Detailed assessment of the wetland complex!
An assessment of the Pleasant Valley Conservancy wetland complex has been completed by our contractor, Integrated Restorations, LLC. This company specializes in wetland restoration and has been working to control reed canary grass, sandbar willow, hybrid cattail, and other invasive species at PVC for the last 15 years.
Overview of the Pleasant Valley Conservancy wetland:
Overview of the Pleasant Valley Conservancy wetland:
Although wetlands are not common in the Driftless Region of southwestern Wisconsin, the wetland at Pleasant Valley Conservancy is relatively large. Over 140 acres are present in the immediate vicinity, but the whole wetland is considerably larger.
Only 35 acres of this wetland are actually part of the Pleasant Valley Conservancy property, but the whole 140 acres, in five ownerships, can be treated as a unit. (The plant and animal species are not aware of the property boundaries.) The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service conducted major prescribed burns on this whole wetland in 2005 and 2010, and all owners have signed 10-year access/permission agreements. On 24 April 2013, this wetland was burned under the auspices of the Savanna Oak Foundation, Inc.
Since 2013 we have been burning only that wetland actually owned by Pleasant Valley Conservancy. Starting with a 5-acre burn in 2014, we have enlarged the burn each year. In 2017 we burned 15 acres, which included almost all of the high-quality sedge meadow. See this link for a map of the burned area.
The very invasive hybrid cattail (Typha X glauca) first appeared in our wetland in 2015. With support from a Wisconsin DNR Aquatic Invasive Species grant, this plant is being eradicated. See this link for details.
A substantial spring-fed watercourse runs through Pleasant Valley Conservancy. However, most of the water to the wetland is supplied by the numerous calcareous springs that rise throughout the wetland. The aquifer here is the Wonewoc Formation, which is fed by drainage from the south-facing slope to the east, with its extensive tallgrass prairies and savannas, via the Tunnel City Sandstone. See geology.
The wetland contains substantial amounts of sedge meadow and cattail. Muskrat houses are common, and beavers come and go. Sandhill cranes nest on the wetland every year. Red-winged blackbirds, belted kingfishers, great blue herons, and other wetland birds are seen or heard. See listing of birds found at Pleasant Valley Conservancy.
The wetland is in the drainage system of East Blue Mounds Creek, a trout stream that eventually drains into Black Earth Creek, which feeds into the Wisconsin River. East Blue Mounds Creek is formed by the joining of Elver Creek and Ryan Creek less than a mile upstream. Bohn Creek is also in the drainage basin. Elver Creek has been one of the projects of the local chapter of Trout Unlimited.
