |
| Woodland Vole | Microtus pinetorum | 1 |
| Mayflies | Score | |
|---|---|---|
| A Common Burrower Mayfly | Pentagenia vittigera | 1 |
| A Flat-headed Mayfly | Maccaffertium pulchellum | 1 |
| A Small Minnow Mayfly | Plauditus cestus | 1 |
| A Small Minnow Mayfly | Paracloeodes minutus | 1 |
| Mussels and clams | Score | |
|---|---|---|
| Slippershell Mussel | Alasmidonta viridis | 3 |
| Buckhorn | Tritogonia verrucosa | 2 |
| Elktoe | Alasmidonta marginata | 2 |
| Ellipse | Venustaconcha ellipsiformis | 2 |
| Mapleleaf | Quadrula quadrula | 2 |
| Salamander Mussel | Simpsonaias ambigua | 2 |
| Snuffbox | Epioblasma triquetra | 2 |
| Monkeyface | Theliderma metanevra | 1 |
| Rainbow Shell | Villosa iris | 1 |
| Reptiles | Score | |
|---|---|---|
| Blanding's Turtle | Emydoidea blandingii | 2 |
| Butler's Gartersnake | Thamnophis butleri | 2 |
| Wood Turtle | Glyptemys insculpta | 2 |
| Eastern Ribbonsnake | Thamnophis sauritus | 1 |
The Natural Heritage Inventory has developed scores indicating the degree to which each of Wisconsin's rare plant species is associated with a particular natural community or ecological landscape. This information is similar to that found in the Wildlife Action Plan for animals. As this is a work in progress, we welcome your suggestions and feedback.
Scores: 3 = "significantly associated," 2 = "moderately associated," and 1 = "minimally associated."
The Central Lake Michigan Coastal Ecological Landscape contains opportunities to manage for the following natural communities, based on the findings in the 2015 Wildlife Action Plan (originally presented by the Ecosystem Management Team).
See the key to association scores [PDF] for complete definitions.
Lake Michigan forms the eastern boundary and is a dominant feature of the Central Lake Michigan Coastal Ecological Landscape. Most of the immediate shoreline is upland and has undergone extensive development to serve agricultural, residential, recreational and urban-industrial uses. Many important protection and management opportunities are associated with Lake Michigan shoreline features such as beaches and dunes, ridge and swale complexes, alvar, ravines with native conifers, coastal forests and marshes and migratory bird concentration areas.
Lower Green Bay and the mouth of the Fox River comprise a highly disturbed but rich ecosystem that includes the shallow waters of the Lower Bay, islands that support rookeries of fish-eating birds and extensive coastal marshes and other wetland communities now concentrated west of the Fox River's mouth and along the Bay's west shore. Important marsh complexes of Lower Green Bay include Long Tail Point, Little Tail Point, Peats Lake and, east of the Fox River, Point Au Sable. All of these are heavily used by migratory and resident waterfowl and other birds. In recent decades the marsh vegetation has undergone a drastic shift in dominance from diverse assemblages of native species to the highly invasive non-native common reed, narrow-leaved cat-tail and hybrid cat-tail. Protection of the remaining coastal marshes is a top priority, as is monitoring the impacts and effectiveness of the ongoing large-scale restoration attempts.
A majority of the natural vegetation remaining in the western part of the landscape is associated with the Wolf River floodplain. Significant acreages of lowland hardwood forest, shrub swamp and marsh are present, along with smaller amounts of sedge meadow and mesic hardwood forest. The entire floodplain of the Wolf River merits protection, as almost everything around it is now heavily developed. Similarly, the only extensive areas of natural vegetation in the eastern part of the landscape are several isolated but large wetlands in southern Door and Kewaunee counties and at several other locations to the south and west. Most of these wetlands are forested, with stands of swamp hardwoods, white cedar, tamarack and floodplain forest. Much of this land is in multiple private ownerships, with relatively few large tracts. There is a need to conduct field surveys to identify sites that offer the best opportunities for management and protection partnerships.
Lake Michigan is used heavily by waterfowl and other waterbirds, and its shoreline is important for migratory birds of many kinds, including waterfowl, loons, grebes, gulls, terns, shorebirds, raptors and passerines. Providing or maintaining habitat for nesting, migratory and wintering birds along and near Lake Michigan and Green Bay are important conservation goals. Management opportunities include maintaining and restoring the integrity of locations on Lake Michigan and its shoreline that receive heavy bird use, as well as reforesting open locations along the shoreline for use as migratory stopover sites for land birds. There is also a need to provide stopover habitats at inland locations.
Several miscellaneous features are of at least local importance in the Central Lake Michigan Coastal. Examples that represent management opportunities include river and stream corridors, inland lakes, Ephemeral Ponds, remnant maple-beech forests, pine-oak forests and Surrogate Grasslands, the latter include some Great Lakes shoreline sites.
1. The text presented here is a summarized version of a longer section developed for the Ecological Landscapes of Wisconsin.
Also see the statewide maps.
Landtype Associations (LTAs) are units of the National Hierarchical Framework of Ecological Units (NHFEU), a hierarchical ecological land classification system. LTAs are much smaller than Ecological Landscapes, ranging in size from 10,000 and 300,000 acres. In Wisconsin, they are usually based on glacial features like individual moraines or outwash plains. LTAs can be very useful for planning at finer scales within an Ecological Landscape.
The following are the LTAs associated with the Central Lake Michigan Coastal Ecological Landscape. The Central Lake Michigan Coastal LTA map [PDF] can be used to locate these LTAs. Clicking on an LTA in the list below will open a data table for that LTA in PDF format. Descriptions are included, where available.
Map of Wisconsin's 16 Ecological Landscapes