Menomonie, Wisconsin History/Local Species

The Local Species of Menomonie, Wisconsin refers to species in the City of Menomonie in Dunn County, Wisconsin. The area shows aspects of both Northern and Southern Wisconsin species, such as the northern prominent American Black Bear, and southern common Thirteen-Lined Ground Squirrel. Like the rest of Wisconsin, Menomonie has a wide variety of bird species, allowing for bird watching and hunting to be enjoyed. It also has a variety of wetlands and lakes, with a fish population ready for fishing, but not without other problems. Most species here for at least thousands of years, with few suffering extinction (such as the Passenger Pigeon) and some migrating from Europe and other parts of the world.

Tertiary Life
Dunn County shares a myriad of species with the rest of Wisconsin, and though they vary in rarity, they all have important ecological niches to fill. While Wisconsin has very few snake and other reptile species, the warm-blooded birds and mammals can handle the colder Winter temperatures, or can simply migrate in the bird's case.

Small Mammals (Rodents and kin)

 * Eastern Grey Squirrel
 * Least Weasel
 * Cottontail Rabbit
 * Field Mouse
 * House Mouse
 * Black Rat
 * Brown Rat

Medium Mammals (Small game and others)

 * Striped Skunk
 * Muskrat
 * American Beaver
 * Common Raccoon
 * Coyotes
 * Red Fox
 * American Badger
 * Woodchuck
 * Brown Fox

Large Mammals (Ungulates and Carnivores)

 * White-tailed Deer
 * Black Bear
 * Grey Wolf

Marsupials

 * Virginia Opossum

Snakes and Lizards

 * Smooth Green Snake
 * Western Fox Snake
 * Common Gartersnake
 * Brown Snake
 * Northern Redbelly Snake
 * Northern Watersnake
 * Prairie Skink

Turtles and Tortoises

 * Painted Turtle
 * Snapping Turtle
 * Wood Turtle

Amphibians

 * Green Frog
 * Tope's Grey tree Frog
 * Blanchard's Cricket Frog

=== Common Birds ===

Owls

 * Snowy Owl
 * Great Horned Owl
 * Barn Owl
 * Barred Owl

Aquatic Based Birds (Ducks, Herons, etc.)

 * Common Loon
 * Wood Duck
 * Great Blue Heron
 * Sandhill Crane
 * Whooping Crane
 * Killdeer
 * Ring-billed Gull
 * California Gull
 * Belted Kingfisher
 * Canada Goose

Hawks, Eagles, and Falcons

 * Turkey Vulture
 * Bald Eagle
 * Red-tailed Hawk
 * Osprey
 * Peregrine Falcon

Doves and Pigeons

 * Mourning Dove
 * Common Ground Dove
 * Rock Dove (Pigeon)

Shrikes, Chickadees, and Thrushes

 * American Robin
 * Northern Shrike
 * Black-capped Chickadee

Finches and Sparrows

 * American Goldfinch
 * House Finch
 * Purple Finch
 * House Sparrow

Cardinals and Grosbeaks

 * Northern Cardinal
 * Rose-breasted Grosbeak
 * Indigo Bunting

Swallows

 * Barn Swallow
 * Tree Swallow

Waxwings

 * Cedar Waxwing

Woodpeckers

 * Pileated Woodpecker


 * Hairy Woodpecker

Game Birds

 * Wild Turkey
 * Ring-necked Pheasant
 * Ruffed Grouse

Crows, Ravens, and Jays

 * American Crow
 * Common Raven
 * Blue Jay

Hummingbirds

 * Ruby-throated Hummingbird

Insects (Flies, Bees, and kin)

 * House Fly
 * Honey Bee
 * American Bumblebee
 * Cranefly
 * Giant Mayfly
 * Mosquito
 * Blue Dasher

Beetles, True Bugs, and Others

 * American Cockroach
 * Ladybug
 * Boxelder Bug
 * Big Dipper Firefly
 * Common Pillbug
 * Hister Beetle
 * Milkweed Bug
 * Brown Marmorated Stink Bug
 * Silverfish

Crickets and Hoppers

 * Carolina Locust
 * House Cricket
 * Periodical Cicada

Moths and Butterflies

 * Luna Moth
 * Banded Woolly Caterpillar Moth
 * Monarch Butterflies

Arachnids

 * American House Spider
 * Banded Garden Spider
 * Black-legged Tick
 * Black and Yellow Garden Spider

Aquatic Life
Menomonie has a large population of game fish, mostly species of Bass and other small fish for frying. However, Lake Menomin, the main lake of Menomonie, is notorious for its large algae blooms, dissuading fishermen and other possible lakefront property buyers. This also has negative effects on the ecosystem, causing the water to be low in oxygen, causing trouble for purely aquatic species, and increases turbidity, or the measurable murkiness of the water.

Fish

 * Bass
 * Smallmouth
 * Largemouth
 * Black Crappie
 * Bluegill
 * Bullhead
 * Catfish
 * Muskellunge
 * Northern Pike
 * Panfish
 * Walleye
 * Yellow Perch

Shellfish

 * Red Swamp Crayfish
 * Zebra Muscles

Water Weeds and Others

 * Bladderwort
 * Coontail
 * Duckweed
 * Eel-Grass
 * Elodea
 * Giant Reed
 * Northern Water-milfoil
 * Spiny Naiad
 * Watermeal
 * White Water Lily

Plant Life
Due to Menomonie's temperate climate, it, like the rest of northern Wisconsin, is populated with plants species adapted to survive cold winters and warm summers. Most of the tree species are rough and hard, while the plant species are rough and not-so delicate. It has its share of both broad-leafed angiosperms and needled gymnosperms, both contributing to the ecosystem in their own way; while wild White-tail Deer prefer acorns from the Oak trees, Mourning Doves prefer nesting in the thick branches of a Spruce tree.

Alder

 * Speckled Alder

Ashes

 * Black Ash
 * White Ash
 * American Mountain Ash
 * Green Ash

Aspen

 * Big-tooth Aspen
 * Quaking Aspen

Birches

 * Paper Birch
 * River Birch
 * Yellow Birch
 * Heart-leaved Birch

Elms

 * American Elm
 * Rock Elm

Fruit Trees

 * Apple
 * Butternut
 * Wild Plum
 * Canadian Plum
 * Chokecherry
 * Black Cherry
 * Pin Cherry
 * Staghorn Sumac
 * Northern Hackberry

Hawthorn

 * Sugar Hawthorn
 * Fireberry Hawthorn
 * Dotted Hawthorn
 * Fleshy Hawthorn

Hazels

 * American Witch-hazel

Hickory

 * Yellow-bud Hickory

Locusts

 * Black Locusts

Maples

 * Silver Maple
 * Sugar Maple
 * Red Maple
 * Mountain Maple
 * Box Elder

Oaks

 * Bur/Burr Oak
 * White Oak


 * Northern Red Oak
 * Hill's Oak
 * Black Oak

Willows

 * Weeping Willow
 * Bebb's Willow

-Woods

 * Eastern Cottonwood
 * Ironwood
 * American Basswood
 * Muscle-wood
 * Alternate-leaved Dogwood

Pines

 * Jack Pine
 * Red Pine
 * White Pine

Cedars

 * Eastern Red-cedar
 * White Cedar

Firs

 * Balsum Fir

Hemlocks

 * Eastern Hemlock

Tamarack

 * Tamarack

Spruces

 * Black Spruce
 * Blue Spruce
 * White Spruce

Junipers

 * Common Juniper

Yew

 * American Yew

Spring

 * Dandelion
 * Blue Violet
 * Canada Violet
 * Trout Lily
 * Starflower
 * Twin Flower
 * Forget-me-not
 * Tall Buttercup
 * Large Flowered Bellwort
 * Columbine
 * Moccasin Flower

Summer

 * Ox-eyed Daisy
 * Purple Clover
 * Alsike Clover
 * Wild Rose
 * Bergamot Orange
 * Birds-foot Trefoil
 * Bush Honeysuckle
 * Skunk Current
 * Jack-in-the-pulpit
 * Pink Pyrola
 * Mustard
 * Yellow Bullhead Lily
 * Pitcher Plant
 * Blue Flag Iris
 * Harebell
 * Wild Ginger
 * Water Hemlock
 * Yarrow


 * Bloodroot
 * Barren Ground Strawberry
 * Wild Oats
 * Milkweed
 * Bunchberry
 * Wintergreen
 * Blue-eyed Grass
 * Fireweed
 * Leatherleaf
 * Pickerel Weed