This region is characterized by its highly eroded, driftless topography and relatively extensive forested landscape. Several large rivers including the Wisconsin, Mississippi, Chippewa, Kickapoo and Black flow through or border the Ecological Landscape. Current vegetation is a mix of forest, agriculture, and grassland with some wetlands in the river valleys. The primary forest cover is oak-hickory dominated by oak species and shagbark hickory or maple-basswood forests, dominated by sugar maple, basswood and red maple. Bottomland hardwoods are common in the valley bottoms of major rivers and are dominated by silver maple, ashes, elms, cottonwood, and red maple. Relict conifer forests including white pine, hemlock and yellow birch are a rarer natural community in the cooler, steep, north slope microclimates.

Protection and Preservation

Management Opportunities

• Restoration and maintenance of red and white oak as a cover type.
• Protection and maintenance of relict hemlock stands.
• Goat prairie restoration and maintenance.
• Grassland wildlife management.
• Preservation of cliff communities, along with cave and bat hibernacula.
• Management of floodplain forests and large southern upland forest tracts.
• Oak savanna restoration.
• Sand prairie and oak barrens restoration and maintenance.
• Protection of rare features found only in the Driftless Area, such as Algific Talus Slopes.
• Big river protection and maintenance. Some of these streams support especially rich or otherwise significant assemblages of fish, herptiles and aquatic invertebrates.
• Restoration and protection of spring-fed cold water streams.

Representative Sites

• 7. Lower Chippewa River
• 8. Rush Creek
• 11. Parfrey's Glen