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Places We Protect

Central Sands Priority Area

Wisconsin

A green grassland dotted by trees stretches to the horizon with a hill silhouetted in the background.
Quincy Bluff & Wetlands View from the bluff at Quincy Bluff & Wetlands State Natural Area in the Central Sands region. © Harold E. Malde

The Central Sands is a 2.2-million-acre landscape that is a unique mix of sandy plains, wetlands, oak and pine barrens, and rocky mesas and buttes.

Overview

Description

Scoured by glaciers and covered by the waters of Glacial Lake Wisconsin for thousands of years, the Central Sands region of Wisconsin is a unique mix of sandy plain, wetlands, oak and pine barrens, and scattered mesas and buttes that once stood as islands in the glacial lake. Historically, extensive wetlands occurred across the Central Sands region. The area also experienced frequent and wide-ranging fires that shaped the fire-adapted plant communities, including oak and pine barrens, which once covered 26% of the landscape. 

Today, approximately 25% of the 2.2-million-acre Central Sands Plains ecological landscape is publicly owned and managed by county, state and federal agencies. This protected acreage includes Quincy Bluff and Wetlands State Natural Area, which TNC helped acquire before transferring the land to the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources for perpetual protection. Outside of the Northwoods, this ecological landscape has the highest percentage of public lands in Wisconsin. 

Within the Central Sands, TNC owns and manages approximately 3,500 acres, split among five tracts ranging from 200 to 1,900 acres each. Large, continuous blocks of protected land in the Central Sands have allowed mammal species like the timber wolf, black bear, bobcat, and fisher to persist. The region is also home to several rare plants and animals, including the Karner blue butterfly, Kirtland’s warbler, slender glass lizard, and greater prairie chicken.

Access

OPEN TO THE PUBLIC

Hours

Open year-round, daily from dawn to dusk.

Highlights

Although there are no established hiking trails, the Central Sands properties are open to bird and wildlife watching, hunting and hiking.

Explore our work in Wisconsin

Photos from the Central Sands

The Central Sands region has a diverse range of habitats, with an abundance of wildlife and plants and breathtaking views.

A male greater prairie chicken walking.
A male Karner blue butterfly perched on blooming wild blue lupine.
A large grassland expanse under a mostly cloudy sky.
A flock of adult and juvenile whooping cranes in a field.
A view of trees and large rock outcroppings overlooking a plains landscape with hills in the distance.
A pink lady slipper orchid in bloom.
A group of fern fiddleheads growing out of a forest floor.
A aerial view of snow-covered wetlands in the Central Sands area.
A red-headed woodpecker perched on the side of a tree trunk.
A lake with a forested bluff in the background.
A male greater prairie chicken walking.

Prairie Chicken Male: Once common throughout Wisconsin, today the greater prairie chicken is only found in the Central Sands region of the state. © Gary Ingraham/TNC

A male Karner blue butterfly perched on blooming wild blue lupine.

Karner Blue Butterfly: Wild blue lupine, which grows in the Central Sands area, is the host plant for the caterpillars of the federally-endangered Karner blue butterfly. © Kent Mason

A large grassland expanse under a mostly cloudy sky.

Leola Marsh: Large grassland expanses in the Central Sands region of Wisconsin provide critical habitat for prairie chickens and other wildlife. © Hannah Butkiewicz/TNC

A flock of adult and juvenile whooping cranes in a field.

Bird Watching: The Central Sands offers many places to bird watch. © Jacob Lynch/Serene Photography

A view of trees and large rock outcroppings overlooking a plains landscape with hills in the distance.

Quincy Bluff : The Central Sands area includes the Quincy Bluff and Wetlands State Natural Area, which TNC transferred to the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources in 2013. © Hannah Butkiewicz/TNC

A pink lady slipper orchid in bloom.

Lady Slipper Orchid: One of Wisconsin's native orchids, lady slippers can be seen from late May through most of June in shaded woods, often near wetlands or bogs. © Hannah Butkiewicsz/TNC

A group of fern fiddleheads growing out of a forest floor.

Fiddleheads: Ferns provide important shelter and microhabitats for many species along with erosion control for the ecosystems within the Central Sands. © Hannah Butkiewicz/TNC

A aerial view of snow-covered wetlands in the Central Sands area.

Central Sands: Open pockets of wetlands dot the Central Sands landscape. © Patrick Flood Photography

A red-headed woodpecker perched on the side of a tree trunk.

Red-headed Woodpecker: A species of concern in Wisconsin, red-headed woodpeckers often make their homes in oak savannas, like those found in the Central Sands region of the state. © pchoui/Getty Images Signature

A lake with a forested bluff in the background.

Petenwell Rock: On the Wisconsin River in the Central Sands region, Petenwell Rock is one of the best places for rock climbing in Wisconsin. © Hannah Butkiewicz/TNC

Visit

  • All Nature Conservancy Central Sands tracts are within a 20-minute drive of Friendship, WI.

    Open from dawn to dusk year-round, the Central Sands properties are open to bird watching, some hunting and trapping, and rustic hiking (no designated trails).

    Wildlife to spot includes the endangered Karner blue butterfly and rare Kirtland's warbler. State-listed endangered species such as the slender glass lizard and greater prairie chicken also call the Central Sands area home.

    Mammals such as black bear, timber wolf, fisher, flying squirrels, beaver, and more are found in this region. Winter is an especially good time to sharpen and challenge your wildlife tracking skills in the snow in the Central Sands to see what wildlife tracks you can find.

  • Our vision is of a world where people and nature thrive together. The Nature Conservancy encourages people of all ages, races, ethnicities, religions, gender expressions, and abilities to visit our preserves and has a zero-tolerance policy for racism and discrimination.

    There are no marked trails. Good walking shoes or boots, long pants, water and bug spray (in summer) are highly recommended.

    There are no trash facilities on site. Please carry out all garbage. 

    Be aware that this is a large area  and it’s easy to get lost. Cell service may not always be available. Please plan ahead before you visit.

    For more information about visiting the preserve, please follow the link below:

     

  • Hunting is an important tool in wildlife and habitat management and is allowed in the Central Sands, as permitted. 

    Please visit the link below to learn more about hunting on TNC preserves.

Key Strategies to Support the Landscape

Due to its rich biodiversity and highly varied and connected landscape, the Central Sands region has been identified as one of the areas in Wisconsin that is best able to support plants and animals in the face of climate change. However, a lack of prescribed fire, increased parcelization, and land/forest conversions continue to threaten the health and stability of the ecosystems in the region.

To address these issues, TNC is implementing four primary strategies:

  1. Increasing the pace and scale of public and non-profit land protection within the Central Sand Plains ecological landscape
  2. Expanding the use of prescribed fire (controlled burns) across the landscape 
  3. Assisting public landowners in managing their land to promote climate resilience and support species of conservation need
  4. Partnering to apply resilience-focused conservation practices on private lands through various funding, staffing and programming mechanisms
Working with Partners Within the Central Sands region, TNC will work with partners like the North Central Conservancy Trust to increase land protection within the landscape. © Julie Schartner/TNC
Bringing Fire Back In the Central Sands, TNC will use prescribed fire to control invasive species and to encourage the growth of native, fire-dependent species like wild blue lupine. © Emily Mills/TNC
Brush Management TNC assists the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources in managing their lands to promote climate resilience and protect wildlife and native plants. © TNC
× Working with Partners Within the Central Sands region, TNC will work with partners like the North Central Conservancy Trust to increase land protection within the landscape. © Julie Schartner/TNC
× Bringing Fire Back In the Central Sands, TNC will use prescribed fire to control invasive species and to encourage the growth of native, fire-dependent species like wild blue lupine. © Emily Mills/TNC
× Brush Management TNC assists the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources in managing their lands to promote climate resilience and protect wildlife and native plants. © TNC

Long-term Restoration Goals

The long-term goals for TNC’s ownership in the Central Sands are to:

  1. Restore lands to natural community types
  2. Establish pine-oak barrens and maintain sedge meadows and other important wetland features
  3. Increase climate resilience and flora and fauna diversity
  4. Return fire as a recurring disturbance on the landscape
  5. Manage for a suite of species including those that are threatened and endangered

TNC is committed to using sound environmental stewardship to create a landscape that is diverse and resilient to climate change while providing habitat for a wide range of species and functioning similarly to native landscape communities.

If you want to learn more about the Central Sands project, contact TNC in Wisconsin at +1 608-251-8140, wisconsin@tnc.org.

A sedgemeadow bordered by trees under a cloudy sky.
Sedge Meadows Found in the Central Sands region, sedge meadows provide open wetland areas that are ideal habitats for wildlife like sandhill cranes or northern harrier hawks. © Emily Mills/TNC
A grassy area with young trees.
Pine-Oak Barrens A globally imperiled habitat, pine-oak barrens are an open landscape with scattered trees like jack pine and northern pin oak supporting diverse wildlife and plant species. © Hannah Butkiewicz/TNC
Sedge Meadows Found in the Central Sands region, sedge meadows provide open wetland areas that are ideal habitats for wildlife like sandhill cranes or northern harrier hawks. © Emily Mills/TNC
Pine-Oak Barrens A globally imperiled habitat, pine-oak barrens are an open landscape with scattered trees like jack pine and northern pin oak supporting diverse wildlife and plant species. © Hannah Butkiewicz/TNC

Project Highlights

Much progress has been made in the Central Sands region since TNC acquired 3,243 acres in Adams County in February 2022. The Central Sands team protected 308 acres of bottomland hardwoods within the Yellow River floodplain near the Necedah National Wildlife Refuge. The management team also recently obtained Forest Stewardship Council® (FSC®) FSC®- C008922 certification for the Central Sands properties.

This includes a completed forest management and restoration plan, available on request, that will guide targeted management efforts consisting of non-native species control, timber harvests, prescribed fire, tree planting and native grass and forb seeding. The FSC® program requires participating forest product producers to complete a forest sustainability plan that demonstrates the environmental, social and economic benefits of enrolled properties. 

Within the Central Sand Plains ecological landscape, TNC is partnering with the American Bird Conservancy and the US Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) to establish and maintain ideal nesting conditions for the Kirtland’s warbler.

These warblers nest in dense stands of young jack pine trees (5-20 years) and have historically relied on natural fire disturbance to support their nesting sites. TNC is currently restoring nesting habitat on one of the Central Sands properties, and through 2026, will conduct timber harvests, employ prescribed fire, plant more than 100,000 jack pine saplings, and seed a variety of native grasses and forbs to support the warblers and other animal species. 

TNC Wisconsin also recently became a partner in the Wisconsin Karner blue butterfly Habitat Conservation Plan. 

Kirtland's Warbler These migratory songbirds only breed in young jack pine forests in Wisconsin and rely on natural fire events to support their nesting sites. © Joel Trick
UWSP Field Trip In 2023, TNC partnered with the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point to educate natural resources students about Kirtland’s warblers and TNC’s restoration efforts. © Hannah Butkiewicz
Jack Pine In the Central Sands, TNC plans to plant more than 100,000 jack pine trees to provide critical nesting habitat for the state-endangered Kirtland's warbler and other wildlife. © Joshua Mayer
× Kirtland's Warbler These migratory songbirds only breed in young jack pine forests in Wisconsin and rely on natural fire events to support their nesting sites. © Joel Trick
× UWSP Field Trip In 2023, TNC partnered with the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point to educate natural resources students about Kirtland’s warblers and TNC’s restoration efforts. © Hannah Butkiewicz
× Jack Pine In the Central Sands, TNC plans to plant more than 100,000 jack pine trees to provide critical nesting habitat for the state-endangered Kirtland's warbler and other wildlife. © Joshua Mayer

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