VERNON COUNTY, Wis. — The Mississippi Valley Conservancy is inviting the public to tour a Vernon County property showcasing decades of wildlife habitat restoration and conservation practices.
The event, titled “Enhancing Biodiversity on Your Land: Creative Approaches to Habitat Improvement,” is scheduled for July 23 from 6 to 8 p.m. at Nature Nooks Retreat, an 87-acre property protected under a conservation easement.
The guided tour will be led by landowner and Conservancy board member Tom Lukens, who has spent more than 20 years implementing habitat improvements on the land. The property includes a stretch of the West Fork of the Kickapoo River and supports 14 threatened and endangered species, along with more than 270 other species.
Lukens said his goal has been to protect the elements of nature that inspire curiosity and connection, particularly for children.
In 2015, Lukens entered into a permanent conservation easement with the Conservancy to prevent development that could damage the land, such as subdivision or mining. He was also the first landowner in Wisconsin to install non-game habitat practices aimed at supporting species including pollinators, birds, reptiles and amphibians.
Participants in the tour will walk about 1.5 miles on mostly level trails while learning about prairie restoration, native plantings and wetland management. Highlights include prairie wildflowers in bloom, native trees and shrubs designed to support biodiversity, and a beaver dam analog used to manage water flow.
Attendees will also see a recently constructed turtle nesting box designed to protect the state-threatened wood turtle from predators, as well as a new interpretive trail known as the “Some Wows Walk.”
The tour will include information about trout stream restoration efforts that began in 2003, including both in-stream and streamside improvements that benefit wildlife.
“This tour is a chance to see what long-term conservation looks like in practice,” Lukens said. “It’s about restoring ecological function while creating a place where people can experience and care for the land in a deeper way.”
The event is free and open to the public, but advance registration is required through the Mississippi Valley Conservancy website.
Founded in 1997, the Mississippi Valley Conservancy is a nonprofit land trust that has protected more than 27,000 acres in southwestern Wisconsin through voluntary conservation efforts.
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