The Ridges Sanctuary

One of the most precious gems of the Sanctuary is the Hine’s Emerald Dragonfly (Somatochlora hineana). This winged wonder is listed as Federally endangered, and its largest populations are found in Door County, particularly in The Ridges and surrounding wetlands. Researchers from the Illinois Natural History Survey and the Illinois State Museum are involved in research on the ecology of the Hine’s Emerald. A recent study involved tagging live dragonflies to determine their flight range. Since this dragonfly is federally protected, such studies are approved and carefully monitored by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Field studies of the number and behavior of Hine’s Emerald dragonflies, along with obtaining photographic records, have been conducted for several summers. Here, a researcher attaches a tiny numbered tag to the thorax of an Emerald, in order to identify it if captured at a later date. Other studies focus on the larval stage of this and other dragonflies.

---

Habitat
A swale with boreal forest in the background. In summertime, areas like this are teeming with dragonflies, including the endangered Hine’s Emeralds shown below.

---

Characteristics
The female Hine’s Emerald is shown in Fig. A, while the male is shown in Fig. B. The arrow indicates the characteristic appendages at the end of the abdomen. These play a role in mating. Monitoring the status of this endangered dragonfly is ongoing at The Ridges. For more information about the Hines Emerald Dragonfly, click here.

Encourage, promote and facilitate research on the biota, physical and chemical environment of the Sanctuary and other relevant Door County habitats

Rationale:

The Ridges and surrounding landscapes have been recognized as the most biologically diverse area in the State by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. To protect The Ridges, research initiatives must provide an understanding of biodiversity and ecosystem dynamics and connections to the larger landscapes or watersheds.

Strategies:

• Divide The Ridges property into management zones and develop a baseline assessment of the biota and physical-chemical environment of the Sanctuary. This includes a complete species list of all plants and multicellular animals present in the Sanctuary and baseline data on the water, air and soil.
• Collaborate with scientists and other organizations managing land in the Ephraim/Baileys Harbor Forest Corridor (North Bay south to The Ridges Sanctuary) to identify research needs for individual populations and ecosystems unique to this landscape.
• Collaborate with other organizations managing land in the Logan Creek watershed to understand changes in flora, fauna and water quality.
• With appropriate limits on sensitive information, maintain research results, data and specimen collections to be shared by visiting scientists, volunteers and members.

In June 2003, a study was conducted on the breeding birds of the Sanctuary. The survey included 33 sites in various habitat types, distributed throughout the Ridges. A total of 63 bird species were observed. Some, such as Black-capped Chickadee and American Redstart, were found in many habitats and displayed no apparent preference for one habitat type over another. However, several species were found primarily in specific habitat types. These included some birds, such as Osprey and Yellow-bellied Flycatcher, which are listed as rare or of special concern in Wisconsin.