Welcome to DCCL!
Did you know that the League is the second oldest conservation group in the State of Wisconsin? If you are concerned about the future of Dane County’s natural heritage, you will want to attend the Dane County Conservation League’s 21st annual fundraiser banquet. Proceeds from the event support educational scholarships, local DNR wildlife habitat projects, purchase of trout stream bank easements, prairie chicken recovery efforts, the raising of pheasants, and the construction of Blue Bird, Wren, Wood Duck, and Bat Houses
DCCL NEWS FOR
OCTOBER
MEMBERSHIP MEETING
The October membership meeting will be
held on Tuesday, October 24 at 7p.m. at Schwoegler’s Park Town
Lanes in Madison. Emily Lehl, DNR R3 Supervisor, will give a
presentation on the Department’s Hunting and Shooting Sports
Programs. She will discuss the program’s background and its
current initiatives. R3 stands for Recruitment, Retention and
Reactivation.
THE DCCL AND ED
BROST CELEBRATE 90 YEARS TOGETHER
Ed Brost, one of the League’s most
popular and active members, is the same age as the DCCL. His
first memory of League involvement was helping to clean the
pheasant brooders in 1942. The pens were located near the
county farm on the east side of Verona where a county housing
facility still exists. At the time, the farm had a large garden
and the pheasant droppings were used to fertilize the garden.
Ed also remembers that a large group home that housed older
residents burned to the ground but everyone escaped unharmed.
Ed is also one of the few people who
remember hunting prairie chickens on land in Wood and Portage
Counties before the land was preserved as it still is today.
He recalls shooting several birds as late as 1954. Ed firmly
believes that the League’s involvement in saving the prairie
chicken habitat was a good move and possibly the most important
achievement in League history. He said that much of the credit
for purchasing the lands goes to Paul Olson who was a main force
at the time regarding the land acquisitions. It should be noted
that Ed, along with Jerry Paffenroth and Ed Fuss, worked
tirelessly in more recent years to get much of the DCCL land
enrolled in the USDA’s Grassland Reserve Program which provides
much of the funding for current League projects.
When asked what he would like to see
the League do in the future, Ed replied that assisting with
purchasing land when possible should be a top priority. In
addition, he feels that enrolling new, younger members is
important.
From the League’s standpoint, having
older members like Ed is equally important. Thanks, Ed, for all
you have done for the DCCL as a member, board member and past
president.
PHEASANT FARM CLOSES
FOR THE YEAR
The farm is closed and it was a
challenging year but the results were not bad. Late winter
storms caused considerable damage to our pens. Fortunately,
many hard-working members stepped up and did the necessary
repairs in time for the birds to use them. Nearly 900 birds were
distributed to both members who qualified with work hours and to
others who purchased birds. Sales totaled nearly $2,700. We
donated 55 roosters to the Dane County Chapter of Pheasants
Forever to use in their Learn-To-Hunt Day for youngsters and
others new to hunting. In exchange, the PF members assist with
work at the farm. Also, a few birds were released on public
land.
CALENDAR OF EVENTS
1. Membership meeting on October 24,
7p.m. at Schwoegler’s Lanes, Madison.
2. Combination Board meeting and
membership meeting on Tuesday, November 21, 7p.m. at Schwoegler’s
Lanes, Madison. (Note: this is the 3rd Tuesday
in November.)
3. Board meeting on Tuesday, December
19, 7p.m. at Schwoegler’s Lanes, Madison.
4. 2024 DCCL Annual Meeting, Tuesday,
January 23, 2024, 7p.m. at Schwoegler’s Lanes, Madison.
Link to printable renewal letter
Conserve Now That the Future May Live.......
We need Your Likes ON Facebook!! We are trying to get a E-Newsletter going and by liking our Facebook page we can make sure you are kept up to date with all the latest events.
All Family members are welcome to join in on the fun!!
Pheasants will be given out starting aug 31st. And Remember you must :
- Volunteer at least 12 hours on DCCL projects.
- Paid 2023 membership DCCL Application PDF
- Your Bird can be picked up in Late August.
- All Left over birds are sold to the Public
New Go wild DNR Website To Purchase a license, permit or register you kill.
Need a place to hunt this fall? Want to know where the pheasants are stocked each week? or even find a parking lot. check out this great hunting tool. http://dnr.wi.gov/topic/lands/fflight.html
Membership meeting are starting in September
Board meetings are the third Tuesday of the month at 7:00pm.
Membership meetings are the fourth Tuesday at 7:00pm. With Guest Speaker To discuss farm issues and conservation efforts. Everyone is Welcome to join us.
All Meetings are held at the Schwoegler Park Town Lanes, 444 Grand Canyon Dr., Madison