MADISON, Wis. (WRN) — Northern Wisconsin’s wild rice crop harvest is below average this year.
The Department of Natural Resources says a mild winter last year and heavy storms in mid-June appear to have set back wild rice production this year in the northern part of the state.
Wild rice harvesting is open to all Wisconsin residents and provides an opportunity to forage a highly nutritious food source unique to the upper Midwest.
The decline in wild rice production has been a notable trend over recent decades. Scientists cite the impacts of climate change as a widespread stressor on the wild rice population.
Wild rice maturity typically ranges from late August through mid-September across the state and varies by waterbody and rice bed.