Posted Sunday, November 4, 2012 --- 8:20 a.m.

MADISON, Wis. (AP) -- The Department of Natural Resources will be doing some controlled burning on public land in Wisconsin this fall.

The DNR says the fires are an ecological and economic way to limit unwanted plants that overcrowd native vegetation. The agency says the burning also stimulates prairie grass and improves the habitat for game and waterfowl.

The fires also improve cover for pheasants and other nesting birds and help create pockets of open water for waterfowl in low areas.

Prescribed burns in the state's south central region are scheduled in Columbia, Dane, Green, Iowa, Jefferson, Lafayette, Rock, Sauk, Walworth and Waukesha counties this fall.

Copyright 2012. The Associated Press.