About this Property
The Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District (MMSD) transferred ownership of Ryan Creek Prairie to MALC in 2021 and MALC granted a conservation easement back to MMSD, further ensuring permanent conservation protection of the property. MMSD, through The Conservation Fund, had purchased this 50-acre Franklin property in 2008, with 50% of the purchase price provided through the DNR’s Knowles-Nelson Stewardship fund. Ryan Creek, a tributary of the Root River, forms the southern border of the land. The property was selected for MMSD’s Greenseams® program due to its hydric soils which contribute to its water storing capacity for flood control and due to its potential as a public open space. From at least 1941 to 2009, the land had been farmed, including utilization for corn and soybean production.
In 2009, under contract with the U S Fish & Wildlife Service, MMSD restored the land to its native prairie, oak opening and wetland habitat. Dominant species of the tallgrass prairie are Big Bluestem, Indian Grass, and Golden Alexanders. A biodiverse grassland like Ryan Creek Prairie acts as a carbon sink, storing carbon underground in the plants’ deep root systems, and retaining the carbon even when the roots die or the prairie is burned. The prairie also provides valuable habitat for grassland-nesting birds and other wildlife.
In 2022, in partnership with the Bluebird Restoration Association of Wisconsin, MALC installed and monitors six Bluebird boxes and has found them occupied by nesting Bluebirds and Tree Swallows. MALC conducts informal bird surveys annually, with a particular interest in determining the presence of grassland birds. Less than one percent of the original prairie landscape of Milwaukee County remains, and this habitat loss has caused a 50% decline of the grassland bird population since 1970, more than any other type of bird, resulting in many being listed as state Species of Greatest Conservation Need. Birding observations at Ryan Creek Prairie may be reported to the eBird hotspot, Ryan Creek Conservancy.
To visit Ryan Creek Prairie, park on the roadside along South 116th Street, just north of Ryan Road. This is a wild space with no trails. Explore on your own.
