9-19-2024 8:03pm

New 327-acre natural area spans Illinois/Wisconsin border

Jerry and Kathy Busse took a tour of their namesake Busse Prairie Preserve. Photo: Alan Branhagen

Natural Land Institute (NLI) is excited to announce that it closed Monday, Sept. 16, 2024 on the purchase of a 327-acre natural area featuring wetlands, ponds, a lake, Raccoon Creek and grassland bird habitat. This pristine property, purchased for $816,925 plus closing costs, is home to threatened and endangered species. It is located just north of NLI’s Lost Flora Fen on Raccoon Creek, west of South Beloit, and includes 196.52 acres in Illinois (northern Winnebago County) and 130.25 acres in Wisconsin (southern Rock County).

This newly acquired property will be called the Jerry and Kathy Busse Prairie Preserve on Raccoon Creek after the Busses who purchased the naming rights for this preserve with a $500,000 gift to NLI because they have a passion for protecting nature. Jerry Busse is the retired CEO and Founder of Rockford Toolcraft Inc.

Busse Prairie Preserve will open to the public at a date to be announced.

NLI purchased the Busse Prairie Preserve for its incredible variety of plants and animals and to protect the water, fish and other aquatic species, and other wildlife. “We are thrilled to be able to protect this property. It is such an incredible complex of wetlands and wet grasslands and hosts an amazing variety of birds, wildflowers, and pollinators,” said Alan Branhagen, Executive Director, Natural Land Institute. “The big views of the skyline from here are impressive,” he said. (The natural skyline, that is. No urban skyline is visible there.)

NLI is very grateful to the Busses and other donors who gave generously to help safeguard this land and water habitat. Other naming opportunities were available for naming the lake, the bur oak grove, and the walking trails. A gift of $50,000 was received from an anonymous donor to name the lake, “Lake AJ,” after their two daughters’ first names, Andrea and Jessica. A gift of $50,000 was received from the Vanderpoel Family and the Vanderpoel Conservation Foundation to name the bur oak grove “The Vanderpoel Family Bur Oak Grove.”

Burr or bur? Natural Land Institute also owns Burr Oak Valley Nature Preserve, between Burr Oak Road and Elevator Road, but in this article, they use the more official spelling for the Quercus macrocarpa tree - "bur" with one R.

A gift of $50,000 was received from Dorothy Baits to name the walking trails, which will be called the “Stephen and Dorothy Baits Trail.” An additional $50,000 was received from Nancy Maze to provide an enhanced meadow view. Several $10,000 donations were received for the opportunity to be listed on signage at the preserve that will recognize these donors as “Protectors” of Threatened, Endangered & Species of Conservation Concern. Additional donations were received in various amounts to make up the total amount needed to purchase the Jerry and Kathy Busse Prairie Preserve.

NLI staff and volunteer wildlife monitors have been to the preserve several times in the months leading up to the acquisition of the Busse Prairie Preserve. Many threatened and endangered species have been found there including the Hine’s Emerald Dragonfly, Blanding’s Turtle, Rusty Patched Bumble Bee, and a plethora of other plants and animals of conservation concern. Eastern Meadowlarks, Bobolinks, Dickcissels, and Henslow’s Sparrows are key grassland birds that will have nesting habitat protected at the preserve.

While this property already has one level of protection with enrollment in the Wetland Reserve Program, it doesn’t guarantee management of the land. NLI will further protect it by managing it for invasive species and any trickle down impact to NLI’s other holdings on Raccoon Creek such as Lost Flora Fen on Raccoon Creek and Nygren Wetland Preserve. NLI will also protect it from tree and shrub encroachment, which would eventually destroy the grassland habitat.

For more information about Natural Land Institute visit www.NaturalLand.org, call 815/964-6666 or email: info@naturalland.org.

About the Natural Land Institute:

The Natural Land Institute, an accredited conservation land trust, is a 501(c)3, non-profit organization based in Rockford, Illinois, which has protected 18,000 acres of natural land in Illinois since 1958. The current service area covers twelve counties in northern Illinois. NLI’s mission is to create an enduring legacy of natural land in northern Illinois for people, plants and animals. For more information and to donate visit NaturalLand.org