by Angie Buelow | Oct 6, 2025 | Conservation, Conservation Easements, Land Protection, Uncategorized
The meadowlark lifts from the grass as we tread across its territory on our walk toward the ominous sign proclaiming “5 Acre Lots for Sale.” Perched on
high open ground with distant views of Blue Mound and just a short commute from Madison, this site must have seemed perfect for residential development, just as it was a perfect spot for this bird to nest.
Grassland birds like meadowlarks, bobolinks, dickcissels, Henslow’s sparrows, and upland sandpipers have declined more steeply than any guild of birds in North America – down 43% – since 1970 according to the U.S. Committee of the North American Bird Conservation Initiative. Even before then, these once-abundant birds and countless species of insects and other animals had already lost hundreds of millions of acres of habitat as the once vast prairies were plowed under for row-crop agriculture, grazed to dust, and otherwise left to grow to trees where fires had once regularly cleansed the land and kept it open.
Since the 1970s, further pressures drove yet steeper declines: Growing cities and their suburbs expanded outward; increasing ownership of rural second homes began to endlessly fragment the countryside; an onslaught of invasive plant species crept in to clog everywhere not burned, grazed, plowed, sprayed or mowed; the push for biofuels drove conversion of valuable grassland habitats to corn; and the rise of confinement agriculture with the corresponding loss of grazing animals on pastures, removed a critical last vestige of habitat as those animals were now fed in lots rather than left to wander and feed among the grasses, flowers, birds, and bees.
In fact, the decline of Wisconsin’s iconic traditional dairy industry has paralleled the decline in grassland birds. Where every farm once had mosaics of pastures that provided forage for cattle and surrogate habitat for birds, many thousands of family farms have been lost, and most areas now host the never-ending cycle of corn-bean rotations instead of diverse hay fields and pastures.
Fortunately, southwest Wisconsin, which used to be awash in prairie and oak savanna, still has some grasslands, many acres of which reside in what are known as grassland Bird Conservation Areas or BCAs.
Bird Conservation Areas (BCA) are identified regions of about 10,000 acres designed to support grassland birds. The goal is to have a predominantly treeless landscape with a central core area of 2,000-acres made up of connected, permanent grassland. Surrounding this core, a mix of farmland and smaller grassland patches can be found, helping create a healthy habitat for wildlife. The current designated BCAs are far from reaching the aspirational goal, but continued efforts have used the BCA model as a guiding north star.
Here in the core of the Perry-Primrose BCA, one of the four BCAs in southwest Wisconsin, where this meadowlark had nested under the “Lots for Sale” sign, at least eight bird species listed as threatened or of “special concern” can regularly be heard and seen.
Grassland BCAs provide a science-based model for protecting grassland birds, pollinators and other conservation targets within an agricultural landscape. If successfully implemented, the model can ensure enough large blocks of grassland to support area-sensitive species, like grassland birds, which don’t fare well when a landscape is too subdivided. Small parcels cause problems for area-sensitive species because they usually have brushy fence lines where edge predators like raccoons, possums, skunks and coyotes prowl. The closer a grassland bird nests to an edge, the less likely its young are to successfully survive and fledge.
Back in 2009, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) introduced the BCA concept within a feasibility study and master plan for the Southwest Wisconsin Grassland & Stream Conservation Area (SWGSCA), with a vision of working with diverse partners to conserve and enhance functioning grassland, savanna and stream ecosystems, set within a rural landscape of working farms.
Shortly thereafter, DNR purchased two core tracts: 360 acres of grassland at the Barreltown BCA just north of Mineral Point, and 335 acres of grassland at the Perry-Primrose BCA southwest of Madison. Hopes were high to continue building out these and two other BCAs with additional protected lands, but by this time, Wisconsin’s elected leaders, led by former Governor Scott Walker, began cutting state land conservation funding year over year. Where in 2009, DNR had $32.5 million per year to purchase public lands, in 2025, the DNR has only $6 million available for land acquisition statewide.
Despite all of these challenges, and perhaps to some degree because of them, a special group of public and private organizations came together to carry on the vision of securing Southwest Wisconsin as a place with healthy grasslands, successful farms, clear streams, diverse wildlife, and people who value and enjoy this landscape. Together, the Southern Driftless Grasslands (SDG) partners (driftlessgrasslands.org) work to advance this vision of landscape-scale conservation that can secure species by mitigating the effects of habitat fragmentation.
Driftless Area Land Conservancy (DALC) acts as the fiscal agent for SDG, and we’re proud to work alongside conservation partners including Pheasants Forever, The Prairie Enthusiasts, The Nature Conservancy, American Bird Conservancy, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Iowa County, Dane County, the Natural Resources Conservation Service, the DNR, and others. Together, we strive to advance our mutual goals and those of our neighbors across this land, including that meadowlark.
Back in 2023, when DALC and SDG staff saw that “For Sale” sign, we realized the threat of housing in the core of the BCA was upon us, and we had to act if given the chance. Thanks to a willing seller and funding from Dane County’s Conservation Fund, the Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Program, and the Bobolink Foundation, DALC purchased 83 acres in the core of the Perry-Primrose BCA earlier this year. Our acquisition – the first conservation purchase in a BCA since 2013 – included all of those 5-acre lots, each on a prairie remnant!
Those remnants, perched high on rocky soils so poor that they escaped the plow, need substantial work to beat back the invading brush and grassland
menaces, such as crown vetch, parsnip, and sweet clover. Still, the precious nature is holding on, with pasque flowers blooming on the site this past spring, and coreopsis, leadplant, and flowering spurge gracing the summer breezes.
Beyond working with SDG partners to restore the remnants and eventually seed down the remaining cropland to grass or prairie, we’re also pressing ahead to secure other sites for the birds by using a combination of land protection and restoration tools. We invite our neighbors to reach out so we can discuss opportunities for conservation easements, fee-title sales, and opportunities for cost-shared transitions of crop ground to grass for bird-friendly grazing. We also urge landowners to remove excess “edges” by clearing fence lines between fields. When doing so, leave any oak trees, but remove the brush and undesirable trees that have grown up in recent decades. And of course, whenever possible, avoid haying grasslands during the primary nesting season, from mid-May through at least the end of July, but ideally as late as August 15.
Finally, we also ask our entire community to raise your voices in support of renewing and reestablishing the Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Program (KNSP), which was left unfunded in Wisconsin’s biennial 2026 and 2027 budgets. Without a KNSP grant, we couldn’t have bought this land, and we won’t be able to buy additional tracts to build out the BCAs, not just for the birds, but for future generations who deserve to experience a meadowlark’s song.
by DALC Staff | Jul 7, 2025 | Conservation Easements, Legacy Society
Patrick Michaels may not have grown up in the Driftless Area, but he’s weaving a legacy into its landscape that will endure for generations. It all started when Patrick met his great-uncle Gary Zimmer. Inspired by Gary’s innovative agricultural practices, Patrick decided to leave the bustling city of Los Angeles and move to the serene Hoyer Farm more than a decade ago. This summer, Patrick is set to finalize the purchase of Hoyer Farm and expand the land easement that his uncle Gary initiated with the Driftless Area Land Conservancy—one of its pioneering easements. “Gary had the vision to protect this land forever,” Patrick says, “and now, I want to open it up so everyone can enjoy its beauty.” Located near the scenic Taliesen, and soon to be one of the most popular sections of the Driftless Trail, Patrick envisions the farm not just as a path to traverse, but a place to truly connect with nature and soak in breathtaking views. “It’s more than just a trail,” Patrick explains. “It’s about experiencing this special place, spending time here, and sharing one of my favorite spots with everyone.” We are incredibly grateful for Patrick’s dedication and dream to share his stunning piece of the Driftless Area. The future Twin Crix will become a haven for hiking, social gatherings, educational experiences, and an array of pick-your-own fruits. Bring on the blueberry season!
by DALC Staff | Apr 10, 2025 | Conservation Easements, Land Protection, Legacy Society
Ellyn Satter was DALC’s first-ever Legacy Society member, kicking off a special group of supporters who include DALC in their will or estate plans. We are deeply honored by every individual who chooses to entrust DALC with their legacy. Your trust is not just a responsibility but a privilege we cherish wholeheartedly. Every story, every dream, and every legacy that passes through our hands is treated with the utmost care and respect. For Ellyn, the decision to join the Legacy Society arose from a lifetime of love for the land.
Ellyn grew up on a farm in South Dakota and credits her family’s care of the land as the beginning of her strong land ethic. “I always loved being outside. Walking in the pasture, riding my bike, helping with farming, driving tractors was fun; pulling cockleburrs was not so fun.”
“My dad was a holistic farmer before holistic farmers were fashionable,” Ellyn says. “Before we had pesticides and fertilizers, farmers rotated their crops regularly and grew grain for the livestock. It was an extremely diverse setup. My mom raised about 100 chickens and had an egg business. She would take the eggs to town on Saturday nights and trade them for groceries. They were before their time.”
But as Ellyn shares, her parents’ story was one of loss of community. With the introduction of the combine and haybaler, harvesting methods changed from collaborative events to working alone. “Threshing and haystacking were always community affairs, with Mom making big dinners for a dozen or more workers. Dad stopped enjoying farming when he could no longer get together with his neighbors and brothers and friends to do the work. Mom lost community as well. The church closed and the Ladies Aid stopped meeting. But the biggest loss was when her party telephone line was replaced with a private line. We had about 28 people on the party line and everybody would ‘rubber’ or listen in. It was a way to find out everybody’s news.
If there were a community emergency or news, the operator would put out a general call that everyone knew they needed to pick up. Mom really missed the party line. She was a pretty shy person and never replaced the party line as a way to stay connected with others.”
Life would take Ellyn to Madison, WI, for an internship and graduate school, and was the place she started her family. There, Ellyn began building her own community – with the people around her, and with the natural world.
“When the kids were little, we used to go camping all the time. It was the glory days in the state parks. Back in the day, there were lots of programs and rangers. We could go on bird walks, geology walks, tree walks, and flower walks. There were lots of public programs with various topics in the evenings. I started enjoying being able to put names to what I was seeing,” Ellyn shares. “I really credit the state parks for giving me a direction for learning and growing with respect to the natural world. From there on I was able to find other opportunities to feed my interest.”
In the late 1970’s, Ellyn and her husband purchased their farm north of Barneveld. “It was exciting to get out on the land and learn what was there. We put the woods into Managed Forest Law and didn’t have cows, and it was wonderful to see what wildflowers came back. I got interested in native gardening in town, and now have a couple of pocket prairies as well as some understory gardens.”
Now at 83, Ellyn still visits natural areas as often as possible. It’s her favorite form of recreation. “There’s nothing like getting out in nature and seeing the wildflowers—it’s like seeing an old friend. I feel energized and rejuvenated by nature. When you can recognize plants and plant communities, you enjoy them so much more. You learn enough to speak a language, to at least ask the questions to learn even more.”
We are so grateful for Ellyn’s love of the Driftless Area and her trust in DALC to do our part by helping to care for it. This impactful commitment ensures that DALC can continue protecting land, restoring habitat, and connecting people with the Driftless long into the future.
by DALC Staff | Jun 3, 2024 | Conservation Easements, Legacy Society
Judy and John Lovaas embarked on a mission to find land in the Driftless Area in 1988, driven by Judy’s deep-rooted passion for land preservation. This passion was ignited when the farmland adjacent to their home in McHenry, Illinois, was sold and earmarked for a sprawling subdivision. Before they departed, Judy valiantly fought to safeguard their property in McHenry County, which housed the historic Holcombville School, a quaint one-roomed schoolhouse dating back to 1858.
“Judy grew up helping on her grandparents’ farm in the summers, developing a love of horses, rural life, and preserving the past,” shared Nancy Nichols and Lisa Cvengros, the current owners of the former Lovaas property.
“They were intentional about the land they wanted to purchase and preserve forever. Blackhawk Lake Recreation Area is across the road, and there had been talk about sectioning up the land around here into smaller lots,” the new caretakers explained.
Nancy grew up just down the road, and the couple knew the Lovaas’s for years, helping out at times and enjoying the company of their neighbors. After John’s passing and Judy’s health declined, they offered to purchase the land from Judy in 2023. Judy knew their shared passion for conservation and that Nancy and Lisa would love and care for this land the way she had.
“Judy loved her flowers and bluebirds. She worked at preserving the oak savannas and had a lovely prairie,” Lisa shared, underscoring Judy’s deep connection to the land.
Nancy and Lisa are slowly but surely trying to regain the trail system and continue with the preservation that Judy started. “Judy and John had seen what was happening off of 18 West with the development and the windmills along with their fight in McHenry County, so there was no question that they would put their land in a conservation easement with DALC to protect it from development forever.”
A Lasting Legacy
Judy passed away on March 25, 2024, at Crest Ridge Assisted Living in Dodgeville. She left a generous bequest to the Driftless Area Land Conservancy, cementing her legacy as a conservationist dedicated to their cherished Driftless Region.
Judy’s bequest, a testament to her unwavering commitment to land preservation, has significantly strengthened the financial health of DALC. Judy’s legacy is not just a financial boost, but a beacon of hope, helping DALC to protect land forever.
We are profoundly grateful to everyone who has preserved their land through conservation easements. We are humbled by those like Judy, who have entrusted the Driftless Area Land Conservancy with their legacy. Your support ensures the enduring impact of our work, with the most meaningful gifts being made through bequests after passing. Your contributions are the lifeblood of our mission, and we are honored to be the custodians of your trust.
by DALC Staff | Apr 3, 2024 | Conservation Easements, Land Protection, Legacy Society
Paul Klawiter and David Kopitzke
What are some ways to leave a positive, lasting impact on our world? Helping found a land trust is a pretty good one. So is a permanent conservation easement on private land with diverse native ecosystems. Joining DALC’s Legacy Society and supporting our future is another. And David Kopitzke and Paul Klawiter have done all three.
Their deep love and care for the Driftless began nearly fifty years ago. Paul grew up in Eau Claire, and David grew up in Indiana. They met at UW-Madison, and later David ended up in Milwaukee. But since they were both nature lovers, they wanted to live out in the country, and started searching for a spot. On field trips for his master’s degree in plant ecology, David had been out to Southwest Wisconsin. “I said, oh, that’s a pretty part of the state, let’s look there.”
And in 1974, they found the perfect place: fifty acres tucked into a steep valley in Richland County, part of a former farmstead. Over the years, they were able to add another thirty-plus acres. This land showcases nearly all the diversity of habitats the Driftless has to offer. It ranges from a small hilltop prairie to a wetland along a river bottom. There are warmer, drier south-facing slopes supporting oak and hickory, and cooler, shadier north-facing slopes supporting maple, basswood, and yellow birch, which is uncommon in this part of the state. A small spring flows into a trout stream that leads to a four-acre wetland, a later addition to the property. “That’s where we hear spring peepers,” David notes.
The wide range of native plants on the land was a great match for David’s skill in botanical illustration, as well as the native plant nursery he ran on the property for ten years, with woodland flowers growing under a big maple in the front yard. The old barn offered abundant hay for mulching their garden. In return, Paul and Dave worked to steward the land, especially by planting, tending, and protecting oaks. The combination of working full-time and owning a large property meant it was important to pick their battles when it came to restoration projects. But Paul still picked a big one: clearing out the black locust blanketing the hillside behind their house.
Originally found further south of our region, black locust trees are fast-growing and have been widely planted for erosion control. Unfortunately, they spread rapidly and form dense stands that crowd out native species. They also resprout from roots and cut stumps, making them very difficult to remove. But Paul’s arduous fight against the black locusts paid off – first with lots of firewood, and today with a young forest of diverse native trees where ephemeral wildflowers bloom in the spring.
While David and Paul were growing oaks and wildflowers, something new was growing all across Wisconsin: the land trust movement. Responding to increased suburban sprawl and loss of farmland, conservationists all over the state came together in the 80s and 90s to create organizations that could protect special places forever.
At the time, David was working for the DNR’s Bureau of Endangered Resources. In the late 90s, he was part of a group of conservationists brought together by Vicki Elkin, then the executive director of Gathering Waters, Wisconsin’s alliance for land trusts. David and others agreed that the Driftless Area needed protection. But who would provide it?
To the east of the Driftless, Groundswell Conservancy (originally the Dane County Natural Heritage Foundation) was founded in 1983, and on the river bluffs to the west, Mississippi Valley Conservancy was founded in 1997. But both organizations were too busy to expand into the heart of Wisconsin’s Driftless Area.
“So,” David says, “we bit the bullet and started a separate land trust.”
David credits DALC’s early success with board members who brought lots of diverse talents to the table. Eventually, the young organization hired its first staff member, started closing conservation easements, and kept growing, becoming nationally accredited in 2017.
“Accreditation is very important,” David notes. “It makes the whole organization more credible.”
From the start, David and Paul hoped that their property would be eligible for a conservation easement with the organization they had supported from day one. Wanting to be sure that the easement was free from conflict, David was not involved in any board decisions. The merits of this diverse landscape were enough to warrant permanent protection, and the property received its conservation easement in 2015.
“Neither of us regret it or had any hesitation about doing that,” Paul says.
Today, the land will always have the protection of the conservation easement. Knowing that DALC will always be here to defend it, Paul and David decided to include us in their will to ensure that our organization has the resources it needs to keeping doing good work. But what else does the future hold for this place? And how can landowners prepare for it?
Biodiversity has always been a primary focus of land stewardship for David and Paul, but in the face of climate change, it’s even more significant. A tulip tree, historically found in warmer regions to the south and east of Wisconsin, is thriving in a neighbor’s yard, demonstrating how plant ranges are shifting north.
That’s why Paul and David emphasize flexibility, and, in David’s words, “Taking a long-term view.” Managing land for a broad diversity of species – instead of monocultures of aggressive plants, like black locust – enhances ecological functions such as food for wildlife, ground water recharge, and carbon storage. It allows species to find the resources they need or move to more suitable locations as conditions shift. Overall, thriving ecosystems are better adapted to a changing climate.
But biodiversity wasn’t the only reason for the conservation easement. “Also, in the back of both our minds, we didn’t want to see irresponsible development,” David says. “To me, that’s a big part of the reason for Driftless Area Land Conservancy – prevent the breaking up of land.”
Fragmenting land with houses and roads reduces habitat, increases weedy species, and prevents plants and animals from moving freely. As part of our goal to protect 16,000 acres of land in the Driftless by 2027 – doubling the amount we conserved in our first 20 years – DALC is striving to create large, contiguous blocks of protected properties that will forever support people, wildlife, agriculture, and beautiful views across the Driftless.
Paul and David both hope that more private landowners will see how important their role is in protecting and sustaining wildlife habitat, green space, and biodiversity.
“I think public lands are very important,” David says. “But for private landowners, it should be a responsibility, and really a joy, to do stewardship on one’s own property.”
Written by Emilee Martell
by DALC Staff | Sep 3, 2023 | Conservation Easements, Legacy Society
In 2003, DALC completed our first-ever conservation easement. Twenty years later, our celebration of this milestone is bittersweet – the donors, Deane and Edith Arny, are no longer with us. But their tremendous legacy lives on in the Driftless.
For over forty years, Deane and Edith worked alongside their friends and family to restore a worn-out farm they named Valley Ridge in Richland County. Rolling, wooded hills were enrolled in Managed Forest Law for sustainable timber harvest. Old farm fields were seeded to native savanna through CRP. Despite bustling careers and personal lives – Deane was a professor of plant pathology at UW-Madison, and Edith was raising five children – land management was always a priority. Planting trees, removing non-native species, and carrying out prescribed burns kept the Arny family busy.
The land was also a place of celebration, including big Thanksgiving dinners with the family at the property’s century-old farmhouse – even though the only running water came from a nearby spring!
This love of their land brought Deane and Edith to the newly-minted Driftless Area Land Conservancy in the early 2000s. “I can remember going out there with a couple conservancy folks,” says David Kopitzke, a founding member of DALC and secretary of the board in 2003. “Deane and Edith were well up in years, but still both quite active. Deane took us up on the hill behind the house. I remember thinking, ‘Oh, this is just the kind of land DALC is concerned with protecting. I’m so happy it’s getting an easement.’”
Although the process of creating our very first conservation easement was nerve-wracking for DALC – “We were completely at sea,” David admits – the guidance of Gathering Waters, Wisconsin’s alliance for land trusts, made it possible. Today, Valley Ridge is owned and stewarded by the Leonardo Academy, a sustainability-focused nonprofit founded by Deane and Edith’s son, Michael Arny, where their daughter Dr. Barbara McCabe also works.
Deane passed away in 2013 at the age of 95, and Edith in 2022 at the age of 102. But they had one final gift for the Driftless.
Last fall, DALC was honored to receive an incredibly generous gift from the estate of Deane and Edith Arny – one of the largest donations in our history. Their kindness, commitment, and foresight to include us in their will has given us an amazing boost in capacity, enabling us to permanently protect more land in the Driftless region Deane and Edith loved.
“The first easement is when you’re really brought face-to-face with the idea of perpetual protection,” David recalls. “We were thinking, ‘how are we going to be able to do this forever’?”
Twenty years later, as DALC continues to grow and thrive, we have our answer: we can protect land in perpetuity with the support, dedication, and generosity of our community. We will forever be grateful to Deane and Edith Arny for putting their trust in us, and paving the way for a bright future of land conservation in our treasured Driftless region.
