Guide to Significant Wildlife Habitat - Door County Web Map

• Rare species include the state and federally listed endangered dune thistle (Cirsium pitcheri), which
grows along the Lake Michigan shore, and Wisconsin special concern species showy lady slipper
orchid (Cypripedium reginae).
• Many migratory birds rely on the shoreline for breeding and stopover habitat.
• It is unknown if other rare plant or animal species are present, as biological inventories are
incomplete.
Clay Banks
While covering several patches of mostly lowland conifer forest, the Clay Banks section of this area
also includes about 1 and ½ miles of relatively undeveloped Lake Michigan shoreline. Wetlands in
lowland areas provide drain via several creeks and streams between Kewaunee County and the Sturgeon
Bay ship canal.
• The area is in the Town of Clay Banks, which has adopted the county’s zoning ordinance, with an
exclusive agriculture overlay.
• Land cover along the shoreline is wooded with lesser amounts of other natural area. Along the
shoreline are a few scattered residential homes and limited areas of recreational public land. Inland
areas are composed of farmlands and scattered farm residences.
• Soils are deep, well to moderately well drained and gently sloping to sloping. A fine sand or sandy
loam overlays sand or sand and gravely outwash that is very poorly drained and nearly level. Organic
soils are often found in lowland conifer swamps (USDA SCS 1978).
• Surface water resources in this area include Schuylers Creek, Bear Creek, and Woodard Creek. All of
these waters are classified fair to good in habitat quality, support limited in-stream fish populations,
and receive some use by spawning suckers, smelt and trout (Corbisier 2000)
• Vegetation is second growth mixed cedar and hardwood uplands and lowlands. White cedar, aspen
(Populus tremuloides), and white birch are prominent tree species. Other tree species include balsam
fir, red maple, green ash (Fraxinus pennsylvanica) and balsam poplar (Populus balsamifera).
• Common animal species include White-tail deer (Odocoileus virginianus), raccoon (Procyon lotor),
fox (Vulpes vulpes), Virginia opossum (Didelphis virginiana), mink (Mustela vison), muskrat
(Ondatra zibethicus), waterfowl, and Ruffed Grouse (Bonasa umbellus).
• State listed endangered species known from the Clay Banks area include the endangered moonwort
grape fern (Botrychium lunaria) and the threatened heart-leaved foam-flower (Tiarella cordifolia). It
is unknown if other rare plant or animal species are present, as biological inventories have not been
completed.
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Southern Lake Michigan Shoreline