The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is asking nature lovers to consider a donation to the Endangered Resources Fund on their Wisconsin income tax form. Donations made through your Wisconsin income tax form are matched and directly support the conservation of rare plants, animals and State Natural Areas.

Reasons To Give

The Best of the Best: Wisconsin is home to some of the largest populations in the world of endangered species like the Karner blue butterfly and rusty patched bumble bee, along with important populations of many other species, like wood turtles and little brown bats.
Preservation in Place: Funds support the care of the country’s largest system of state natural areas. These sites protect some of the state’s oldest forests, undeveloped lakes, diverse wetlands and unique geologic and archeological features. Nearly 75% of Wisconsin’s endangered and threatened wildlife species and 90% of endangered and threatened plant species are found in these areas. Just one site may be home to more than 70 species of native plants.
Your Gift is Multiplied: Each dollar donated to the Endangered Resources Fund through the tax checkoff is doubled by state funding and can be used to successfully apply for grants that require fund matching. This allows us to turn a $25 donation into $100 for conservation.

“When you support the Endangered Resources Fund, it supports our team’s on-the-ground conservation efforts and helps us collaborate with volunteers and partners to prevent the loss of species across our state,” said Drew Feldkirchner, DNR Natural Heritage Conservation Bureau Director.

“In the past year, we’ve seen the rediscovery of a rare plant not seen for over 100 years, conducted prescribed burns on thousands of acres of natural areas and our biologists documented encouraging signs of recovery among little brown bat populations decimated by white-nose syndrome. Every donation, no matter how small, helps us do the work needed to keep rare wildlife in Wisconsin,” added Feldkirchner.

How To Donate

To make a donation, look for “endangered resources” in the “donations” section of your Wisconsin income tax form. For tax year 2025, the Endangered Resources donation is the first line in the Financial Donations section.

You can also look for the donations section in your tax program or let your tax preparer know you want to donate to the Endangered Resources Fund. Donations to the Endangered Resources Fund are tax-deductible and matched dollar for dollar.

Learn More About Wisconsin Endangered Resources

The Endangered Resources Fund supports much of the work of the DNR’s Bureau of Natural Heritage Conservation. Read about how the Endangered Resources Fund has helped support species recovery and Wisconsin state natural area management or sign up for email updates on the Natural Heritage Conservation Field Notes webpage.

Trumpeter swans were removed from the Wisconsin endangered species list in 2009 due to the success of recovery efforts, thanks in part to contributions to the Endangered Resources Fund.

Photo Credit: Ryan Brady, Wisconsin DNR

Published on: Jan 20, 2026 at 11:18 am