Browntown Oak Forest occupies the north-facing slope of a St. Peter sandstone ridge in Wisconsin's Driftless Area and contains excellent examples of southern dry and dry-mesic forests. On the ridge top and slopes the soil type is a shallow Dodgeville silt loam. The lower edge has sandstone outcrops and falls steeply 50 feet to a low plain of Northfield sandy loam. This variation in soil type and topography fosters a range in plant communities from a dry-mesic forest dominated by red oak on the upper slope to dry forest dominated by white and black oaks on the sandstone outcrops and lower plain. Smaller amounts of bitternut hickory, basswood, black cherry, and walnut are present. The numerous sugar maple saplings and abundance of spring ephemerals indicate a gradual shift to a more mesic nature. Bird life is varied with these uncommon species regularly found: tufted titmouse, blue-gray gnatcatcher, yellow-throated vireo, and orchard oriole. The state-threatened cerulean warbler (Dendroica cerulea) has also been found here. Browntown Oak Forest is owned by the DNR and was designated a State Natural Area in 1953.