How Your Tax Donation Protects Northwoods Wildlife

A Hidden Opportunity on Your Tax Return

When you’re sitting at your kitchen table filing taxes this spring, there’s a line on your Wisconsin return that most folks skip right past. But that little checkbox connects directly to the loons calling across your favorite lake, the wood turtles crossing forest trails, and the old-growth pines standing watch in our state natural areas. The Endangered Resources Fund gives every Wisconsinite a chance to directly fund conservation work happening right here in the Northwoods, and your donation gets doubled by the state before it even hits the ground.

Drew Feldkirchner, who directs the DNR’s Bureau of Natural Heritage Conservation, puts it simply: this fund exists to protect the 400 wildlife species and 300 plant species that are endangered or threatened in Wisconsin. That’s not abstract policy work—it’s boots-on-the-ground conservation happening in the forests and wetlands that define life up north.

Where Your Money Actually Goes in the Northwoods

The Northwoods hosts nearly 75% of Wisconsin’s endangered and threatened wildlife and a staggering 90% of rare plant species. Those aren’t just statistics—they’re the diversity that makes a spring morning chorus sound different here than anywhere else, the specialized orchids tucked into our bogs, and the bat populations slowly recovering in our forests after white-nose syndrome devastated their numbers.

Feldkirchner’s team uses Endangered Resources Fund donations for essential fieldwork that often flies under the radar. “To really protect an endangered species, you have to know where they are,” he explains. That means researchers documenting rare species locations, maintaining detailed databases, and returning year after year to track population changes. When you spot a DNR crew doing prescribed burns in a state natural area or removing invasive plants from a sensitive wetland, there’s a good chance Endangered Resources Fund dollars are making that work possible.

The fund provides roughly 20% of the bureau’s operating budget, filling gaps that stable funding sources don’t cover. Your $25 donation becomes $50 through the state’s dollar-for-dollar match, then often stretches to $100 or more when used to leverage federal grants. That multiplication effect means even modest contributions punch well above their weight.

Success Stories Written in Feathers and Fur

The trumpeter swan story captures what patient, funded conservation can accomplish. These magnificent birds were completely eliminated from Wisconsin by the early 1900s. In the 1980s, biologists partnered with Alaskan conservation programs to bring eggs back to Wisconsin, carefully nurturing a population that eventually recovered enough to come off the endangered list. Today, seeing trumpeter swans gliding across Northwoods lakes feels ordinary—but it represents decades of work funded by contributions just like the ones available on your tax return.

Similar recoveries have played out with ospreys, bald eagles, and Karner blue butterflies. The DNR recently documented improvement in little brown bat populations, offering hope after white-nose syndrome decimated colonies throughout our region. Each of these wins required consistent funding for monitoring, habitat management, and sometimes direct intervention like building nesting platforms or protecting turtle nests from predators.

Connecting Community to Conservation

The fund isn’t just about professional biologists, though. Volunteers across the Northwoods contribute through programs like the Bumble Brigade, helping document rare bumblebee populations—including the federally endangered rusty patched bumble bee that still hangs on in parts of northern Wisconsin. “People volunteer and that’s fantastic,” Feldkirchner notes, describing how community members conduct surveys in state natural areas and help with hands-on habitat work.

This matters because the Northwoods economy depends on healthy ecosystems. Tourism, hunting, fishing, and wildlife viewing all rely on the biodiversity that conservation efforts protect. When wolf populations became self-sustaining in northern Wisconsin, or when a rare plant unseen for over a century gets rediscovered, those aren’t just feel-good stories—they’re indicators of ecosystem health that supports everything from property values to the outdoor recreation businesses that employ our neighbors.

You can also support the fund by purchasing endangered resources license plates, which provide ongoing contributions every time you renew your registration. It’s a visible way to show support while funding the work that keeps Wisconsin’s natural heritage intact.

Why the Northwoods Needs This Now

Our region sits at the southern edge of the boreal forest, creating unique habitat conditions that support species found nowhere else in the state. State natural areas preserve old-growth forests, undeveloped lake shorelines, and wetland complexes that have become increasingly rare. Without dedicated funding, these places and the species they harbor face death by a thousand cuts—invasive species creeping in, habitat fragmentation, and the subtle degradation that happens when nobody’s watching.

The Endangered Resources Fund provides the watching, the managing, and the active restoration that keeps our corner of Wisconsin wild. It funds the unglamorous but essential work: invasive plant removal before buckthorn takes over, prescribed burns that maintain oak savannas, nest protection for ground-nesting birds, and the detailed record-keeping that lets biologists spot problems before they become crises.

When you check that box on your tax return or make a direct donation to the fund, you’re investing in the Northwoods that drew you here in the first place—or kept your family rooted for generations. The loons, the wolves, the rare orchids, and the thousand other species that make this place special don’t have lobbyists or fundraising campaigns. They have this fund, and they have neighbors willing to pitch in a few dollars to make sure the Northwoods stays the Northwoods.