South Fork Wildlife Area is roughly 6-7,000 acres of grassland, mature timber, early successional habitat and wetlands and restored wetlands – and – as it turns out – a small remnant prairie, on the south side of Lake Rathbun.
The remnant prairie was found on a remote part of the public area, but access was difficult, so the discovery was noted until later, when the opportunity to get equipment on site to release the prairie was possible.
The neighboring property changed hands a few times before and with each sale, the hayed grassland slowly filled in with shrubs and brush. But that changed with the current landowner who partners with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) on land management – granting access to the remnant prairie in exchange for help with shrub removal and burning his adjacent grassland. He also cut the felled trees from the October 2022 project and used it as firewood.
A February 2024 cutting across the drainage with grinders, shears and chainsaws, cleared a grassland that was planted with seed from the remnant prairie.
In 2025, prescribed fire was used on the remnant prairie and restored prairie, as well as the neighboring private CRP field and today, big bluestem towers over where brush once stood. While peak bloom has passed, walking through the prairie on this August morning, mountain mint, prairie blazing star, flowering spurge, partridge pea, false foxglove – an indicator of remnant prairie, prairie rosinweed, prairie bush clover, compass plant, hairy ruellia, wild quinine, coreopsis, showy tic trefoil, false sunflower, black eyed Susan, and goldenrod were all visible.
“With the recent fire, the remnant returned grassier and thicker. The goal is to keep it in prairie, not trees,” said Greg Schmitt, wildlife technician with the Iowa DNR’s Rathbun Wildlife Unit. “What was once a hillside of bare soil shaded out by trees is back to prairie.”
Initially the clearing allowed remnant to return to three acres, but it may be as large as five acres, Schmitt said. Seed from this remnant was the source for other prairie restorations around Lake Rathbun.
South of the remnant prairie on the Wayne-Appanoose County line is a Level B road leading to an out of sight parking lot surrounded by timber. A quail hen with a brood of eight chicks was darting from side to side on the road edge until finally taking flight to the safety of the cornfield.
The larger South Fork area is a mix of grasslands, floodplains, forest and wetlands, home to bobwhite quail, redheaded woodpeckers, pheasants, squirrels, owls, songbirds, turtles, deer and lots of turkeys.
Hiking toward the lake, the timber gives way to the floodplain. Schmitt said the battle with Reed canary grass is to hay it, then spray it, which will knock it back for a few years. On the knob across the floodplain is a mature oak timber. Small grassland fingers extending into the trees and on hilltops are important for wildlife.
Small grain food plots that were planted a year or two ago are allowed to go fallow. Yellow swallowtails and monarchs are taking advantage of the native tall thistle in the fallow field.
Firebreaks through the timber are good places to hike – and a great place to hunt turkeys. There is phenomenal mushroom hunting here, too.