MEET MARK MARTIN & SUE FOOTE-MARTIN!
Resident Managers at Goose Pond Sanctuary since 1979
Sue and Mark at Ridges Sanctuary in Door County (photo courtesy of Mark and Sue).
We recently celebrated our 43rd anniversary as the co-managers of Goose Pond Sanctuary. That’s 86 years of combined effort on the landscape-sized property that exists today. Having a time commitment spanning decades has given us the opportunity to help build the sanctuary from the ground up. It also gives us a perspective on what is important in establishing a functioning ecosystem that after all of these years is still in its infancy.
We have enjoyed assisting Southern Wisconsin Bird Alliance with protecting over 3,900 acres of wildlife habitat through land acquisition and easements. The organization, then known as Madison Audubon, started its land acquisition program with the purchase of 60 acres at Goose Pond in 1969, which has since grown to a 730-acre sanctuary! Our main focus has been on restoring prairies and wetlands at the sanctuary with our partners, including the Department of Natural Resources, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Ducks Unlimited, Pheasants Forever, and Wisconsin Waterfowl Association.
Why did you want to join the team at Southern Wisconsin Bird Alliance?
We joined to help restore, protect, and manage habitat for wildlife and for the public to enjoy. Since 1979, we have been part of the Southern Wisconsin Bird Alliance team and we look back with fondness on countless events like the Art Fair, Bird Seed Sale, Distinguished Naturalist Series, long-distance field trips, and citizen science projects. Most important of all has been working shoulder-to-shoulder with the countless volunteers, many of whom are our friends and staunch supporters of Southern Wisconsin Bird Alliance.
Sue instructs a class about prairie ecology at Goose Pond Sanctuary (SoWBA archive photo).
What's your favorite bird?
Mark’s favorite bird is the Wood Duck, which in our lifetime went from being very uncommon to common. We have been utilizing Audubon nest boxes on our properties over the past 35 years. We were encouraged by our late friend Art Hawkins who began restoring wood duck numbers in the 1938s and was the co-founder of the Wood Duck Society.
Sue loves the Greater Prairie Chicken. Our neighbor used to tell us about the large flocks of these prairie grouse that lived around Goose Pond. Sue has fond memories of viewing Prairie Chickens from blinds in the Stevens Point area, the only place to see these birds in Wisconsin today. Prairie Chickens were once found in every county of the state but loss of habitat has caused the great decline in the species. Work is ongoing to increase their numbers in central Wisconsin.
Name your top three favorite outdoor places.
A black-footed ferret near the Badlands (photo courtesy of Prairie Wildlife Research).
Our favorite areas are Glacier National Park. Also, the grasslands and prairies of South Dakota, including the Badlands, where we have enjoyed magical nights with coyotes, badgers, bobcats, mountain lions, and Burrowing Owls while searching for black-footed ferrets in prairie dog towns. In Wisconsin, our favorite nature haunts are Crex Meadows and Namekagon Barrens in the northwestern part of the state. Over the years we have brought many friends to these outstanding places.
Share something you've learned since joining the team.
We were inspired by working with environmental giants like Joseph Hickey, Rosemary Flemming, Dorothy Haines, William Hillsenhoff, and Laura Erickson, and all the Southern Wisconsin Bird Alliance (formerly Madison Audubon) board members in our time. Long time friend James Hall Zimmerman guided our planning and encouraged us to use only local genotype seed in our restorations. This one principle has held true. We have also learned that it takes many donors, members, and volunteers for the sanctuary program to be successful.
We enjoy helping with citizen science projects like monarch butterfly tagging, eBird, Christmas Bird Counts, Frog and Toad surveys, Breeding Bird Atlases, bat monitoring, dragon and damselfly surveys, and surveying moths. We have learned from many mentors and have benefitted from a dedicated group of committed volunteers.
Cover image: A pair of Wood Ducks swim on a pond, reflected in the water (photo by USFWS Midwest).
