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ELEVATION: 720 to 1,320 feet (219 to 420 m).

AREA: 864 square miles (2,239 sq km).

STATES: Wisconsin.

CLIMATE: See section.

BEDROCK GEOLOGY: Ordovician dolomite underlies the sub-subsection (Ostrom 1981, Morey et al. 1982).

LANDFORMS: See section.

LAKES AND STREAMS: No natural lakes. The Chippewa River flows through the sub-subsection.

SOILS: Soils are developed from silt loam (loess) over pre-Wisconsinan till (Hole 1976, Hole and Germain 1994). The till ranges from leached (acidic) to calcareous. Soils are classified primarily as Udalfs (Hole 1976).

PRESETTLEMENT VEGETATION: Maple-basswood forest occurred within the highly dissected topography of the sub-subsection. Fire protection is provided by several north-south-oriented ravines.

NATURAL DISTURBANCE: Several areas of windthrown forest were noted by GLO surveyors (Canham and Loucks 1984). Fire was probably less prevalent within the maple-basswood forest than in adjacent oak savanna or prairie.

PRESENT VEGETATION AND LAND USE: Most of the forest has been cleared for agriculture except on the steep valley walls.

RARE PLANT COMMUNITIES: None identified to date.

RARE PLANTS: None identified to date.

RARE ANIMALS: None identified to date.

NATURAL AREAS: Wisconsin: State Natural Areas: Plum Creek Woods.

PUBLIC LAND MANAGERS:

CONSERVATION CONCERNS:

BOUNDARIES: Boundaries are based on my interpretations of soil surveys, topographic maps, and the distribution of forest types as mapped by Finley (1976).