After five years of work and negotiations, the Door County Land Trust is pleased to announce the purchase of one of Washington Island's most unique hidden jewels, 16 acres of wetlands, forest and a large stretch of undeveloped shoreline on the shores of Washington Island's Little Lake.
"Protection of Little Lake has been a top priority for the Washington Island Project Committee of the Door County Land Trust," states Karen Yancey, Committee Project Chair. "All the years of hard work that went into completing this purchase was time well spent."
Little Lake is the only inland lake located on Washington Island and is 24 acres in size with a maximum depth of only 6 feet. This small, landlocked lake was created thousands of years ago as glacial waters receded. A shallow bay was slowly closed off from Green Bay by sand and gravel deposits leaving a 250-foot wide cobblestone ridge and forming Little Lake.
According to Terrie Cooper, Door County Land Trust's Land Program Director, "Little Lake is one of Door County's ecological gems and an area most deserving of protection. Unlike most inland lakes in Wisconsin, the majority of Little Lake's shoreline remains undeveloped."
In December 2005, Cooper worked with the Department of Natural Resources to designate Little Lake as one of Wisconsin's newest State Natural Areas, a designation reserved for those places that still possess outstanding examples of the native plant and animal communities found here before European settlement.
The property purchased by the Land Trust includes over 1300 feet of shoreline and a small peninsula that extends into Little Lake. The majority of the groundwater springs and wetlands that feed into Little Lake are located on this keystone parcel.
According to Barb Seibel, chair of the Washington Island Birding Association, "The wetlands and unfragmented forests of the Little Lake Preserve provide critical foraging and nesting habitat for a host of migratory and resident birds, including the red-shouldered hawk and black-throated blue warbler."
Also of significance on this property is the presence of the federally endangered Hine's Emerald dragonfly. Little Lake also supports a productive small pan fish population, composed of perch, rock and smallmouth bass and is a major breeding site for a host of amphibians.
The Land Trust was able to secure all the funds needed for this purchase from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's Natural Resource Damage Assessment Fund, the Knowles-Nelson State Stewardship Fund and the support of Land Trust members.
Cooper adds, "We are grateful to the landowners who have been wonderful stewards of this beautiful property for so many years and who acted on their commitment to protecting the ecological integrity of Little Lake."
A conservation easement agreement on 30 adjacent acres with the same landowners is currently in process. Plans are also underway by the Land Trust to secure additional funding to continue land protection in this important State Natural Area.
The Door County Land Trust is celebrating its 20th year as a non-profit organization dedicated to protecting lands and water that contribute significantly to the scenic beauty, rural character and ecological integrity of Door County. For more information, visit the Land Trust's web site at
www.doorcountylandtrust.org.
SOURCE: Door County Compass.com
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