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List of protected grasslands of North America

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The protected grasslands of North America consist of prairies, with a dominant vegetation type of herbaceous plants like grasses, sedges, and other prairie plants, rather than woody vegetation like trees. Grasslands were generally dominant within the Interior Plains of central North America but was also present elsewhere. The protected areas for this ecosystem include public nature reserves managed by American, Canadian and Mexican wildlife management agencies, Native American tribes and Canadian First Nations, state wildlife management agencies, non-governmental organizations, and private nature reserves.[1]

Generally speaking, these regions are devoid of trees, except for riparian or gallery forests associated with streams and rivers. The tallgrass prairie, with moderate rainfall and rich soils, were ideally suited to agriculture so it became a productive grain-growing region. The tallgrass prairie ecosystem covered some 170 million acres (690,000 km2) of North America. Besides agriculture, much of the shortgrass prairie became grazing land for domestic livestock. Short grasslands occur in semi-arid climates while tall grasslands are in areas of higher rainfall. Although much of the grasslands are in the Great Plains ecoregion, protected grasslands can be found in other areas of Canada, Mexico and the United States. Desert (arid) grasslands are composed of sparse grassland ecoregions located in the deserts and xeric shrublands biome. Temperature extremes and low amounts of rainfall characterise these kinds of grasslands. Therefore, plants and animals are well adapted to minimize water loss.[2] Shrub-steppe is also a type of low-rainfall natural grassland. While arid, shrub-steppes have sufficient moisture to support a cover of perennial grasses or shrubs, a feature which distinguishes them from deserts. The shrub-steppes of North America occur in the western United States and western Canada, in the rain shadow between the Cascades and Sierra Nevada on the west and the Rocky Mountains on the east.

The expanses of grass once sustained migrations of an estimated 30 to 60 million American bison which maintained grazing pressure as a keystone species. Once bison could be found across much of North America. While they ranged from the eastern seaboard states to southeast Washington, eastern Oregon, and northeastern California, the greatest numbers were found within the great bison belt on the shortgrass plains east of the Rocky Mountains that stretched from Alberta to Texas.[3] Grazing is important to soil, vegetation and overall ecological balance. The ecosystem was maintained by a pattern of disturbance caused by natural wildfire and grazing by bison, a pattern which is called pyric herbivory.[4] The indigenous peoples of the Plains occupied the land, hunting bison and pronghorn. The expansion of the United States onto the frontier decimated the population of the indigenous people and the bison.[5] Bison occupy less than 1% of their historical range with fewer than 20,000 bison in conservation herds on public, tribal or private protected lands. Roughly 500,000 animals are raised for commercial purposes.[6]

The plowing of the tallgrass prairie to plant crops destroyed the natural habitat. Less than 4 percent of the prairie is left according to most estimates.[7] Intensive farming, urbanization, and the spread of trees - that were formerly limited by periodic fires - continue to contribute to habitat loss.[8] Studies estimated in 2018 that grasslands in the U.S were being lost at a rate of more than one-million-acre per year (0.40×10^6 ha).[9]

Protected areas

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Name Location Operator Bison
Akin Prairie Kansas Kansas Land Trust
American Prairie Montana American Prairie Foundation Yes
Antelope Island State Park Utah Utah State Parks Yes
Badlands National Park South Dakota National Park Service Yes
Baker Wetlands Kansas Baker University
Banff National Park Alberta Parks Canada Yes
Baskett Slough National Wildlife Refuge Oregon U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Battelle Darby Creek Metro Park Ohio Columbus and Franklin County Metro Parks Yes
Bear Butte State Park South Dakota South Dakota Department of Game, Fish, and Parks Yes
Bear River State Park Wyoming Wyoming Division of State Parks and Historic Sites Yes
Big Basin Prairie Preserve Kansas Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks
Big Thicket National Preserve Texas National Park Service
Blackburn State Park Iowa Iowa Department of Natural Resources
Black Kettle National Grassland Texas U.S. Forest Service
Blue Mounds State Park Minnesota Minnesota Department of Natural Resources Yes
Bonham State Park Texas Texas Parks and Wildlife Department
Broken Kettle Grasslands Preserve Iowa The Nature Conservancy Yes
Buena Vista Wildlife Area Wisconsin Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
Buenos Aires National Wildlife Refuge Arizona U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Buffalo Gap National Grassland South Dakota U.S. Forest Service
Burr Oak Woods Conservation Area Missouri Missouri Department of Conservation
Camp Pendleton California United States Marine Corps Yes
Caprock Canyons State Park Texas Texas Parks and Wildlife Department Yes
Carrizo Plain National Monument California U.S. Bureau of Land Management
Catoosa Wildlife Management Area Tennessee Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency
Cayler Prairie State Preserve Iowa Iowa Department of Natural Resources
Cedar Creek Ecosystem Science Reserve Minnesota University of Minnesota College of Biological Sciences
Chickasaw National Recreation Area Oklahoma National Park Service Yes
Chippewa Cree Tribal Buffalo Pasture Montana Chippewa Cree Yes
Cimarron National Grassland Kansas U.S. Forest Service
Clinton State Park Kansas Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks
Clymer Meadow Preserve Texas The Nature Conservancy
Comanche National Grassland Colorado U.S. Forest Service
Conrad Savanna Nature Preserve Indiana Indiana Department of Natural Resources
Cosumnes River Preserve California The Nature Conservancy, Bureau of Land Management, Ducks Unlimited, Department of Fish and Wildlife, Department of Water Resources, Sacramento County Department of Parks and Recreation, and the state Wildlife Conservation Board
Crane Trust Nebraska Crane Trust Yes
Crex Meadows Wildlife Area Wisconsin Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
Cross Plains State Park Wisconsin Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
Crooked River National Grassland Oregon U.S. Forest Service
Cross Ranch Nature Preserve North Dakota The Nature Conservancy Yes
Crow-Hassan Park Reserve Minnesota Three Rivers Park District
CSKT Bison Range Montana Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes Yes
Custer State Park South Dakota South Dakota Department of Game, Fish, and Parks Yes
Cypress Hills Interprovincial Park Alberta, Saskatchewan Alberta Environment and Parks and Ministry of Parks, Culture and Sport (Saskatchewan)
Daniels Park Colorado Denver Yes
Dorsett Hill Prairie Conservation Area Missouri Missouri Department of Conservation
Driftless Area National Wildlife Refuge Iowa, Wisconsin U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Dunbar Cave State Park Tennessee Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation
Ebey's Landing National Historical Reserve Washington National Park Service
Elk Cove Meadow Oregon U.S. Forest Service
Elk Island National Park Alberta Parks Canada Yes
Fermilab Illinois U.S. Department of Energy Yes
Flint Hills National Wildlife Refuge Kansas U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Fort Niobrara National Wildlife Refuge Nebraska U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Yes
Fort Pierre National Grassland South Dakota U.S. Forest Service
Fort Peck Indian Reservation Montana Assiniboine and Sioux Tribes Yes
Fort Ridgely State Park Minnesota Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
Fort Robinson State Park Nebraska Nebraska Game and Parks Commission Yes
Fort Scott National Historic Site Kansas National Park Service
Fort Worth Nature Center and Refuge Texas Fort Worth, Texas Yes
Gaviota State Park California California Department of Parks and Recreation
Genesee Park Colorado Denver Yes
Gensburg-Markham Prairie Illinois The Nature Conservancy, Northeastern Illinois University, the Natural Land Institute
George Washington Carver National Monument Missouri National Park Service
Gitchie Manitou State Preserve Iowa Iowa Department of Natural Resources
Glacial Ridge National Wildlife Refuge Minnesota U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Golden Prairie Missouri Missouri Prairie Foundation
Grand River National Grassland South Dakota U.S. Forest Service
Grand Teton National Park/National Elk Refuge Wyoming National Park Service Yes
Grant-Bradbury Prairie Preserve Kansas Shawnee County Parks and Recreation
Grasslands National Park Saskatchewan Parks Canada Yes
Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve Colorado National Park Service
Great Valley Grasslands State Park California California Department of Parks and Recreation
Hayden Prairie State Preserve Iowa Iowa Department of Natural Resources
Hay-Zama Lakes Wildland Park Alberta Alberta Parks Yes
Hempstead Plains Preserve New York Nassau County
Henry Mountains Utah Utah Division of Wildlife Resources, Bureau of Land Management Yes
Herbert Hoover National Historic Site Iowa National Park Service
Hitchcock Nature Center Iowa Pottawattamie County Conservation Board
Homestead National Historical Park Nebraska National Park Service
Hoosier Prairie State Nature Preserve Indiana National Park Service
Hot Springs State Park Wyoming Wyoming Division of State Parks and Historic Sites Yes
Innoko National Wildlife Refuge Alaska U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Yes
Ivan Boyd Prairie Preserve Kansas Douglas County Public Works
Janos Biosphere Reserve Chihuahua Secretariat of Environment and Natural Resources Yes
Jenner Headlands Preserve California The Wildlands Conservancy
Joseph H. Williams Tallgrass Prairie Preserve Oklahoma The Nature Conservancy Yes
J. T. Nickel Family Nature and Wildlife Preserve Oklahoma The Nature Conservancy
Kankakee Sands Indiana The Nature Conservancy Yes
Kanopolis State Park Kansas Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks
Kingston Prairie Preserve Oregon Greenbelt Land Trust
Kiowa National Grassland New Mexico U.S. Forest Service
Kissimmee Prairie Preserve State Park Florida Florida Department of Environmental Protection
Knob Noster State Park Missouri Missouri Department of Natural Resources
Konza Prairie Biological Station Kansas The Nature Conservancy, Kansas State University Yes
Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area Kentucky U.S. Forest Service Yes
Las Cienegas National Conservation Area Arizona U.S. Bureau of Land Management
Lynx Prairie Ohio The Nature Conservancy
Lost Trail National Wildlife Refuge Montana U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Lyndon B. Johnson National Grassland Texas U.S. Forest Service
Maderas del Carmen Coahuila Secretariat of Environment and Natural Resources Yes
Maxwell Wildlife Refuge Kansas Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks Yes
McClellan Creek National Grassland Texas U.S. Forest Service
Mead Wildlife Area Wisconsin Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie Illinois U.S. Forest Service Yes
Minneopa State Park Minnesota Minnesota Department of Natural Resources Yes
Missimer Wildflower Preserve California Land Trust of Napa County
Missisquoi National Wildlife Refuge Vermont U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Muleshoe National Wildlife Refuge Texas U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Nachusa Grasslands Illinois The Nature Conservancy Yes
Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge Iowa U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Yes
Oglala National Grassland Nebraska U.S. Forest Service
Ojibway Prairie Complex Ontario Windsor, Ontario, Ontario Parks
Old Man on His Back Prairie and Heritage Conservation Area Saskatchewan Nature Conservancy of Canada Yes
Pawnee National Grassland Colorado U.S. Forest Service
Paynes Prairie Preserve State Park Florida Florida Department of Environmental Protection Yes
Pee Dee National Wildlife Refuge North Carolina U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Perrot State Park Wisconsin Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
Phil Hardberger Park Texas San Antonio
Piñon Canyon Maneuver Site Colorado U.S. Army
Point Reyes National Seashore California National Park Service
Prairie State Park Missouri Missouri Department of Natural Resources Yes
Prince Albert National Park Saskatchewan Parks Canada Yes
Quivira National Wildlife Refuge Kansas U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Riding Mountain National Park Manitoba Parks Canada Yes
Rita Blanca National Grassland Texas U.S. Forest Service
Rockefeller Prairie Kansas University of Kansas
Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge Colorado U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Yes
Rocky Prairie Washington
Saeger Woods Conservation Area Missouri Missouri Department of Conservation
Salt Plains National Wildlife Refuge Oklahoma U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
San Bernardino National Wildlife Refuge Arizona U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Sand Creek Massacre National Historic Site Colorado National Park Service
San Luis National Wildlife Refuge Complex California U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Sandhill Wildlife Area Wisconsin Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources Yes
Sandsage Bison Range & Wildlife Area Kansas Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks Yes
Searles Prairie Natural Area Arkansas Arkansas Natural Heritage Commission
Searls Park Prairie Illinois Illinois Department of Natural Resources
Slinde Mounds State Preserve Iowa Iowa Department of Natural Resources
Soapstone Prairie/Red Mountain Colorado Fort Collins, Colorado and Larimer County Yes
Spirit Mound Historic Prairie South Dakota South Dakota Department of Game, Fish, and Parks
Stone State Park Iowa Iowa Department of Natural Resources
Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve Kansas The Nature Conservancy, National Park Service Yes
Tallgrass Prairie Preserve Oklahoma The Nature Conservancy Yes
Theodore Roosevelt National Park North Dakota National Park Service Yes
Thunder Basin National Grassland Wyoming U.S. Forest Service
Trexler Nature Preserve Pennsylvania Lehigh County Yes
Turkey River Mounds State Preserve Iowa Iowa Department of Natural Resources
Valentine National Wildlife Refuge Nebraska U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Valles Caldera National Preserve New Mexico National Park Service
Vermejo Park Ranch New Mexico and Colorado Ted Turner Yes
Wanuskewin Heritage Park Saskatchewan Wanuskewin Heritage Park Authority Yes
Waterton Lakes National Park Alberta Parks Canada Yes
White Horse Hill National Game Preserve North Dakota U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Yes
Whorehouse Meadow Oregon U.S. Bureau of Land Management
Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge Oklahoma U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Yes
Wild Horse Island Montana Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks
Wildlife Prairie Park Illinois Friends of Wildlife Prairie Park
Willa Cather Memorial Prairie Nebraska Willa Cather Foundation
Willamette Floodplain Oregon U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Wind Cave National Park South Dakota National Park Service Yes
Wolakota Buffalo Range South Dakota Rosebud Economic Development Corporation Yes
Wood Buffalo National Park Alberta and Northwest Territories Parks Canada Yes
Yellowstone National Park Idaho, Montana, Wyoming National Park Service Yes
Zumwalt Prairie Oregon The Nature Conservancy

Cemetery prairies

[edit]

Cemetery prairies are remnants of native North American prairie.

This section is an excerpt from Cemetery prairie § List of cemetery prairies.[edit]
This is a dynamic list and may never be able to satisfy particular standards for completeness. You can help by adding missing items with reliable sources.
  • Bigelow Cemetery Preserve, Ohio[10]
  • Brown School Road Cemetery, St. Joseph, Michigan[11]
  • Brownlee Prairie Cemetery Nature Preserve, Illinois[12]
  • Calvary Catholic Cemetery, St. Louis[13]
  • Clay Prairie, Allison, Iowa[11]
  • German Methodist Cemetery Prairie State Nature Preserve, Lake County, Indiana [14]
  • German Settler Cemetery, La Paz, Indiana[11]
  • Goewey Township Cemetery, Osceola County, Iowa[15]
  • Harrison Cemetery Prairie, southwest Michigan[11]
  • Hess Cemetery near Eagle Point, Illinois[16]
  • Horton Township Cemetery Prairie Preserve, Osceola County, Iowa[15][17]
  • Johnson Cemetery, Hillsdale County, Michigan[11]
  • Loda Cemetery Prairie, Illinois[18]
  • Mount Hope Cemetery, Barry County, Michigan[11]
  • Munson Township Cemetery Prairie Nature Preserve, north of Cambridge, Henry County, Illinois[19]
  • Pellsville Pioneer Cemetery, Butler Township, Vermilion County, Illinois[18]
  • Pioneer Cemetery, south of Baldwin City, Douglas County, Kansas[20]
  • Prospect Cemetery State Preserve[21]
  • Queen Anne Prairie Cemetery, Woodstock, Illinois[11]
  • Rochester Cemetery, Cedar County, Iowa,[22][23] established 1830s on 13.5 acres (5.5 ha; 0.055 km2) of hills in sand prairie-savanna grassland near the Cedar River[24]
  • Smith Cemetery Prairie Nature Preserve,[10] Darby Township, Madison County, Ohio[25]
  • Sumnerville Cemetery, Cass County, Michigan[11]
  • Tomlinson Cemetery, Champlaign County, Illinois[26]
  • Weston Cemetery Prairie, Yates Township, McLean County, Illinois

See also

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References

[edit]
  1. ^ Tarnow, Anna (February 18, 2019). "More than just grass: US prairies make a comeback". Christian Science Monitor. Retrieved February 26, 2021.
  2. ^ "Deserts and xeric shrublands | Biomes | WWF". World Wildlife Fund. Retrieved May 20, 2020.
  3. ^ Wuerthner, George (September 3, 2020). "Bison ecology, ecological influence, behavior, and decline". The Wildlife News. Retrieved July 9, 2021.
  4. ^ "Restoring prairie and fighting wildfire with (drone launched) fire(balls)". Ecotone. Ecological Society of America. August 1, 2016. Retrieved March 14, 2022.
  5. ^ Tutton, Mark (November 27, 2019). "How bison are bringing life back to the prairie". CNN. Retrieved February 26, 2021.
  6. ^ Akcakaya, H. Resit (November 7, 2019). "To Save Species from Extinction, We Must Consider More than Just Numbers". In These Times. Retrieved November 4, 2020.
  7. ^ Berger, Joel; Beckmann, Jon (May 1, 2020). "America's Native Big Open Was Anything But Lonely Or Empty". Mountain Journal. Retrieved September 28, 2020.
  8. ^ Webber, Tammy (August 25, 2023). "North American grassland birds in peril, spurring all-out effort to save birds and their habitat". AP News. Retrieved August 25, 2023.
  9. ^ McBride, Bekah (November 15, 2018). "Grasslands among the best landscapes to curb climate change". UWMadScience. University of Wisconsin-Madison. Retrieved October 5, 2020.
  10. ^ a b Madson, John (2009). Where The Sky Began: Land of the Tallgrass Prairie. University of Iowa Press. ISBN 9780877458616. OCLC 794701545. Retrieved January 24, 2023 – via Project MUSE.
  11. ^ a b c d e f g h Pleznac, Christine (1982). R. Brewer (ed.). "Michigan cemetery prairies and their flora" (PDF). Proceedings of the Eighth North American Prairie Conference. Kalamazoo, Michigan: Western Michigan University: 130–132.
  12. ^ "Mercer County Prairie Hike Set May 19". The Rock Island Argus. May 12, 1985. p. 10. Retrieved January 9, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ^ "Pristine prairie at Calvary Cemetery thrives amid urban landscape". Archdiocese of St. Louis. Retrieved January 25, 2023.
  14. ^ "German Methodist Cemetery Prairie". The Nature Conservancy. Retrieved January 25, 2023.
  15. ^ a b ""Efforts Underway to Resore Forgotten Horton Township Cemetery"". Sioux City Journal 30 Jul 2001, page 4. Retrieved January 9, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  16. ^ "The Tall Grass Prairie Abounds at Eagle Point". The Rock Island Argus. June 6, 1984. p. 17. Retrieved January 9, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  17. ^ "Horton Township Cemetery Prairie Preserve". Watchable Wildlife Sites in Northwest Iowa. Retrieved January 28, 2023.
  18. ^ a b Borrelli, Christopher (August 6, 2017). "A Little History on the Prairie: Pioneer Cemeteries show Us what Illinois Looked Like before European Settlers". Chicago Tribune. p. 1. ProQuest 1926287833.
  19. ^ "Prairie tour will be today". Quad-City Times. June 26, 1994. p. 64. Retrieved January 9, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  20. ^ "Douglas County prairies and forests". Kansas Biological Survey & Center for Ecological Research. Retrieved May 5, 2024.
  21. ^ "Midwest Wilderness Connections - Prospect Prairie Cemetery State Preserve". sites.google.com. Retrieved January 25, 2023.
  22. ^ Samuels, Sam Hooper (July–August 2009). "Hallowed Prairie" (PDF). Iowa Outdoors. Photographs by Clay Smith. Iowa Department of Natural Resources. pp. 29–35.
  23. ^ Wallbaum, Mary (July 4, 1976). "Prairie Grass Obstacle at First". The Gazette. Cedar Rapids, Iowa. p. 144. Retrieved January 9, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  24. ^ "Cemetery Politics: Iowa Town Divided Over Cemetery Mowing". The Muscatine Journal. Muscatine, Iowa. November 4, 2006. p. 8. Retrieved January 9, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  25. ^ Sidoti, Liz (October 15, 2000). "Prairie Could Return, State Aims to Add 3 Patches". The Cincinnati Enquirer. p. 28. Retrieved January 9, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  26. ^ "Pioneer Graveyard Site of Champaign County's Best-Preserved Prairie". The Times. Munster, Indiana. November 30, 2001. p. 20. Retrieved January 9, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
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