Chippewa Savannas Area

Previously part of the West Central chapter, the Chippewa Savannas Chapter was reinstated in the fall of 2009 by Bill Hogseth. 

The chapter’s primary mission is to restore, manage and research remnant native prairies, savannas, barrens and other fire-dependent ecosystems.

The Chippewa Savannas Chapter is partially within the Driftless Area of western Wisconsin. The chapter area includes many large complexes of remnant prairies, savannas and barrens. With river terraces and high rugged bluffs, the Chippewa Valley is an ecological goldmine. It contains more rare species (125) than any other area of a comparable size in the entire state of Wisconsin and also includes a quarter of Wisconsin’s total acreage of remaining prairies. River terrace prairies and savannas are found along our large rivers. We share our knowledge within our membership, and with others through outreach activities. The chapter covers Pepin, Dunn and Eau Claire Counties in Wisconsin. This is an exciting place for a prairie enthusiast to work. We invite you to join us!

Volunteering with Chippewa Savannas is a great opportunity to learn about the techniques of restoration and to get hands-on experience with prairie and savanna ecology. We are eagerly looking for volunteers with diverse skills ranging from ecological stewardship, event planning and graphic design, to education and so on. 

Work parties are a great way to get out in our local prairies, have fun and make new friends, not to mention do some actual work to protect and restore these special places. From time to time we also have events, classes, and educational activities that require volunteer help. To receive direct emails about upcoming work parties, send an email to theprairieenthusiasts.csc@gmail.com. We promise to only use this list for volunteer opportunities, and will never use it for spam, fundraising, political stuff and we certainly will not sell your email address.