Vernal pools are naturally occurring ephemeral wetlands generally found in depressions embedded within upland forests of the Eastern Broadleaf Forest and Laurentian Mixed Forest Province within Minnesota. Within these ecological provinces, the Western Superior Uplands, Northern Minnesota Drift and Lake Plains, and Minnesota and Northeast Iowa Morainal ecological sections host higher concentrations of vernal pools due to topographical features driven by historical glacial ice movement patterns. At a more local scale, the presence of vernal pools is strongly influenced by the surrounding forested environment including elements of topography, canopy shading, and leaf litter.

Vernal pools provide critical habitat for a whole suite of forest dependent wildlife species in Minnesota. Due to the periods of prolonged drawdown in vernal pools, permanent fish populations are not able to survive. This provides habitat for organisms that require or benefit from fishless conditions for successful reproduction. Some of these are obligate species and include organisms that use vernal pools almost exclusively for breeding and larval development. Many of the species that utilize vernal pools also rely on the integrity of the upland forest surrounding the pool for things like cover, foraging sites, and overwintering habitat. 

In this webinar, Spencer Rettler with the MN DNR will do a deeper dive into why these forested wetlands are important, the types of wildlife species that rely on them, and how to conserve the integrity of these sensitive features when conducting forest management.

Each year, the Minnesota DNR Forest Health team conducts both aerial assessments and on-the-ground monitoring to assess the health of the state’s forests. Join us for this webinar as August Kramer provides an update on the status and trends in forest health from all corners of the state.

Dustin Bronson, a forest ecologist with the US Forest Service on the Chequamegon-Nicolet, will talk about ash-dominated wet forests and what silvicultural strategies exist to keep these systems forested in the face of EAB. The range and efficacy of different approaches, as well as favorable replacement species (and those that have not been as successful!) will be discussed. 

The Forestry Reclamation Approach (FRA) was developed in response to poor outcomes in reclamation of Appalachian coalfields. Areas that were compacted for stability and seeded with grasses - according to proscribed Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act (SMCRA) rules - resulted in severe erosion and prevented the established of native tree species. The approach was developed by a broad alliance of federal, state and mining industry researchers through the Appalachian Regional Reforestation Initiative. For decades now, the FRA has been used as a recognized reclamation approach under the SMCRA; however the practice is not widely recognized outside of Appalachia, even in native forest ecoregions where mining has taken place for the better part of the last century. The FRA thus may provide value by importing and, where necessary, adapting the approach to reclamation in the Northern Forest region of the iron mining states of Minnesota and Michigan.

In partnership with Hibbing Taconite, the City of Hibbing, and the Rajala Woods Foundation, two projects were advanced to improve understanding of the applicability of FRA to reclamation in Minnesota:

1. A comparative survey of mined areas and stockpiles with tree plantings (either intentional plantings or successional ingrowth of tree species) and traditional grass and forb reclamation areas. Areas were selected that had undergone approximately 10, 5, and 2-3 years of growing seasons for comparison, along with older sites that were planted with trees that pre-date the reclamation rules in Minnesota.
2. A pilot project, “Project Greenwood”, which seeks to demonstrate the application of FRA on a variety of iron mining substrates and with varying surface preparations. A planting of 17,000 tree seedlings is being tested. Results will be compared for cost of implementation and surveys of site stability, vegetative cover, species richness, and percent cover by species and stratum in the herbaceous, shrub, and tree layers.

The comparative survey and pilot project had broad industry and community support and will serve as a potential demonstration toward recognition of FRA as a reclamation approach in the region. However adapting the approach to this region can be improved! Beyond examining the results of the trial projects, we envision ongoing discussion with forestry practitioners and mine reclamationists about how to adapt the practice for this region. For example, our questions include: what surface preparation techniques, what species mixes, and what planting techniques?

Join TJ Boettcher, Alison Cariveau, and Jim Wanstall as they unpack the new 2025-2035 Minnesota Wildlife Action Plan. They will highlight exciting new aspects of the plan including species/habitat associations and habitat descriptions, as well as how the plan can be used by natural resource professionals as a tool to guide conservation work. This presentation will also cover examples of how the plan is guiding conservation work on-the-ground in designated Conservation Opportunity Areas (COA's) including restoring habitat for Species in Greatest Conservation Need like Timber Rattlesnakes, coordinating educational events, and more.