Download Habitat Action Fact Sheet

Minnehaha Creek:
In the 1800s, Minnehaha Creek boasted
so many fish that farmers could spear
pitchforks full! Development drained
wetlands, and built streets, buildings,
and lawns so that rain flushes rapidly
down storm drains and through the creek
in a flood. Between rains, Minnehaha
Creek today often dries up completely.
Presettlement Vegetation
Presettlement Vegetation
Presettlement and Forest Maps Key:
Brown – Oak Savannah
Yellow – Prairie
Dark Green – Big Woods
Light Greens - Wetland
Forest Cover Today
Habitat Action
Why Does Native Habitat Matter?
Americans increasingly appreciate the beauty of
native prairies, wetlands, and forests. Rising real
estate prices next to such “amenities” are one measure
of that change. (Schools also value native habitat for
field study research.)
Native habitat also brings real economic benefits:
• Slows runoff, allowing half or more of rainfall to
infiltrate into the ground where water is cooled,
cleaned of pollutants, and then released slowly
into waterways.
• Prevents erosion, keeping phosphorus and other
nutrients out of waters. (Excess phosphorus
triggers algae “blooms” in late summer.)
• Nurtures insects and animals that control pests.
• Shelters species needed to pollinate crops and
flowers.
• Cools the air in summer and blocks cold winds in
winter, saving on energy bills.
Wetlands Today
Oak Savannah remnant on the Mississippi River in
Minneapolis. Photo from National Park Service.
There are practically no prairies
left in the watershed to map!
Fact sheet produced by Cairn & Associates with support
from Minnesota Environmental Trust Fund, and
Twin Cities Metropolitan Council, Environmental Services.
Effect of Development on Runoff Peak Flow
Root Depths of Native and
Non-native Grasses
Post-development Rate –
Flood and Dry-out
Pre-development Rate Even Distribution
Time
Do Small Bits of Habitat Really Matter?
A well-designed “rainwater garden” captures runoff
from a larger area – often including roofs and driveways
– then uses native plants to speed infiltration.
A study at Iowa State University
found that native grasses and
mature forest absorbed five times
as much runoff in inches per hour
as row crops or turf.
(L. Bharati, K. H. Lee, T. M. Isenhart, and R. C.
Schultz. 2002. “Soil-water infiltration under crops,
pasture, and established riparian buffer in Midwestern
USA,” Agroforestry Systems 56: 249-257. Kluwer
Academic Publishers.)
With more than 99% of prairies, and most wetlands and
forests gone, every remaining piece is precious.
What Can I Do?
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Help identify remaining parcels of wild lands and
support their legal protection as parks or open
spaces.
Mobilize volunteers to help restore existing habitat:
collect seeds, raise seedlings, plant and cultivate
native plants.
Reconstruct native habitat in nature study area
and/or rainwater gardens. (Takes a long-term
commitment!)
Follow the links from the Watershed Action web
site to plan and to get expert help.
http://cgee.hamline.edu/watershed/action
Rainwater Garden – Before and After
Como Park, St. Paul
Photo by Laura Bates, Ramsey County Conservation District