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The Fontana Fen, Headwaters Park, The Hildebrand Conservancy
Natural Restoration Project • Fontana, Wisconsin 2005-2007
Client
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Village of Fontana;
The Fontana Park Commission |
Restoration
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This natural restoration project focused on the tributaries of Van
Slyke Creek, which include: The Fontana Fen, Headwaters Park, and The
Hildebrand Conservancy. The Village of Fontana adopted an environmental
master plan prepared by Cedarburg Science LLC. The goal of this project
is to enhance the tributaries of Van Slyke Creek by improving native
plant diversity, wildlife habitat and water quality and to reduce
erosion by stabilizing the banks of the creek.
The Fontana Fen is a 10-acre restored prairie that is used as a park
for the surrounding community. In the 1970's the Fen was recognized as
a rare wetland community and saved from development. The Headwaters
Park features a natural spring that eventually flows into Lake Geneva.
The Hildebrand Conservancy is an 11-acre forested tract, owned by the
Village of Fontana Community Development Authority. Van Slyke Creek
flows into Lake Geneva and is considered to be a high-quality
spring-fed trout stream, classified as a Class I trout stream by the
Wisconsin DNR. The protection of this stream and its water quality is
of high priority for the Village of Fontana. |
| Groundwater in the Natural Area |
The
character of the natural areas surrounding The Fontana Fen, Headwaters
Park and The Hildebrand Conservancy is strongly influenced by
groundwater flowing just beneath the surface. Water originating from
groundwater springs is cold, clean and rich in dissolved oxygen.
The
plant community in The Fontana Fen is also shaped by groundwater
inputs. In a fen, the groundwater rarely emerges at the surface
because plants consume the water as it flows below the surface. Areas
in which the groundwater does not come as close to the surface produce
wet or mesic prairie vegetation. Many of these species in these zones
are similar to those in the fen, but they do not require the same
inputs of groundwater.
The entrance to the fen features several
demonstration gardens. These gardens were planted to display
collections of plants typical of a Tall Grass Prairie, Wetland, Short
Grass Prairie and Savanna.
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