Floodplain habitat keeps growing

This article first appeared in INHF's Summer 2006 magazine.

by Linda Yang

Hunters, birders and wildlife enthusiasts are gaining nearly 900 acres of public land in southeast Iowa—a big addition to a giant public wildlife complex.

The Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation is in the process of transferring the still-to-be-named wildlife area to the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. Located in the Iowa River floodplain, it’s near former Foundation projects: the Horseshoe Bend Division of Port Louisa National Wildlife Refuge, Indian Slough Wildlife Area and Millrace Flats.

“This project protects a tremendous link in a corridor of public areas located along the lower Iowa River here in Louisa County that now totals nearly 6,500 acres,” said Bill Ohde, an IDNR wildlife biologist. “It also offers accessibility and visibility from the public road, so it will greatly enhance the quality of life for outdoor enthusiasts—whether they be hunters, birders, anglers or folks just out for a scenic drive.”

The site’s riverine timber attracts wild turkeys and deer. Its oxbow lakes support bass, crappie and waterfowl. Ohde notes that the addition is also rich in reptiles and amphibians, including the state-threatened common musk turtle.

Though cropped for many decades, this land’s propensity to flooding makes it less-than-ideal farmland. Like the neighboring Horseshoe Bend area, its levee system failed often and farmers regularly qualified for federal flood damage payments.

Consequently, INHF helped its private owners enroll in the Wetland Reserve Program, a program administered by the Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS). The landowners received federal WRP payments for establishing wetland easements, and INHF then purchased the properties subject to those restrictions.

Aided by an NRCS restoration plan and its accompanying funding, we planted $175,000 worth of native grass and forbs—a 40-species mix that is well beyond WRP’s minimum requirements.

“As crop ground, this site has always been a high flood risk” said Bruce Mountain, INHF Land Projects Director. “With the oxbows and other natural landforms and wildlife in the area, it makes sense to restore this land to its natural state.”

For more information, e-mail Cathy Engstrom, Director of Communications, or call (515) 288-1846.

Linda Yang is a Drake University student and Robert R. Buckmaster intern at INHF.