Download the Southeast Glacial Plains chapter [PDF] of the Ecological Landscapes of Wisconsin. This chapter provides a detailed assessment of the ecological and socioeconomic conditions for the Southeast Glacial Plains. 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 Southeast Glacial Plains chapter [PDF].
Physical & Biotic Environment | Socioeconomic Conditions | Considerations for Planning & Management
| Physical & Biotic Environment | |
|---|---|
|
Size |
7,725 square miles (4,943,731 acres), representing 13.8% of the land area of the State of Wisconsin. |
|
Climate |
Typical of southern Wisconsin; mean growing season of 155 days, mean annual temperature is 45.9 deg. F, mean annual precipitation is 33.6 inches, and mean annual snowfall is 39.4 inches. The climate is suitable for agricultural row crops, small grains, and pastures, which are prevalent in this Ecological Landscape. Learn more from the chapter [PDF] |
|
Bedrock |
Primarily underlain by limestone and dolomite with some sandstone and shale. Generally covered by a thick layer of glacial deposits (>50 feet). The southernmost exposures of the Silurian dolomite "Niagara Escarpment" occur west and south of Lake Winnebago. Learn more from the chapter [PDF] |
|
Geology & Landforms |
The dominant landforms are glacial till plains and moraines composed mostly of materials deposited during the Wisconsin Ice Age, but the southwestern part of the Ecological Landscape consists of older, pre-Wisconsin till and the topography is more dissected. Other glacial landforms, including drumlins, outwash plains, eskers, kames and kettles are also well-represented kames, eskers, and kettles. The "Kettle Moraine" is an area of rough topography on the eastern side of the Southeast Glacial Plains that marks the areas of contact between the Green Bay and Lake Michigan glacial lobes. Numerous excellent examples of glacial features occur and are highly visible in the Kettle Moraine. Learn more from the chapter [PDF] |
|
Soils |
Soils are derived from lime-rich tills overlain in most areas by a silt-loam loess cap. Learn more from the chapter [PDF] |
|
Hydrology |
The Southeast Glacial Plains has the highest aquatic productivity for plants, insects, other invertebrates, and fish of any Ecological Landscape in the state. Significant river systems include the Wolf, Bark, Rock, Fox, Milwaukee, Sugar, Mukwonago, and Sheboygan. Most riparian zones have been degraded. Several clusters of large lakes exist, including the Yahara chain of lakes in and around Madison, and the Lake Winnebago Pool system. Kettle lakes occur within end moraines, in outwash channels, and in ancient riverbeds. This Ecological Landscape contains some huge marshes, as well as fens, sedge meadows, wet prairies, tamarack swamps, and floodplain forests. Many wetlands here have been affected by hydrologic modifications (ditching, diking, tiling), grazing, infestations of invasive plants, and excessive inputs of sediment- and nutrient-laden runoff from croplands. Learn more from the chapter [PDF] |
|
Current Landcover |
Primarily agricultural cropland (58% of Landscape). Remaining forests occupy only 11% of the land area and major covertypes include maple-basswood, oak, lowland hardwoods, and conifer swamps (mostly tamarack-dominated). No large areas of upland forest exist except on the Kettle Interlobate Moraine, where the topography is too rugged to practice intensive agriculture and the soils are not always conducive to high crop productivity. Wetlands are extensive (12% of Landscape, 593,248 acres) and include large marshes and sedge meadows, and extensive forested lowlands within the Lower Wolf River floodplain. Forested lowlands are also significant along stretches of the Milwaukee, Sugar, and Rock rivers. Learn more from the chapter [PDF] |
|
Socioeconomic Conditions
(based on data from Calumet, Columbia, Dane, Dodge, Fond du Lac, Green, Green Lake, Jefferson, Ozaukee, Rock, Sheboygan, Walworth, Washington, Waukesha, Waupaca, and Winnebago counties) |
|
|---|---|
|
Population |
1,519,000, 28.5% of the state total |
|
Population Density |
204 persons/ sq. mile |
|
Per Capita Income |
$38,934 |
|
Important Economic Sectors |
Manufacturing (non-wood) (13.9% v. statewide 11.7%); Government (12.6% v. statewide: 12.1%); Tourism-related (10.6% vs. statewide: 11.2%); Retail trade (9.2% v. statewide: 9.0%) sectors employed the most people in 2007 reflecting high non-wood manufacturing and government service. Although agriculture, residential development (and urbanization) and forestry do not have a large impact on the economy or the number of jobs, they are the sectors that have the largest impact on the natural resources in the Ecological Landscape (in recent years groundwater withdrawals by municipalities to accommodate urban-industrial growth have raised concerns about protecting our water supplies, as well as lakes, stream, and wetlands). |
|
Public Ownership |
Only four percent of the Southeast Glacial Plains is in public ownership (226,230 acres), of which 58% is wetland and 42% is upland. Major public lands include Horicon National Wildlife Refuge and Horicon State Wildlife Area, and the Northern and Southern Units of the Kettle Moraine State Forest. Other state lands here are managed for fish, wildlife, natural areas, and recreation. The Cedarburg Bog, an extensive wetland complex in southeastern Wisconsin, is owned by the University of Wisconsin system and the Wisconsin DNR. County-owned lands are not extensive but include ecologically significant features, including several ecologically important stretches of the Niagara Escarpment. A map entitled "Public Land Ownership and Private land enrolled in the Forest Tax Programs in the Southeast Glacial Plains" can be found at the end of this chapter. |
|
Other Notable Ownerships |
The Nature Conservancy, in cooperation with the Wisconsin DNR and others, has a major project designed to protect the Mukwonago River watershed (including Lulu Lake) in the southeastern part of the Ecological Landscape. The Waukesha County Land Conservancy has several active projects aimed at protecting lands of high ecological significance. Other NGOs, including the Madison Audubon Society and groups active in local preservation efforts in other counties, also have active conservation projects in the Southeast Glacial Plains. |
| Considerations for Planning & Management | |
|---|---|
The Southeast Glacial Plains is heavily developed and highly populated. Pressure on natural resources, including ground and surface waters, is high and unlikely to diminish in the short-term. The amount of impervious surface is increasing in some watersheds, raising concerns about our ability to protect sensitive aquatic life and associated wetlands. Fragmentation is severe and isolation of native habitats is a major concern. Many invasive species are now widespread, well established, and have expanding populations here. Public ownership is limited and partnerships between public and private partners will be essential to accomplish long-term management goals and objectives for natural resources. The Southeastern Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission (SEWRPC) has conducted biological inventories for the seven counties in which they have jurisdiction and identified important natural areas and sensitive species populations; all seven of the SEWRPC counties are at least partially located within the Southeast Glacial Plains Ecological Landscape. The Wisconsin DNR has also conducted biological inventory work throughout the Southeast Glacial Plains While in general reconnecting isolated habitat patches is a positive, and ultimately often necessary, action, when habitats lacking invasives are identified planners and other stakeholders need to be sure be sure that pathways for colonization by invasive species have not been created or increased, and that control measures for both existing and future problems created by these species are anticipated and built into management plans and the budgeting process. For the two units of the Kettle Moraine State Forest, and at some of the larger wetland complexes (such as those at Horicon, along the Lower Wolf River, Sugar, and Milwaukee rivers, or in the Mukwonago River Watershed, planning at large scales will have many benefits to best ensure long-term viability of the resources present, as those areas offer many opportunities that smaller more isolated sites cannot. Learn more about management opportunities from the chapter [PDF] |
The following species are listed according to their probability of occurring in the Southeast Glacial Plains 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 Southeast Glacial Plains chapter).
| Amphibians | Score | |
|---|---|---|
| Four-toed Salamander | Hemidactylium scutatum | 3 |
| Pickerel Frog | Lithobates palustris | 3 |
| Blanchard's Cricket Frog | Acris blanchardi | 2 |
| Ants, wasps, and bees | Score | |
|---|---|---|
| Silphium Terminal Gall Wasp | Antistrophus silphii | 3 |
| American Bumble Bee | Bombus pensylvanicus | 2 |
| Confusing Bumble Bee | Bombus perplexus | 2 |
| Rusty-patched Bumble Bee | Bombus affinis | 2 |
| Yellow Bumble Bee | Bombus fervidus | 1 |
| Yellowbanded Bumble Bee | Bombus terricola | 1 |
| Aquatic and terrestrial snails | Score | |
|---|---|---|
| Deep-throated Vertigo | Vertigo nylanderi | 2 |
| Hubricht's Vertigo | Vertigo hubrichti | 2 |
| Black Striate | Striatura ferrea | 1 |
| Cherrystone Drop | Hendersonia occulta | 1 |
| Dentate Supercoil | Paravitrea multidentata | 1 |
| Eastern Flat-whorl | Planogyra asteriscus | 1 |
| Transparent Vitrine Snail | Vitrina angelicae | 1 |
| Birds | Score | |
|---|---|---|
| American Bittern | Botaurus lentiginosus | 3 |
| 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 |
| Grasshopper Sparrow | Ammodramus savannarum | 3 |
| Henslow's Sparrow | Ammodramus henslowii | 3 |
| Hooded Warbler | Setophaga citrina | 3 |
| King Rail | Rallus elegans | 3 |
| Least Bittern | Ixobrychus exilis | 3 |
| Least Flycatcher | Empidonax minimus | 3 |
| Prothonotary Warbler | Protonotaria citrea | 3 |
| Purple Martin | Progne subis | 3 |
| Red-headed Woodpecker | Melanerpes erythrocephalus | 3 |
| Red-necked Grebe | Podiceps grisegena | 3 |
| Rusty Blackbird | Euphagus carolinus | 3 |
| Short-eared Owl | Asio flammeus | 3 |
| Vesper Sparrow | Pooecetes gramineus | 3 |
| Western Meadowlark | Sturnella neglecta | 3 |
| Whooping Crane | Grus americana | 3 |
| Yellow-breasted Chat | Icteria virens | 3 |
| Yellow-headed Blackbird | Xanthocephalus xanthocephalus | 3 |
| Acadian Flycatcher | Empidonax virescens | 2 |
| Bell's Vireo | Vireo bellii | 2 |
| Common Nighthawk | Chordeiles minor | 2 |
| Eastern Whip-poor-will | Antrostomus vociferus | 2 |
| Golden-winged Warbler | Vermivora chrysoptera | 2 |
| Lark Sparrow | Chondestes grammacus | 2 |
| Loggerhead Shrike | Lanius ludovicianus | 2 |
| Northern Bobwhite | Colinus virginianus | 2 |
| Red-shouldered Hawk | Buteo lineatus | 2 |
| Upland Sandpiper | Bartramia longicauda | 2 |
| Wilson's Phalarope | Phalaropus tricolor | 2 |
| Yellow-crowned Night-Heron | Nyctanassa violacea | 2 |
| American Black Duck | Anas rubripes | 1 |
| Black-necked Stilt | Himantopus mexicanus | 1 |
| Brewer's Blackbird | Euphagus cyanocephalus | 1 |
| Long-eared Owl | Asio otus | 1 |
| Worm-eating Warbler | Helmitheros vermivorum | 1 |
| Yellow-throated Warbler | Setophaga dominica | 1 |
| Butterflies and moths | Score | |
|---|---|---|
| Liatris Borer Moth | Papaipema beeriana | 3 |
| Poweshiek Skipperling | Oarisma poweshiek | 3 |
| Silphium Borer Moth | Papaipema silphii | 3 |
| Swamp Metalmark | Calephelis muticum | 3 |
| Columbine Dusky Wing | Erynnis lucilius | 2 |
| Cross Line Skipper | Polites origenes | 2 |
| Leadplant Flower Moth | Schinia lucens | 2 |
| Midwestern Fen Buckmoth | Hemileuca nevadensis ssp. 3 | 2 |
| Regal Fritillary | Speyeria idalia | 2 |
| A Noctuid Moth | Dichagyris reliqua | 1 |
| A Noctuid Moth | Bagisara gulnare | 1 |
| Abbreviated Underwing Moth | Catocala abbreviatella | 1 |
| Gorgone Checker Spot | Chlosyne gorgone | 1 |
| Gray Copper | Lycaena dione | 1 |
| Mottled Dusky Wing | Erynnis martialis | 1 |
| Ottoe Skipper | Hesperia ottoe | 1 |
| Owl-eyed Bird Dropping Moth | Cerma cora | 1 |
| Whitney's Underwing Moth | Catocala whitneyi | 1 |
| Caddisflies | Score | |
|---|---|---|
| A Fingernet Caddisfly | Wormaldia moesta | 2 |
| Crustaceans | Score | |
|---|---|---|
| Prairie Crayfish | Procambarus gracilis | 2 |
| Dragonflies and damselflies | Score | |
|---|---|---|
| Hine's Emerald | Somatochlora hineana | 3 |
| Pronghorn Clubtail | Gomphus graslinellus | 3 |
| Smoky Rubyspot | Hetaerina titia | 3 |
| Swamp Darner | Epiaeschna heros | 3 |
| Unicorn Clubtail | Arigomphus villosipes | 3 |
| Double-striped Bluet | Enallagma basidens | 2 |
| Mottled Darner | Aeshna clepsydra | 2 |
| Slaty Skimmer | Libellula incesta | 2 |
| Delta-spotted Spiketail | Cordulegaster diastatops | 1 |
| Lilypad Forktail | Ischnura kellicotti | 1 |
| Painted Skimmer | Libellula semifasciata | 1 |
| Plains Emerald | Somatochlora ensigera | 1 |
| Spangled Skimmer | Libellula cyanea | 1 |
| Spatterdock Darner | Rhionaeschna mutata | 1 |
| Springwater Dancer | Argia plana | 1 |
| Fishes | Score | |
|---|---|---|
| Gravel Chub | Erimystax x-punctatus | 3 |
| Lake Chubsucker | Erimyzon sucetta | 3 |
| Lake Sturgeon | Acipenser fulvescens | 3 |
| Least Darter | Etheostoma microperca | 3 |
| Longear Sunfish | Lepomis megalotis | 3 |
| Ozark Minnow | Notropis nubilus | 3 |
| Pugnose Shiner | Notropis anogenus | 3 |
| Redfin Shiner | Lythrurus umbratilis | 3 |
| River Redhorse | Moxostoma carinatum | 3 |
| Slender Madtom | Noturus exilis | 3 |
| Starhead Topminnow | Fundulus dispar | 3 |
| Black Buffalo | Ictiobus niger | 2 |
| American Eel | Anguilla rostrata | 1 |
| Black Redhorse | Moxostoma duquesnei | 1 |
| Grasshoppers and allies | Score | |
|---|---|---|
| Ash-brown Grasshopper | Trachyrhachys kiowa | 2 |
| Bog Conehead | Neoconocephalus lyristes | 2 |
| Clear-winged Grasshopper | Camnula pellucida | 2 |
| Delicate Meadow Katydid | Orchelimum delicatum | 2 |
| Handsome Grasshopper | Syrbula admirabilis | 2 |
| Mermiria Grasshopper | Mermiria bivittata | 2 |
| Obscure Grasshopper | Opeia obscura | 2 |
| Seaside Grasshopper | Trimerotropis maritima | 2 |
| Short-winged Grasshopper | Dichromorpha viridis | 2 |
| Spotted-winged Grasshopper | Orphulella pelidna | 2 |
| Black-striped Katydid | Scudderia fasciata | 1 |
| Blue-legged Grasshopper | Melanoplus flavidus | 1 |
| Club-horned Grasshopper | Aeropedellus clavatus | 1 |
| Grizzly Spur-throat Grasshopper | Melanoplus punctulatus | 1 |
| Huckleberry Spur-throat Grasshopper | Melanoplus fasciatus | 1 |
| Scudder's Short-winged Grasshopper | Melanoplus scudderi | 1 |
| Speckled Rangeland Grasshopper | Arphia conspersa | 1 |
| Velvet-striped Grasshopper | Eritettix simplex | 1 |
| Leafhoppers and true bugs | Score | |
|---|---|---|
| A Leafhopper | Memnonia panzeri | 3 |
| A Leafhopper | Paraphlepsius nebulosus | 3 |
| A Leafhopper | Flexamia prairiana | 3 |
| A Planthopper | Myndus ovatus | 3 |
| A Water Strider | Neogerris hesione | 3 |
| Acuminate Water Boatman | Ramphocorixa acuminata | 3 |
| A Leafhopper | Cuerna sayi | 2 |
| A Leafhopper | Kansendria kansiensis | 2 |
| A Leafhopper | Laevicephalus vannus | 2 |
| A Leafhopper | Prairiana angustens | 2 |
| A Leafhopper | Prairiana cinerea | 2 |
| A Leafhopper | Prairiana kansana | 2 |
| An Issid Planthopper | Bruchomorpha extensa | 2 |
| Piglet Bug | Aphelonema simplex | 2 |
| Red-tailed Prairie Leafhopper | Aflexia rubranura | 2 |
| Yellow Loosestrife Leafhopper | Erythroneura carbonata | 2 |
| A Leafhopper | Destria crocea | 1 |
| A Leafhopper | Paraphlepsius altus | 1 |
| A Leafhopper | Limotettix elegans | 1 |
| A Seed Bug | Slaterobius quadristriata | 1 |
| An Issid Planthopper | Fitchiella robertsonii | 1 |
| Prairie Leafhopper | Polyamia dilata | 1 |
| Mammals | Score | |
|---|---|---|
| Big Brown Bat | Eptesicus fuscus | 3 |
| Franklin's Ground Squirrel | Poliocitellus franklinii | 3 |
| Little Brown Bat | Myotis lucifugus | 3 |
| Eastern Pipistrelle | Perimyotis subflavus | 2 |
| Northern Long-eared Bat | Myotis septentrionalis | 2 |
| Prairie Deer Mouse | Peromyscus maniculatus bairdii | 2 |
| Prairie Vole | Microtus ochrogaster | 2 |
| Silver-haired Bat | Lasionycteris noctivagans | 2 |
| Woodland Vole | Microtus pinetorum | 2 |
| Water Shrew | Sorex palustris | 1 |
| Mayflies | Score | |
|---|---|---|
| A Brush-legged Mayfly | Homoeoneuria ammophila | 3 |
| Winnebago Small Square-gilled Mayfly | Cercobrachys winnebago | 3 |
| A Common Burrower Mayfly | Pentagenia vittigera | 2 |
| A Small Minnow Mayfly | Paracloeodes minutus | 2 |
| Fox Small Square-gilled Mayfly | Cercobrachys fox | 2 |
| Pecatonica River Mayfly | Acanthametropus pecatonica | 2 |
| Wisconsin Small Square-gilled Mayfly | Cercobrachys lilliei | 2 |
| A Flat-headed Mayfly | Maccaffertium pulchellum | 1 |
| Mussels and clams | Score | |
|---|---|---|
| Ellipse | Venustaconcha ellipsiformis | 3 |
| Rainbow Shell | Villosa iris | 3 |
| Slippershell Mussel | Alasmidonta viridis | 3 |
| Buckhorn | Tritogonia verrucosa | 2 |
| Elktoe | Alasmidonta marginata | 2 |
| Mapleleaf | Quadrula quadrula | 2 |
| Flat Floater | Anodonta suborbiculata | 1 |
| Monkeyface | Theliderma metanevra | 1 |
| Purple Wartyback | Cyclonaias tuberculata | 1 |
| Salamander Mussel | Simpsonaias ambigua | 1 |
| Washboard | Megalonaias nervosa | 1 |
| Yellow & Slough Sandshells | Lampsilis teres | 1 |
| Reptiles | Score | |
|---|---|---|
| Blanding's Turtle | Emydoidea blandingii | 3 |
| Butler's Gartersnake | Thamnophis butleri | 3 |
| Eastern Massasauga | Sistrurus catenatus | 3 |
| Ornate Box Turtle | Terrapene ornata | 3 |
| Queensnake | Regina septemvittata | 3 |
| Eastern Ribbonsnake | Thamnophis sauritus | 2 |
| North American Racer | Coluber constrictor | 2 |
| Plains Gartersnake | Thamnophis radix | 2 |
| Western Ribbonsnake | Thamnophis proximus | 1 |
| Wood Turtle | Glyptemys insculpta | 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."
| Scientific Name | Common Name | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Agalinis auriculata | Earleaf Foxglove | 3 |
| Agrimonia parviflora | Swamp Agrimony | 3 |
| Anemone multifida var. multifida | Cut-leaved Anemone | 3 |
| Anticlea elegans ssp. glaucus | White Camas | 3 |
| Arnoglossum plantagineum | Prairie Indian-plantain | 3 |
| Asclepias hirtella | Green Milkweed | 3 |
| Asclepias sullivantii | Prairie Milkweed | 3 |
| Besseya bullii | Kitten Tails | 3 |
| Boechera dentata | Short's Rock-cress | 3 |
| Carex gracilescens | Slender Sedge | 3 |
| Carex suberecta | Prairie Straw Sedge | 3 |
| Carex swanii | Swan Sedge | 3 |
| Carex sychnocephala | Many-headed Sedge | 3 |
| Conioselinum chinense | Hemlock-parsley | 3 |
| Cuscuta glomerata | Rope Dodder | 3 |
| Cypripedium candidum | White Lady's-slipper | 3 |
| Cypripedium parviflorum var. makasin | Northern Yellow Lady's-slipper | 3 |
| Echinacea pallida | Pale Purple Coneflower | 3 |
| Eleocharis compressa var. compressa | Flat-stemmed Spike-rush | 3 |
| Eleocharis equisetoides | Horsetail Spike-rush | 3 |
| Eleocharis rostellata | Beaked Spike-rush | 3 |
| Epilobium strictum | Downy Willow-herb | 3 |
| Eurybia furcata | Forked Aster | 3 |
| Gymnocladus dioicus | Kentucky Coffee-tree | 3 |
| Houstonia caerulea | Azure Bluets | 3 |
| Hydrastis canadensis | Golden-seal | 3 |
| Hypericum sphaerocarpum | Round-fruited St. John's Wort | 3 |
| Juglans cinerea | Butternut | 3 |
| Lespedeza leptostachya | Prairie Bush Clover | 3 |
| Napaea dioica | Glade Mallow | 3 |
| Nuphar advena | Yellow Water Lily | 3 |
| Platanthera leucophaea | Eastern Prairie White Fringed Orchid | 3 |
| Platanus occidentalis | Sycamore | 3 |
| Polytaenia nuttallii | Prairie Parsley | 3 |
| Prenanthes aspera | Rough Rattlesnake-root | 3 |
| Ptelea trifoliata ssp. trifoliata var. trifoliata | Wafer-ash | 3 |
| Ruellia humilis | Hairy Wild Petunia | 3 |
| Scleria verticillata | Low Nutrush | 3 |
| Scutellaria parvula var. parvula | Small Skullcap | 3 |
| Sisyrinchium albidum | White Blue-eyed-grass | 3 |
| Spiranthes magnicamporum | Great Plains Lady's-tresses | 3 |
| Teloschistes chrysophthalmus | Gold-eye Lichen | 3 |
| Thalictrum revolutum | Waxleaf Meadowrue | 3 |
| Triantha glutinosa | False Asphodel | 3 |
| Trichophorum cespitosum | Tufted Bulrush | 3 |
| Triglochin palustris | Slender Bog Arrow-grass | 3 |
| Valeriana edulis var. ciliata | Hairy Valerian | 3 |
| Verbena simplex | Narrow-leaved Vervain | 3 |
| Ammannia robusta | Scarlet Loosestrife | 2 |
| Asclepias lanuginosa | Woolly Milkweed | 2 |
| Asclepias purpurascens | Purple Milkweed | 2 |
| Baptisia tinctoria | Yellow Wild-indigo | 2 |
| Callitriche heterophylla | Large Water-starwort | 2 |
| Camassia scilloides | Wild Hyacinth | 2 |
| Carex festucacea | Fescue Sedge | 2 |
| Carex formosa | Handsome Sedge | 2 |
| Carex torreyi | Torrey's Sedge | 2 |
| Chaerophyllum procumbens | Spreading Chervil | 2 |
| Cirsium hillii | Hill's Thistle | 2 |
| Cuscuta coryli | Hazel Dodder | 2 |
| Cuscuta pentagona | Field Dodder | 2 |
| Cuscuta polygonorum | Knotweed Dodder | 2 |
| Cystopteris laurentiana | Laurentian Bladder Fern | 2 |
| Desmodium perplexum | Perplexed Tick-trefoil | 2 |
| Dichanthelium wilcoxianum | Wilcox's Panic Grass | 2 |
| Draba arabisans | Rock Whitlow-grass | 2 |
| Drosera linearis | Linear-leaved Sundew | 2 |
| Eleocharis engelmannii | Engelmann's Spike-rush | 2 |
| Eleocharis quinqueflora | Few-flowered Spike-rush | 2 |
| Erigenia bulbosa | Harbinger-of-spring | 2 |
| Fraxinus quadrangulata | Blue Ash | 2 |
| Hydrophyllum appendiculatum | Great Water-leaf | 2 |
| Malaxis monophyllos var. brachypoda | White Adder's-mouth | 2 |
| Melica nitens | Three-flowered Melic Grass | 2 |
| Muhlenbergia richardsonis | Mat Muhly | 2 |
| Oenothera serrulata | Yellow Evening Primrose | 2 |
| Paronychia canadensis | Smooth Forked Nail-wort | 2 |
| Penstemon hirsutus | Hairy Beardtongue | 2 |
| Phlox bifida ssp. bifida | Cleft Phlox | 2 |
| Poa paludigena | Bog Bluegrass | 2 |
| Poa sylvestris | Woodland Bluegrass | 2 |
| Polygala incarnata | Pink Milkwort | 2 |
| Polystichum acrostichoides | Christmas Fern | 2 |
| Rhus aromatica | Fragrant Sumac | 2 |
| Salix sericea | Silky Willow | 2 |
| Schoenoplectus hallii | Hall's Bulrush | 2 |
| Schoenoplectus heterochaetus | Slender Bulrush | 2 |
| Scirpus pallidus | Pale Bulrush | 2 |
| Scleria triglomerata | Whip Nutrush | 2 |
| Stuckenia filiformis ssp. alpina | Northern Slender Pondweed | 2 |
| Stuckenia vaginata | Sheathed Pondweed | 2 |
| Thaspium trifoliatum var. flavum | Purple Meadow Parsnip | 2 |
| Trillium nivale | Snow Trillium | 2 |
| Valeriana uliginosa | Marsh Valerian | 2 |
| Agalinis gattingeri | Roundstem Foxglove | 1 |
| Aplectrum hyemale | Putty Root | 1 |
| Arnoglossum reniforme | Great Indian-plantain | 1 |
| Asclepias ovalifolia | Dwarf Milkweed | 1 |
| Carex livida | Livid Sedge | 1 |
| Cypripedium arietinum | Ram's-head Lady's-slipper | 1 |
| Eleocharis flavescens var. olivacea | Capitate Spike-rush | 1 |
| Equisetum palustre | Marsh Horsetail | 1 |
| Glycyrrhiza lepidota | Wild Licorice | 1 |
| Juncus marginatus | Grassleaf Rush | 1 |
| Juncus vaseyi | Vasey's Rush | 1 |
| Minuartia dawsonensis | Rock Stitchwort | 1 |
| Myosotis laxa | Small Forget-me-not | 1 |
| Najas gracillima | Thread-like Naiad | 1 |
| Nothocalais cuspidata | Prairie False-dandelion | 1 |
| Opuntia fragilis | Brittle Prickly-pear | 1 |
| Orobanche fasciculata | Clustered Broomrape | 1 |
| Pediomelum esculentum | Prairie Turnip | 1 |
| Penstemon pallidus | Pale Beardtongue | 1 |
| Phemeranthus rugospermus | Prairie Fame-flower | 1 |
| Phlox glaberrima ssp. interior | Smooth Phlox | 1 |
| Platanthera flava var. herbiola | Pale Green Orchid | 1 |
| Potamogeton oakesianus | Oakes' Pondweed | 1 |
| Rotala ramosior | Toothcup | 1 |
| Senna hebecarpa | Northern Wild Senna | 1 |
| Triphora trianthophora | Nodding Pogonia | 1 |
| Viburnum cassinoides | Northern Wild-raisin | 1 |
| Viburnum prunifolium | Smooth Black-haw | 1 |
| Viola striata | Striped Violet | 1 |
The Southeast Glacial Plains 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.
Although large portions of the Southeast Glacial Plains are now intensively developed agricultural or urban-industrial lands, there are major opportunities to maintain natural communities and provide critical habitat for many native species. Opportunities for managing on a larger scale are limited to a few areas.
The Kettle Moraine region features the least developed uplands in the entire landscape, much of it within the units of the Kettle Moraine State Forest (KMSF). Collectively, the KMSF arguably comprises the largest and most ecologically important public landholding in this part of the state. The Northern Unit of the KMSF features extensive upland forests, conifer and ash swamps, lakes, springs, marshes, Ephemeral Ponds and significant stretches of the Milwaukee River and its tributaries. This area is now southeastern Wisconsin's major breeding site for forest interior species, especially birds. There are opportunities here to develop, maintain and enlarge blocks of contiguous forested habitat that include large patches of older mesic and oak-dominated forests, patches of young forest, dense brush and areas where high contrast edge has been reduced.
The Southern Unit of the KMSF is a major repository of rare and diminished natural communities, especially oak savannas and woodlands, wet prairies, fens, sedge meadows and relict bogs. Each of these is a high priority for conservation because they are rare on state or global levels, include the best remaining occurrences and/or support many rare native plants and animals. Wisconsin's largest native grassland protection and restoration project, the Scuppernong River Habitat Area, is located within the KMSF - Southern Unit. Fire suppression, successional processes and tree planting have created blocks of forest in the Southern Unit of the KMSF that are now large enough to provide critical nesting habitat for forest interior species. Determining where to maintain such semi-natural habitats versus where to actively restore the globally rare savanna and woodland communities can be challenging and controversial, even where the protection and maintenance of biodiversity is a primary management objective.
Some wetlands in the Southeast Glacial Plains are large, in good condition and provide critical habitat for a host of sensitive species including large populations of breeding and migratory waterbirds, as well as other wetland inhabitants. Emergent marsh (including Horicon Marsh, the Upper Midwest's largest cat-tail marsh) is especially well-represented, but sedge meadow, calcareous fen, wet prairie and tamarack swamp are also important. The large complex of sedge meadow, marsh and wet prairie associated with the White and Puchyan rivers is also outstanding in terms of size and quality. The Lower Wolf River corridor features the most extensive forested floodplain in eastern Wisconsin and one of the largest emergent marshes.
The Mukwonago River watershed is the most intact watershed in this Ecological Landscape, as it features a spring-fed river system supporting a high diversity of fishes and aquatic invertebrates, extensive and floristically rich wetlands and is associated with remnant rare natural communities such as tallgrass prairie, calcareous fen, oak openings, oak woodland and relict bogs. Many rare species have been documented here. Private and public partners are working to protect, manage and restore many components of this watershed.
Lakes are concentrated in several areas, sometimes in association with end moraines, other times occupying glacial lakebeds and outwash channels. Shallow lakes are well-represented, and some of these are associated with extensive wetlands of marsh, sedge meadow and shrub-carr. Noteworthy warmwater streams include the Wolf, Mukwonago (some of the upper stretches are classified as "Coolwater"), Rock, Crawfish, Sugar, Milwaukee and Bark rivers. Most lakes here are now heavily developed.
Miscellaneous features of significance include southern Wisconsin's westernmost stands of mesic maple-beech forest, hardwood swamps, bog relicts and scattered surrogate grasslands. The southern extremities of the Niagara Escarpment occur here and provide habitat for rare invertebrates and plants, as well as the largest bat hibernaculum in the Upper Midwest.
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 Southeast Glacial Plains Ecological Landscape. The Southeast Glacial Plains 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