Gaherty Wildlife Area Acquired for Public Use

The Buena Vista County Conservation Board and Buena Vista County Pheasants Forever Chapter announce the acquisition of 29.9 acres for public use. The land is located in the East Half of the Southeast Quarter of Section 20, Grant Township, at the intersection of 580th Street and 150th Avenue. This is approximately 7 miles northeast of Storm Lake. The area will be open to the public for hunting, trapping and nature study.

The acquisition of the Gaherty Wildlife Area will not only be beneficial to wildlife, it will also aid in water quality improvement by filtering runoff that comes from cropland which drains to the creek located on the property.

Funding for the project came from the Buena Vista County Conservation Board, Buena Vista County Pheasants Forever Chapter, a grant from the Iowa Pheasants Forever State Council, a grant from the Iowa DNR Wildlife Habitat Stamp Fund and REAP funds.

Currently the area contains a small creek, grassland and crop ground. Development plans include seeding of prairie grass and forbs, prairie remnant development, wetland development and shrub/tree plantings. The planned development will demonstrate to area landowners how an area can be developed for wildlife habitat.