Iowa CONSERVATIONIST
\blume 43 No. 9 • September 1984 STAFF Roger Sparks. Editor Julie Holmes, Assistant Editor Ron Johnson, Photographer Kenneth Formanek. Photographer Larry Pool, Graphic Anist
CONTENTS
2 Iowa's Prairie s Wings Over the Prairies 8 Roadside Prairies 10 Prairie Chickens 12 Restoration and Management 15 Conservation Update 20 Prairie Hayfields 20 Nature Tale 22 Warden's Diary 22 Prairie Preserves 27 Special Plants • 31 Wildflower
FRONT COVER: Cayler Prairie, an example of Iowa's notural beauty.- Photo by Doug Harr
THE IOWA CONSERVATION COMMISSION Donald E. Knudsen, Eagle Grove, Chairman; Baxter Freese, Wellman, Viet Chairman; John D. Field, Hamburg: Marian Pike, Whiting: F. Richard Thorn ton, Des Moines; WiU iarn B. Ridout, Estherville, and Thomas E. Spahn, Dubuque. DIRECTOR: Larry J. Wilson. DEPUTY DIRECTOR: Robert Fager! and.
DIVISION CIUEFS: Allen Farris; Fish and Wild life; Stanley C. Kuhn, Division of Administration: John M. Stokes, Lands and \\bters. SECTION SUPERINTENDENTS: Tom Albright, Engineering; Doyle Adams, Parks; Richard Bishop, Wildlife; James Mayhew, Fishenes; Roy Downing, \Wlters; Lester Aeming, Grants-in-Aid; Gene Hertel, State Forester; Rick McGeough, Law Enforcement, Gene Geissinger. Accounting; Arnie Sohn. Planning; John Beamer, Land Acquisuion; Judy Pawell , License; Ross Harrison, Information and Education, Robert Walker, County Conservation Activities . ••• IOWA CONSERVATIONIST (USPS 268-780), is published monthly by the Iowa Conservation Com mission. MWlace State Office Building, Des Momes, Iowa 50319. Second class postage paid in Des Moines. Iowa. and additionol mailing offices. Send changes of address to the Iowa Conservationist, \\bilace State Office Building. Des Moines, Iowa 50319 Send subscrrptrons- one year. $5.00. two years. S8 00 or 3 1tars S/0 00- to the address abo~·e Th~ Iowa Conurvation Commission provides eqAJI opponuml)· regurdleJS of race. creed. color. S<'..t. M tiorwl ori.f(m or nandicap • Ill
By Daryl D. Smith ed in time and space. The onrushing The scene was breathtakingly beauti storm brought a freshness to the air and ful as the group piled out of the car to a feeling of being in touch with the view this remnant of native Iowa elements swept through my body. I was Sprairie. The area had been burned in transported back to another time when late April and on this July morning was prairies such as this stretched to the a picturesque prairie garden with horizon and beyond, to a time when splashes of color ranging from the bison and prairie chickens were a com brilliant deep oranges of the wood and mon sight. The wind was stronger in Turk's cap lilies to the purples of the my face, my spirit soared, and I had prairie clover and prairie gay feather. merged with the world around me. The We had visited other prairie remnants electricity of the air became concen so the plants were familiar to us, but trated in bolts exploding across the sky. the sheer number of prairie flowers on I was filled with exhilaration compara this mesic lowland portion of Hayden ble to little else I had experienced. Prairie was awesome. Everywhere you The second round of raindrops (I looked were examples of plants that had hadn't felt the ftrSt) brought me back to become rare as tallgrass prairie was reality. As the rainfall increased, I beat a converted to cornfields. hasty retreat to the shelter of my De As we absorbed the meadow scene, a troit-produced chariot. The spell was low rumbling to the northwest reminded broken, I was back in the 20th century, us that this idyllic spot could soon be but the memory and the feeling linger. the site of a thunderstorm. The heavy Somehow I want to relive that moment air went unnoticed as we walked across and times such as that aren't often the prairie stopping to examine and consciously recreated. Since they aren't photograph the plants of an ecosystem awarding study fellowships into the past that has virtually vanished. The floral and time travel hasn't been perfected, I roll of representatives of once common will have to recreate my moments of species increased as we added to the list prairie revelry in my mind. wild quinine, white indigo, butterfly Most of us are too young to remem and marsh milkweed, compass plant, ber the tallgrass prairie. It was gone or oxeye daisy, leadplant and others. A almost gone before we could know and feeling of reverence descended on the experience it. Iowa, more than any group as we located a late blooming, other, could claim the title of the white fringed prairie orchid. Once a Tallgrass Prairie State. Prior to settle common flower of prairie swales, it is ment the state was 85% prairie, 29 now found in only ten locations million acres of grassland that produced throughout the state. There was an urge some of the richest farmland in the to fix this scene permanently in our world. All that remains of that vast, minds since a camera couldn 't capture tallgrass ecosystem are a few scattered the essence of this prairie morning. As relic patches in old-settler cemeteries, we moved across the prairie once again, roadsides and railroad right-of-ways. the air quickened as a breeze began to The tallgrass prairie may be gone, blow from the oncoming storm. There but it is not forgotten because whenever was electricity in the air. people discuss prairies an undercurrent Suddenly I was alone. It became one of excitement seems to flow through the of those moments when one is suspend- group. What is it about an ecosystem of
Big bluestem in the summer sunset. the past that generates such interest? ing them against th~ frost and chill , In these two characters Quick has Few people have actually spent time on showing purple-violet on the outside captured the contrast in emotions gener the prairie so it is unlikely they are of a cup filled with golden stamens, ated by the prairie - delight and fear, stimulated by direct experience. Per the ftrst fruits of the prairie flowers; anticipation and apprehension, promise haps much of the intere t stems from a on the wanner outhem lopes a few and threat. yearning to grasp something of the pa t, of the splendid bird's-a-foot violets of Today the awesome and fearsome a simpler time. the prairie were howing the azure aspects of prairie are diminished as the John Madson in The Running Coun color which would oon make orne prairie has been virtually reduced to try (Audubon, 1972) equates his feel of the hill ides as blue as the sky; and small living museums. A few aspects ings for tallgra prairie with that of a standing higher than the peering gras that remain to bother orne people are modem man who has fallen in love with rose the rough-leafed stalks of green chiggers, they can be quite annoying if the face in a faded tintype. "Only the which would soon show the yellow precautions aren 't taken , and an appear frame i real; the rest i illu ion and puccoon and weet-william and ance that orne interpret as "weedy." dream. So it is with original prairie. The scarlet lilies and hooting star , and The annoyances of the prairie today are beautiful face had faded before I was later the yellow ro in-weeds, Indian far outweighed by the positive effects born, before I had a chance to touch and eye flower and golden rod. The keen on our state of mind. feel it, and all that I have known of the northwest wind swept before it a We need prairie because it is part of · prairie i the etting and the mood - a flock of white cloud ... The wild our past. Nature in our daily li ves may broad sky of pure and intense light, with fowl were clamoring north for the well be an inherent biological neces ity. a sort of lightnes to the day , and the summer's campaign of nesting ... It not a luxury. Millions of years of young prairie-born winds running pa t was sublime! Bird, flower, grass, inheritance and culture have pro me from open horizons." cloud, wind , and the immense ex grammed us to a natural habitat of open Much of the feeling for prairie i a pan e of unny prairie, welling up space and a varied wild land cape un state of mind. As I have read from into undulation like a woman's di turbed by civilization. Not only is the diaries, journals and recollections of breast turgid with milk for a hungry physical aspect of the prairie important, early settlers and traveler it i apparent race." but our p ychological well-being rna) that the prairie had a psychological In another excerpt, a youth cried in rest upon capturing the essence of the effect on ob erver . Emotional re his happine s at eeing the newest, tallgrass prairie. sponses to the prairie varied con id strangest, mo t delightful , tern est, erably. Some loved it and spoke of it in most wonderful thing in the world - Daryl D. Smith is the head ofthe biology glowing terms while there were tho e Iowa prairie. At thi , the lady on the department at the University of Northern Iowa. He holds a Ph .D.from the Univer who hated the prairie and spoke of it a wagon be ide him burst out , "I don't Balli "fearful place." wonder that you cry. Gosh! [t scare me sity of Iowa. Favorable aspects of the prairie in to death." . It 1 cluded beautiful and delicate flowers, arr \\-~ freedom of wide horizon , moving Anderson Prairie, a 200-acre state preserve, is locaied in Emmet County. cloud grass, park-like appearance, productive ~e~tu soil and promise for the future. People rernn avoided the prairie because of ftres, hads wind (cold and dessicating), barrenne s ago (lack of trees and soil fertility), illness lhact (later determined to be malaria carried hi!! by mosquitos) and oppressiveness of e\plo open space. It i apparent that opinions ~umn of the prairie could be based on different 1ll interpretations of the same thing and as ~rs a consequence result in vastly different that a attitudes. can! Herbert Quick illustrates the conflict ~ey I ing emotions well in Vandemark's Fo ily V.lth as he stops "Cow" Vandemark a few ~Y e1 miles we t of Dubuque to view the the d panorama of the prairie: ll.ed i "It was like a great green sea. The feed I old growth had been burned the fall 1b before, and the spring grass scarcely ~ concealed the brown sod on the itndt upland , but all the swales were -~Oj coated thick with an emerald growth g~ fullbite high , and in the deeper, wet \~ ter hollows grew cowshp , already ;edUc showing their glossy golden flowers. Fell.e The tullside were thick with the bly ( wool) possblummtes (pasque fl ow "-Otk ers) in their furry spnng coats protect- ~tie! ck has gener· td fear, 1romise arsome I as the teed to aspecrs pie are 1}1flg if appear veedy." day are effects part 0 ·es rna !Ce5Sll\ !afS c ·e pro of ope ape un· ly is the portan1 ng rna. ! of & bio/og} {ortherr Unil'tr· B-'..:""'more butte rfl.y .
It was the hottest day of the year. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for lir was still and humid, and the sky was official endangered or threatened status. ;loudless. I stopped the car at my My purpo e was to help determine :festination, a 10-acre native prairie the current status of these rare prairie ·ernnant in north-central Iowa. Friends butterflies. We know that a few of 1ad shown me this site almost two years Iowa's prairies support diverse butter 1go. I was very impressed. Since then fly faunas, but many of our remnants [ had made a point to drive by whenever are virtually unexplored. The distribu [ was in the area, but I'd never really tion of most species is based largely on !xplored this prairie during its mid records from the early 1900's. Even the mmmer prime. general life histories of some species This time I was after skippers. Skip are unknown. Jers are small, thick-bodied butterflies Today, the prairie was alive with hat are especially fond of North Ameri butterflies Gust as it was alive with ~an grasslands. Like most butterflies, mosquitos). My fLrst catch was the best hey have developed a close relationship flnd of my visit, a Poweshiek skipper! with specific types of plants. Females Named in Iowa's county of the same tay eggs on selected host plants, where name, this small butterfly had been :he developing caterpillars are pecial known recently from only 3-4 other lzed to feed. Many skippers in our area places in our state. Although it can be feed on grasses; others feed on sedges. abundant where it occurs, the Powe The disappearance of Iowa's native shiek skipper occupies a restricted orairies has eliminated orne animals range, encompassing parts of the and has forced others into mall, pre Dakota , Minnesota, and Nebra ka, :arious refuges. Prairie skippers are east to Michigan and illinois. Authori good examples of the latter. At least one ties con ider it to be rare. Caterpillars By Roben W Howe specie , the Dakota skipper, has been feed on Indian grass and big bluestem, reduced in Iowa to only a ingle site. which explains why the species i re Fewer than 50 local population (proba stricted to native prairie remnants. bly clo er to 20) exi t in the entire I soon learned why the Powe hiek world. Three species of Iowa' prairie skipper is ometimes considered "abun butterflies are being considered by the dant where found ." Here was one of North America's rare butterflies - a are 1 species restricted to native prairie rem- the J nants - yet individuals were flying But almost everywhere I looked. I was trad thoroughly delighted. SJliCI Later that week Wayne Schennum. nati1 ecologist for the Iowa Natural Areas dan< Inventory, and I were to discover three cove additional sites, all in high-quality desc prairie remnants. In fact, all known foun Iowa localities for the Poweshiek skip- E per are among the least disturbed rerru tallgrass prairie patches in Iowa. flies My luck was not yet finished . As I mm approached the wetter parts of the mn prairie a larger, lighter-colored skipper Hilli flashed in front of me. It was too fast for . caw. my net. Later I succeeded in capturing a its 1 specimen, another of Iowa's rare butter- publ flies , the broad-winged skipper. llies Moist swales of this north-central ·ae< Iowa prairie harbored yet another un- ~on common skipper, the long dash. In the Many wildlife species uplands I also found the Arogos skipper, depend on prairie. The a prairie obligate species that tolerates upland sandpiper (right), little habitat disturbance. In addition to although endangered in rare skippers the prairie also supported Iowa, still rests in Iowa the smokey-eyed brown, Acadian hair prairie remnants. Larger streak, common wood nymph, and other species, lik£ the American characteristic prairie butterflies. OUi bison (below), disappeared I was walking amongst ghosts of anc as the vast prairie withdrew. another era. Bison. elk, and pronghorn abt fas 5e(
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IS tha 1h ~ aftt als Ill~ m ~
liSt Eat Wh Ott e~ ~ tnv llec ide the I Of ~ 6 s-a are gone from our prairies. So, too, are gests that Iowa's prairie remnants, in 2) adaptation to non-native habitats. 1e rem the prairie chicken and whooping crane. deed, are treasures worth preserving. Birds that have followed the first flying But here and in a few other precious Butterflies are relatively new to me; I route are generally large species: the I was tracts of undisturbed land, persist incon am a bird-watcher by trade. But both greater prairie chicken, merlin, sandhill spicuous but bona fide members of our birds and butterflies animate their sur crane, whooping crane, long-billed cur ennum. native prairie fauna. Their ancestors roundings. They help illustrate the life lew, and marbled godwit. The king rail, I Areas danced around the bison and shared that exists in nature. Perhaps that is why marsh hawk, and short-eared owl are er three cover with the prairie chickens. Their they are so attractive. nearly gone. Most of these species are -quali~ descendents will need to fight a pro Have the birds of Iowa's prairies associated with prairie wetlands. known found struggle for survival. experienced a similar fate as its butter Our other prairie birds are familiar to :k skip Elsewhere in Iowa, native prairie flies? In fact, the recent histories of most Iowa nature lovers. Bobolinks, sturbed remnants support other special butter these groups are quite different. Birds eastern and western meadowlarks, dick flies. The brilliant regal fritillary occurs are larger than butterflies. Butterflies cissels, American goldfinches, and d. As I in nearly every sizeable prairie remnant feed on plants while birds generally grasshopper sparrows, compose the of tht in northwestern Iowa and in the Loess feed on insects or special plant products "core" of our prairie avifauna. Savan skip~ Hills. Unlike the grass-loving skippers, (fruits or seeds). Consequently, birds nah sparrows are added in the central 1fast fa caterpillars of the regal fritillary and require considerably more space in and northeastern portions of Iowa. Lark 1turing a its relatives feed on violets. A 1984 which to live and reproduce. Given the sparrows and Henslow's sparrows occur ~butter· publication about eastern U.S. butter almost wholesale elimination of our locally. Unlike most prairie butterflies, flies states that the regal fritillary has original prairie vegetation, prairie birds these species do not avoid alfalfa fields, t-centra. "declined precipitously. " Its presence, have been forced to follow one of two brome pastures, or other disturbed ther un along with other rare butterflies, sug- courses: 1) extinction from the state, or grasslands. Even the stately upland do t1Y sandpiper is holding its own in large skipper Iowa patures. Signs warn us of recent tolerate: LEPRECHAUNS and LEPIDOPTERA declines in these adaptable prairie spe :lition tt cies, but today they still can be enjoyed lppo~ By Dennis Schlicht by even the casual naturalist. As with prairie butterflies, subtle ian hair Here in Iowa we have some mysteri md othe variations in moisture or vegetation ous creatures flitting around our prairies correspond to recognizable changes in and meadows. They are very small, the avifauna. Sedge wrens, red-winged hosts 0' about one-inch long and are also very 'Onghon blackbirds, swamp sparrows, and com fast. In fact you'll have to be quick to mon yellowthroats are typical of wet see one, let alone catch it. These crea prairies or sedge meadows. Mourning tures are late to rise, yet early to retire doves, field sparrows, song sparrows, and in bad weather can't be found at all. vesper sparrows, eastern kingbirds, and What are they? Leprechauns maybe? other species can be expected where No but there are some sirnularities. shrubs or trees mix with grasslands. They are tiny, seclusive, fast and, like Bam swallows and rough-winged swal leprechauns, are believed to reveal the lows can be seen flying above these hiding place of treasure if caught. Poweshiek skipper habitats, even though they are not ex The treasure is prairie - the creature elusively grassland species. is a skipper. Skippers are butterflies, the grass. When the eggs hatch, the Butterflies and birds, two of our most that is lepidopterans, not leprechauns. caterpillars eat their way to adulthood spectacular animal groups, are not the The skippers in our prairies have names on each species' specific grass. only "wings above the prairie." Moths, like Poweshiek, Dacotae, and Delaware In Iowa we have skippers that exist bees, grasshoppers, night-flying bats after Native American tribes. There are only on prairie of exceptional quality. If and others join them in giving our also names like ottoe, origenes and these skippers are found on a piece of prairies an atmosphere of activity. Many mystic. Of the 93 or so butterflies found prairie, its quality is assured. If they are of these animals, and their roles in the in Iowa, 32 are skippers, yet many absent, the history of that prairie proba prairie ecosystem, are poorly known at people have never seen one. bly includes heavy grazing or some best. Perhaps someday we will learn Skippers are brownish in color and early attempt at crops. lessons from them. Perhaps someday usually are seen nectaring on flowers . Many small, native prairies still exist they will help us improve our own Each species has its own flight period in Iowa, each with its unique plants and lives. Our chances for protecting an which might be as short as ten days. animals. Some of these are being de intact prairie fauna have been lost, but During this time they find mates, lay stroyed each year. The skippers, their we still have opportunities to save these eggs and drink nectar, with a little grass food plants, and the purple cone leftovers; remnants that may be more sunbathing in between. Mate finding flowers they roost on can't go some significant than they seem. involves claiming a roost then chasing where else, but are lost forever. Most of nearly everything that flies over to us won't miss them , but those who have Bob Howe serves as biologist and coor identify the possibilities. Sometimes known the skippers will feel the loss. dinator for the commission's Natural they are even seen chasing birds. Areas Inventory. He earned his Ph.D. Eggs are laid on the grass, food plant Dennis Schlicht is a biology instructor from the University ofWLSconsin working of the caterpillar, or on plants like at Central City. He holds a B.S. degree with birds in snudl woodlots of southern purple coneflower that grow amongst from the University of Northern Iowa. WLSconsin and Australia. -ne, spec Con {ISh lOW! emp. mm -A ava ' Slru! heig nail} ered toda its n 1l may roun we~t
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By Wendy Van Gundy Wendy Van Gundy is an infonnation have played an important role in our there also be an increase in roao killed specialist for the Iowa Conservation future. Many prairie plants were once wildlife? North Dakota and Minnesota Commission. She has a B.S. degree in used medicinally by the Native Ameri have shown that increased nesting does fisheries and wildlife biology f rom cans and their secrets were not revealed not increase the number of wi ldlife Iowa State University and has been to the white settlers. Our plant seed killed by vehicles. bank needs to be perpetuated in order to Other questions must also be consid emplo. yed in the conservation field for mne years. preserve part of our heritage. ered now that there exists an increased Wildlife habitat is also provided by awareness of other roadside benefits. As the early pioneers ftrst crossed our roadside prairies. Proper manage The two most common questions con Iowa in the 1800's, they moved through ment is necessary if wildlife habitat is a cern snow accumulation and heavy rain a vast sea of grass. These early settlers priority. Minnesota's roadside-wildlife drainage. Dr. Roger Landers states, struggled through grasses which grew to biologist estimates that 25 to 50 percent "Prairie species are no more of a snow heights of seven or eight feet. Origi of all pheasant nests occur in roadside accumulation hazard than other road nally 85 percent of the state was cov ditches if recommended mowing and side cover. Little information is avail ered by prairie grasses and forbs but seeding is done. Illinois and North able by way of comparison, but it is today very little of this resource exists in Dakota have both seen dramatic in feasible that in very wide right-of-ways, its natural state. creases in wildlife production of un the tall grass may act much like a snow Today travelers through parts of Iowa mowed ditches. Pheasants have also fence, an advantage in tead of a disad may also experience the prairie sur shown a 20 percent increased prefer vantage. With a downpour, it is more roundings. Rural roads in southern and ence to switchgrass as opposed to or often the loo e material , stalks and western Iowa still harbor native species chard grass-alfalfa hay fields in Iowa. mowed plants, not the standing plants, - remnants of the vast Iowa prairie that Rabbits, gray partridge, quail and that create drainage problems by block greeted our early settlers. numerous songbirds a l ~o utilize these ing fences, culverts, and drains." Tiny leftovers of prairie may still be areas as nesting sites. Roadside management in Iowa is on seen in old cemeteries, along railroad In Iowa, the loss of winter cover is the increase and many county conserva right-of-ways and in roadside ditches. even more crucial than good nesting tion boards are involved in educating Look for the striking russet glow of the habitat. Some of the prairie species act the public as well as reconstructing prairie grasses this fall or a sprinkling of as insulators throughout the winter and roadside prairies. According to a 1984 coneflowers, compass plant or blazing will remain standing even after heavy survey, 43 areas for a total of 566 acres star in bloom. All remnants are impor snowstorms or sleet. Wildli fe can then have been planted to prairie grasses and tant as a native seed bank, wildlife seek out these areas for cover. forbs. habitat and as a significant link to our More insect species are found in the The next time you drive to work or heritage. prairie than any other ecosy tern includ go to school, notice what i in your Dr. Roger Landers, a nationally ing marshes and woodlands. Some ditches. A pheasant or partridge may known prairie botanist, says, "All to young birds eat in ect which are a high explode from the shelter of the tall gether some 250 kinds of plants fought source of protein. Mice, voles, turkeys waving prairie gras es which are now in silent competition for survival in and quail also feed on plant parts and reaching their peak. Or, why not also almost every ection of prairie land in seeds. take a wildflower survey of those prairie the state. Only the be t won the privi Since many states are now attempting flowers now in bloom? The ditches are lege to spread their eed and perpetuate to manage ditches for wildlife, won't alive with activity. their species. These grasses and forbs could outcompete the so-called weeds if left undisturbed." But mowing and spraying of our roadside ditches has diminished our species diversity. So one may ask, where did the weedy species come from which greatly affect road side management today? Weeds such as pigweed and ragweed have always been in Iowa but others were brought into the state by pioneering ettlers and soon found their niche which often displaced desirable specie . Early mowing aJ o reduced the vigor and prevented the pread of prairie plants by eed production or root exten sion. The combmation of praying and mowing ha doomed all but the hardiest plants. Once the e pecie di appear, it will never be known whether they could m a large holding pen with eparate Ir cells for each sex. The objective was to bml! give the chickens a chance to ettle mo~ Prairie Chicken U down after tran port and to acchmate to we 1 the new area. Males were held over- Fror night and released the next morning. four Bv- Jun Woofer. Female were then released 24 hours frorr The restoration of species native to miles away. Similarly, in 1981 observa later. We hoped that by holding the Botl Iowa, but extirpated by the activities of tions of single bird occurred near the female a day longer, males would be wen man , has been a continumg goal of the release area and groups of birds were stimulated to remain in the general lost Iowa Conservation Commission. The reported 20 and 60 mile from the vicin ity of the pen - perhaps even ~itli restoration of white-tailed deer, ea tern relea e ite. However, mo t of the establi h a booming ground. Addition- rang wild turkeys and giant Canada geese to di tant ob ervation were unconftrmed. ally, some of the bird were equipped Whi Iowa, and their current status a game Two years followi ng the release, prairie with radio tran miners so that move- haH pecie that provide millions of hour of chicken remains were found at a fox men t and mort a 1i t y co u 1d be wer recreational enJoyment , atte t to the den and one wa found killed by an monitored . equi success that some of these efforts have automobile near the relea e site. How About 45 minutes prior to releasing · used had. Since 1980, Commission biolo ever, no pring booming grounds were males on April 17 , taped booming mo, gists have attempted to restore ruffed located in the two years following the ground calls were played through trad grouse populations in southern Iowa release and no reproduction was speakers located near the pen, attempt- chic and reestablish greater prairie chickens reported. ing to induce chickens to establish a toe in the Loess Hill of we tern Iowa. The Perhap the mo t unfortunate part of booming ground in the area. The gentle man major difference with prairie chickens is the 1980 release, was that we were release was made by slowly rai ing the enot that, even if attempts are eventually unable to ecure additional bird for pen door from a distant location. Most The successful, the bird will never be tacking until 1982. Mild winter weath male imply walked out of the pen. mon hunted . er in Kan as precluded winter bait moved random ly about for a few yard~ pred Prairie chickens were once found trapping - the traditional means of and then wandered near the female · cate throughout the state where uitable capturing chicken . Winter relea e ide of the pen , remaining for 15-45 (if!, prairie habitat existed . The activities of such as the one made m 1980 are minute before walking or flying off w.if settler at first benefited the birds . generally not advisable because of the There was no booming activity in re- lea51 Increased diversity and additional food tendency for chickens to be quite pon e to the taped call • although one re]e( sources resulted in population increases mobile at that time of year. This create male did rai e hi pinnae (the long neck mov through the late 1800's. The tide shifted a problem with stocking efforts ince feathers for which "pinnated grouse" and quickl y, however, as more prairie turned chickens are mo t readily trapped in uch a the greater prairie chicken are prefi black beneath the plow and uncon large numbers in winter. However, it is named). Calls were played again in the S· trolled hunting took a toll. By 1900, possible that by augmenting the remain evening, and 5 males were noted in the beer chickens were on the decline and, even ing birds in late winter or early pring vicinity of the pen. q)cc though hunting was closed in 1916, 1981 , a viable population nught have Females were held one more day and broc continuing losses of habitat caused its been established at that time. Following released under similar circumstances on uncc eventual elimination as a ne ting spe another mild winter in 1982. Kan as the following morning. Mo t walked prajj cies by the early 1950's. While occa Fish and Game personnel decided to from the pen and flew hort di tances to rece sional stragglers from surrounding attempt a different trapping approach. taller grass cover. Several males re- tollll states were occasionally reported along Chickens were rocket-netted on boom sponded to the taped caUs, showing up boo1 our borders after that time, the greater ing grounds in April a they displayed. at the pen shortly after the tape began \115! prairie chicken was effectively gone To everyone's delight, the method was Two days later, at lea t one male nortJ from the state. successful. A total of 48 chickens were boomed at the pen site in response to chic Tn 1980, the Comm ission struck a transported to Iowa for release at the the taped calls. Two other prairie chick- liluc deal with the Kansas Fish and Game same area in the Loess Hill . ens also vocalized at the pen, but did they Department to trade 52 eastern wild The fact that this was spring the not boom. Playing of taped calls in hayt turkeys for 100 greater prairie chicken release gave us orne addttional hope both morning and evenmg on ubse- ~ from the Aint Hills of Kansas. The ftrst for uccess. First, the bird were in quent days did not timulate further Used 53 of these birds were relea ed in breeding condition and, if timuJated to booming activity. lllalt February 1980 in the Loess Hill east of begm booming activities, might be less One positive result of playing the titre( Onawa, Iowa - an area chosen be likely to disperse from the area. Sec calls was the dt covery of two booming COve cause of the expanses of gra sland ond , Kan as Fish and Game personnel males that were heard prior to the was scattered through the hills, a primary indicated that it wa quite likely that release of males on Apnl 17. Both were 9Jigi habitat requirement of chtckens. some of the hens had already been bred at separate locations within a mile of the SIUbl Results from the first release were prior to capture and should be interested pen and were apparently responding to Rive mixed While a large number of chick in looking for a ne t ite immediately. the call . I had an opportunity to ob- ha\e ens were observed m the release area Release condition were different for erve one of the male two days later as ens the followmg day, sightings thereafter the Kansas chicken that reached Iowa he boomed and displayed in response to rtPo' wer"' sporadtc and often at some dis in nud-April of 1982. Rather than tm the call . The e male were either rem- \\ tance from the release area During ply turning the bird · loo e from tran - nants of the 1980 wtnter release or e\en 1980, reliable stghtmgs were reported port crates, as had been done on the first represented production resulting from kno~ both near the study ~ite and up to 19 release, the birds were banded and put that release. t\J.o 10 !parate Information from radio-equipped that must be addressed. First. substan An alternative is to begin preparing was to birds gave us a fairly good indication of tial movements of at least a portion of an area specifically for release of chk k settle movement and mortality problems that chickens will reduce the number avail ens. Recommendations for such a man nate to we were experiencing with the release. able for populating the general release agement area in Wi consin include a I over From a sample of 11 radioed chickens, area. Second, predators (primarily av 2.5 x 2.5 mile, essentially treeless area, Jnung four were predated at di tances ranging ian) will also exert an mfluence on the with no less than 1, 000 acres of undis hours from Y2 to 2 miles from the release site. number of chickens that surv1ve to turbed grassland in at least 160 acre ng the Both avian and mammalian predators produce young. If sufficient birds blocks. Duplicating that in Iowa would luld be were responsible. Radio contact was needed to provide a viable breeding be a tall order. Creation of such an area zeneral lost on six other chickens, three of those population do not remain in the area, might combine a Commission Wildlife ~ ; even within six days of release, at distances considering the pressures of predation Management Area with surrounding ldition ranging from Y2 to 6 Y2 miles away. and dispersal, then success is unlikely. private land leased specifically for ,uipped While we feel that some of this may Further, the ring-necked pheasant 1s chicken establishment. Another consid move have been due to radio failure, most likely to provide additional problems in eration might be the active removal of ld be were probably predated. Antenna establishing prairie chickens. In Illinois pheasants from such an area; a difficult equipped vehicles and aircraft were for example, where small remnant task because grassland management leasing used to track the birds during their prairie chicken populations are intensely beneficial to chickens will also be at )()mint movements. Because we were able to managed, cock pheasants often agres tractive to pheasants. Managing the area nrougt track the movements of the eleventh sively harrass ch1ckens on the booming to discourage predator (i.e., the elimi ttempl· chicken, a male that moved 40 miles to grounds. Often. the only solut1on IS to nation of perch trees, etc.) may also be blish the northeast, its probably unlikely that remove the offendmg pheasant. Addi necessary. ! gentic many of the lo t bird moved far tionally, hen pheasants are known to A fmal consideration may be chang angiD enough away to e cape our detection. parasitize the ne t of prame ch1ckens. ing the methodology of trapping and 1 Mo• The "40-mile male" urvived about two While the simple act ot a hen pheasant transporting the chicken . Some biolo 1e pen months, then was killed by an avian laying one to several eggs in a chtcken · gists from other states feel that cannon qard. predator. The radio information indi nest may be enough to cause the chick netting on the booming ground is the !males cated several trends. First, predation en to abandon, often the clutch 1s best method for capture. However, birds . 15-4) on chickens was relatively heavy and incubated to hatching. Unfortunately. would then be radio-equipped, released , ng off swift. Second , dispersal from the re the incubation period for pheasant eggs and recaptured by nightlighting later in , in re· lease area also occurred in this spring is 1-2 days less than for chicken eggs, the summer during the molting period 1gh OJ)( release - with some quite dramatic leading to a situation where a hen when cocks, and hens with entire ng neck movements. Third , movement patterns prairie chicken may leave its nest ac broods could be relocated . Movement grouse and sightings indicated that chickens companied by pheasant chicks, whi le as of chickens is lowest at that time of ken art preferred the bottomlands her own are abandoned near the hatch year, as are problems from predation. Din the Since the 1982 release there have ing stage. That is an ommous threat in a The primary advantage gained would be dintht been some indications of very limited state with as many pheasants as Iowa. the ability to move discrete groups of success. Reports of two prairie chicken The fact that the chickens so readily birds that would be more likely to broods were received in 1982, both abandoned the hills for the more open remain within a given area. unconftrmed. Sightings of from 1-6 bottomland areas might also lead one to For now, we intend to continue moni prairie chickens at a time were also conclude that perhaps the habitat in the toring results from the previous two received from the Missouri River bot Loess Hills 1s less than desirable from a releases. Attempts will be made to toms area. Finally, in May 1983 a small prairie chicken's point of v1ew. Chick document the establishment of booming booming ground was located on the ens are birds of open grasslands with grounds over the next few years near Missouri River floodplai n even miles little or no tree and brush cover. Howev the Onawa release area. Meanwhile, we northwest of the relea e site. Four er, many of the areas in the Loess Hills will continue to earch for more suitable chickens were ob erved, at least two of are moving toward these later stages of areas which, with proper management, which were displaying males. The area plant succession, and hence, may not be could support a small, elf- ustaining they used for booming was a drowned attractive to prairie chickens. Fire was population of greater prairie chickens. hayfield, later plowed and planted to once the primary force keeping the Future efforts will require significant beans. This same booming ground was Loess Hills in a grassland stage. How funding, drawn from a limited fi nancial used again in 1984 but only by a single ever, human acti vities have largely pool responsible for many other projects male. Another booming ground with eliminated the grassland fties that re and resource problems that must be three displaying males was also dis tarded the invasion of trees and brush. addressed. At the very least success covered in 1984. This booming ground Is it po sible that prairie chickens appears to be a few year down the was located about two miles from the might still be reestablished in Iowa? road . Someday though. Iowans may original relea e ite again in a bean Probably, but not without significantly again be able to claim greater prairie stubble field located in the Mi oun larger expenditures of effort and fi chickens as a stable·. re 1dent nesting River bottoms. Smce pring 1983, there nances. The attempts so far have been spec1es have been sporadic ightings of chick relatively inexpenstve. but are unlikely ens in everal areas, but no confirmed to achieve re torat10n . Chtcken habitat Jim Wooley is a wildlife biologist locaJed at the wildlife research unit in Chariton. reports of reproduction. requirement , movement problems and What. then . are the pro pects for predation constderat1 ons are such that He holds a B.S. degree from Central Michigan University and a M.S. degree eventual restorauon? Ba ed on our just dumpmg chtckens out m habttat from the University of Maine. He has knowledge gained from the previous that might be suttable IS a method that two releases. there are everal points probably won't suffice been with the commission since 1977. Artwork by Arum Thorson 1] -
I
Bv Steve Lelm·a
The last few year have seen a mum tratification would be holding the encourages weeds more than prame. dramatic increase in interest in all thing seed over winter at no higher than 34°E Adct lime if testing tndicates it t · connected to Iowa's prairie heritage. 1Jy to keep it cool until seeding. needed. One area of interest that has really An alternative to hand collection and No-till chemical seedbed preparation grown is the reconstruction of prairie on home processing i ordering seed from is po sible now a well. You may need lands where prairie may not have exi t some of the special prairie seed dealers. to bum the site off in early spri ng if the ed for decades. This i being done for (See Appendix 1.) This may be e pe old growth is especially tall or den e. wildlife habitat, scientific, and aesthetic cially necessary for larger plantings of Roundup herbictde is then applied at reasons. several acre . Plan to order eed of the recommended rate to the new green Techniques for successful prairie re genetic variety be t suited to your cli growth when it i six to eight mche~; constructions are still being researched, mate and site cond itions. Also remem high. The eeds are then own directly but the followi ng advice is pretty much ber that many of the pratrie eeds are into the standing dead tubble. (Give "state of the art" as far as Iowa experi very bulky and contain large amount of the pray at lea t a fev.. days to work 1 ence is concerned. chaffy material. You will buy the eed in before seeding.) The stubble can be to t term of pound of pure live eed mowed right after seeding and wtll PJor Seed Acquisition (PLS). Expect to pay around $100 per serve as a ltght mulch. One One of the ftrSt item you'll need to acre for a good gra s-forb seed mixture. The smaller plots can be effectively PIO! think about is a seed ource. For smaller The dealer can generally help you elect hand eeded, raked in . and rolled. but fire plots, you may be able to harvest the right varieties. (See Appendix 2.) the larger ones benefit from the use of a of c enough grass and flower seed by hand native gra~s drill <;uch as the Truax. At mg from local prairie remnants or even road Site Preparation and Seeding lea t 25 of the e untts are tn u~e around Am ditches. Be sure to a k owners first! Seedbed preparation is very impor Iowa now. (See Appendix 3 . ) Pm• You'll need to dry the eed thor tant. Smal l plots can be rototilled and Hand eeding rate may need to be gan oughly before storing it for the winter. kept weed free for a season pnor to slightly heavier, but in any ca~e you Xor
Special stratification (cold storage) planting. Larger plots may need to be should be striving to obtain around 40 to h:• ( treatments may improve germi nation of fall plowed and di ked ~everal time 60 eeds per quare-foot density 51re some species. Information on how to prior to planting. Your site may need to Prime seeding time is from mid-May esP! stratify seed is contained in publications be rolled to a sure that the ultimate to mid-June. but seedings can be uc reg~ such as the Prairie Propagation Hand seedbed is weed free and firm . Prairie ce ful as late a mtd-July espectally on oa]( book, Boerner Botanical Gardens, species do not like fl uffy soi l! Fertilizer small site that can be hand watered. nu, Whitnall Park, Milwaukee County Park is generally not needed. but orne site You'll doubtles ly see weed popping I\1U System. It is also available from the benefit from adding up to 60 pounds of up before you ee your new praine con Missouri Prairie Foundation, P.O. Box phosphorus and 40 pound of potassium seedlings. Prairie seeds are notoriously stiij 200, Columbia, Mis ouri 6520 l . Mini- per acre. Avoid adding nitrogen smce it low to germinate and even slower to llatj blut 1
Albe" l<• Seed Ho"'.ud ( lvl\lcn...en l;d ~ \l.111af<~ 'icC\1 Co kt>e APPENDIX 1 !.« '"'" PO Bo• 127 Rural Ruutc: N I , Bn' .:!o Rur.d Rt~utC' 11-1 ~., 7~ II•""- JJ ''" Albm lLl \1innN>t.l 5ll!X17 \\'tow lll'A-J ~)274 Muunr \..r lo"'"
grow. The little seedlings will need lots of sun when they germinate so it is important to either remove the weeds by JaratJon hand or at least keep your plot mowed ay need to about six inches. Virtually all prairie 1g if the plants are perennials and spend their dense first season growing root systems rather Jlied at than leaves. A mature prairie has more f green living material below ground than inc he' above. direcll The primary competitors against . !Gtle By Dean M. Roosa junipers (red cedar) are becoming a prairie seedlings are cool-season grasses nuisance in many parts of the state. ~o wod: The fury of prairie ftres was known and annual weeds. Many of them start Each pring management biologists can be to the earliest prairie inhabitants, the growing sooner in the spring and grow nd wdl pioneers, and to every prairie animal. bum a portion of most state-owned faster before the warm-season prairie One of the most common remarks in prairies. Usually no more than one natives start their growth. You may ectivel) pioneer journals related to the prairie fourth of a prairie is burned at one time want to mow once or twice in May or to assure small mammals, birds, and Jed. bu ftre - the fear engendered, the danger early June of the second year, but then it use of of carelessness, the methods of urviv insects will not be eliminated. Burning is hands off unless there are particularly ing and the renewal afterward. Native is ordinari ly done in late March and :uax ~~ bad weed problems to deal with. Your : arounL American intentionally started them to April , before the ftrSt prairie birds nest. new prairie should start to show some provide lush growth early to attract Conditions must be just right, with a strength by the fall of the second year. I game. Fires swept across the interior of light breeze and the prairie dry enough !(! tO be Do not be surprised , however, if it takes ase you North America, across Iowa, frequent to support a fire . Many April mornings as many as four to six years for some of md 40 to ly. Only the ·leeward side of lakes and in Iowa are windy, causing a postpone the flowering plants to bloom. streams escaped. In portions of Iowa, ment. If an unusually wet spring occurs, Any discussion of prairie manage } especially where wetlands prevented few or no prairies get burned . nid-Mal ment would be incomplete without regular occurrence of prairie fire , burr Participating in a prairie bum can be mentioning fire . It is the primary man be~~~' oaks were able to with tand the fires. exciting. It can permit one to relive the ciall) 0 agement tool used to maintain a prairie. Thi left a community of scattered oaks fear and awe felt by the pioneers. It can Mowing and removal of the cuttlings i 3tered with native grasses beneath - this also be dangerous, should the wind _popplllg a substitute in areas where burning is community is called a avanna and is suddenly change. If this happens, there not possible. ' praJfle still visible across the state, but the is a franti c effort to contain the fire lest .oriousl) Bum management (or mowing) usu native grasses have been replaced by it engulf the entire prairie and escape to ally takes place in spring or fall when .ower to bluegrass. nearby fields. Occasionally twi ters or The prairie ftre was in trumental in "whirlwinds" develop, creati ng the keeping the prairies treele s, particular "roar of the prairie fue" so commonly Omhe s-1 fanm Sharp Brochet< s-1 CM'op.UI) ly in recent times. Now that prairie fire mentioned in prairie lore. Rwal Rou1t # I, II"> 14 " 1rom. ..,., 1 \lar THE PRAIRIE its formation , demise, and rebirth GOVERNOR PROCLAIMS SEPT. 2-8 PRAIRIE HERITAGE WEEK Iowa was blessed with history lesson. Today we something umque m the spend much time locating tiny world. It was the only state and tinier remnants and we get Governor Terry Branstad need to be made aware of the whose borders lay within the truly excited if we find a 20- recently proclaimed Sept. 2-8, living museums they have in boundaries of the tallgrass acre treasure previously un 1984, as the second annual our prairie remnants. They prairie biome. Approximately known. Much of our prairie Prairie Heritage Weekinlowa. provide not only beauty, but 85 percent of Iowa, nearly 30 vegetation exists along rail The proclamation urged the wildlife habitat, erosion con million acres, was once roads, but these are becoming state's resource managers, ed trol and invaluable natural tallgrass prairie. It formed dur a thing of the past nearly as ucational leaders and con classrooms." The Iowa Con ing a warm, dry period called fast as the prairie. The diversi cerned individuals to develop servation Commission is in the "xerothermic" or "hyp ty of a prairie remnant ts programs aimed at increasing ventorying key elements of stthermal" period which lasted incredible, with the vascular people's awareness of Iowa's Iowa's natural heritage. Per from about 9000 years ago plants, the mosses, lichens, prairie heritage and protecting sons knowing of rare plants, until about 3000 years ago. soil nematodes, small mam these ecosystems. animals, special geological Think of it - century after mals, bacteria, insects, spiders As a part of Prairie Heri features or remnant tracts of century of grasses growing, and fungi. tage Week , Marietta Sand native vegetation such as dying, being incorporated into It is my opinion that we Prairie, a 15-acre tract in Mar prairies are encouraged to the soil. No wonder it gave cannot afford to let another shall County, was dedicated as contact the Commission's rise to the blackest, richest soil prairie remnant be de troyed. a state pre erve on Sept. 6. Natural Areas Inventory, Wal imaginable. Our society can well afford to Governor Terry Branstad was lace State Office Building, At first pioneers considered protect them. We owe all present for the dedication De Moines, Iowa 50319. the prairie soil worthless. "If it school-age children the chance ceremony. Persons interested in more in can't grow trees, it sure can't to become acquainted with a "Iowa's agricultural suc formation on prairies should grow corn ," was a commonly native prairie - to see what cess is based directly on the contact the Iowa Conserva quoted phrase. At first too their ancestors had to contend rich topsoil these prairies tion Commission (at the tough to break by the wooden with , to see what Iowa looked created," says Dean Roosa, above address) or their local -- breaking plow, the John Deere like before it was a state. State Ecologist. " Iowans county conservation board. invention of the mold-board In the past 20 years, there plow suddenly made the turn has sprung up a movement of ing of the sod possible. Our prairie enthusiasts. These are DEDICATION prairies were essentially gone scientists, artists, flower fan 15 by the turn of the century. Our ciers, landscape architects, CEDAR VALLEY NATURE TRAIL agricultural economy is entire photographers, historians, Everyone is invited to at 12:30 P.M. and Center Point I 5 ly built on the soil created by teachers, legislators and farm tend and participate in the Depot at II :00 A.M. The de centuries of prairie grasses. ers. Prairie reconstruction proj dedication ceremonies on pots have been restored and Those who live off the "bread ects are common. Events like Saturday, October 13, 1984 are now beautiful reminders 0.5 basket of the world" should be the North American Prairie for the Cedar Valley Nature of Iowa's past. Governor Ter thankful for the black soil of Conference, Prairie Heritage Uail. This 52-mile trail is an ry Branstad has been invited 0 the Midwest - a direct result Week, prairie walks, Prairie abandoned railroad that has to attend these ceremonies. of areas once dominated by Day and the Loess Hills Prairie been converted for walking, The Cedar Valley Nature taU grasses - a direct result of Seminar have led the way by jogging, bicycling, cross Trail has been developed a warm period in our distant acquainting many people with country skiing, and outdoor through hard work by a mix past. Thank goodness for the the special nature of our education. The phrase "Trail ture of private and public or xerothermic! prairies. Some counties have of Two Cities" has been ganizations, including the Unfortunately, when we ceased their blanket road ide coined as its mono since it Linn County Conservation turned the sod, we did so with spraymg campatgns and connects Waterloo and Cedar Board, Iowa Natural Heritage a vengence. Today we have prairie vegetation hac; begun to Rapids. Foundation, Iowa Rails to perhap 10 thousand acres of make a comeback. Many acttvitie are being Trails, and Old Interurban. prairie left - a pitiful vestige Perhaps you have a native planned for the day including For more information on the of a once-magnificent biome. prairie patch on your property; relay races, photo contests, trail and the October 13th ded It would have been so easy if so, I urge you to respect it scavenger hunts. plant iden ication, contact the Linn once to set aside a township in for its history, beauty and com tification competitions, and County Conservation Board, Iowa to forever be prairie - plexity. It is Iowa. It i only marching band parades. For 1890 County Home Road. as a benchmark for oil fitting that it has an honored mal dedication will be held at Manon, Iowa 52302. Phone tudies, as a genetic re ervoir, place. the Gilbertville Depot at 2:30 (3 19) 398-3505. as a living museum, as a Dean Roosa P.M., midpoint bridge at 15 Book Review Where the Sk_r Began · SEMINAR 1 Land of the Tal/grass Prairie. PLANNED req1 John Madson . Houghton lo11 Mij]7in Co . 1982. $13.95 An autumn seminar will be John Mad on ha~ long held at the Mmes of Spatn loti been one of my favorite area south of Dubuque Oct. Pau storytellers, whether ltstening 12-14. to him in person or reading The Mines of Spain Au- Pau what he has written. This tumn Seminar is a weekend book only enhances that feel field school that offers a di- ~i ing. Madson is an Arne na ver e program of cultural and . tive and draw many of h1s natural resource stud1es taught examples and illustrations by distinguished re~earchers. l1m from Iowa praine . educator and naturalists. The He sets the stage in the focus of the seminar will be on frr t chapter, "Beyond the the Mines of Spain, an eco- fu Wooded Country," by follow logically and culturall) nch ing the fir t settlers from the I ,300-acre conservation area Ani IOQ east coa t to where trees be located along the forested . 1 came sparse, di cussing the bluffs of the Mi~SISS1ppl Ke1 formation of prairie in a River . outh of Dubuque geological sense - the rea Iowa. The theme for th1., \!a sons why prairie are treele s year's seminar will be "En- \JJ and how the passing of the dangered Spec1e . " "red buffalo" wa a con Interpreters from Minneso tributing factor in the demise ta, Wi consm. Illtnois and of the prairie. This di cussion Iowa will lead sessions on Crt he entitled "Fire Ice and for those wishmg to put down drawings b) Dycie Mad on . topics that mclude aquattc Tor Mountain." The "red buf roots m rich soils of their These capture the feelings studies and resources. mycol falo" was not a buffalo, but own choosing. the loneliness. the beauty. the ogy, raptors, prairies. man a ... well, I'll let you read the Madson describes what the de pa1r and the hope of the agement habitat types, ar lfal book to learn its identity. prairieland was like after the pram e. cheology, geology, bats. ~ In subsequent chapters, plow - the w1 stful thought How far-fetched i the es photography and wildlife ' ~ • .nn "Lawns of God" and "The of present-day prairie fam1ers tablishment of a tallgrass ecology. The keynote spec.LJ~-cr Far Gardens," he di cusses who realize what we ha\e praine national park? Read Fnday evening will be Jame-. lrol many plants that define a lost and the subculture which this book and you may decide Engel, endangered spec1e., anc prairie and almo t all such has sprung from the tallgras that we cannot afford to let speciali t for Region 3 of 06 plants are Iowa natives. He prame oil. In the final chap the opportunity pass. the U.S. Fi h and Wildltle goe on to write of the prairie ter, "People Pastures," he " ll would be a special Service. put soi ls and prairie animals, dis writes of tho e spec1al people place, with an e~sence not The . eminar is cospon cus ing them from the first he knows who share a com found in mountains, desert, sored by the Iowa Conserva· hand knowledge acquired mon love of prairies. A num or any other open lands. tion Commi<.s1on and the over a lifetime of poking into ber of those mentioned are There IS a mystenous some Iowa Preserves Ath isor) comers of the Midwest. The Iowan . He tells of the re thing about the native gra es Board in cooperation with the Dir result is a book-long field trip newed interest m prairies. m - a power, a pint that both Iowa Natural Hentage Foun CJ that the reader shares with the the number of propagallon tirs the soul and quiets it. dation and the Friends ofE.B \Jr i writer. He closes out part I, projects being started. and Whatever that mystenous Lyons Nature Center. S~ "The Place," with a vivid the trials and tribulations of essence, it lives only on true Advance reg1strauon 1s re I portrayal of the awful win starting one's own pra1rie. He praine under a broad \ ault of quired. The program cost I' AJ ters, the boiling summers and even has one such prairie m pure and mten e light - $15 per person. The Saturda) Bla the 1mpress1ve tornadoes. his backyard. He end the where the young prairie-born hog roast is $5 which mclude., H~ In part II , "The People," chapter w1th a fine plea for winds comb tallgras e .... car folk mus1c and campfirt; f\h Madson weaves the <.tory of the establi hment of a praine rying larksong and scent of storytelling. v'\ the early settlers - the1r per nat1onal park He mclude<, as ancient gardens. runnmg un For further mforrnallon re· ~ sonal ities. origins. peculiari an appendix the location. checked from pasque flower garding the seminar contact rul ties, and hov. they changed name. ~ 17e and count} of 180 ridges do\'. n to sloughgras · Mike Abel, E B. Lyon.., Na th e pratr1e and how th e prauies m 12 states. meadows where the blue flag ture Center. R.R #'">. Olu Mr prame changed them lt wa ... The book ha.., added depth and wild orchid grow." Bellevue Rd , Dubuque D~ Iowa 5200 I: 319 556-0620 a land ot "begmmng agam due to the black and v.hne B•l, Dean Roosa 16 DONATIONS The following artists responded to the Commission's Cedar Rapids Bass Masters Pipe to anchor a boat dock request to help in completing the only public collection of all at Pleasant Creek State :n Iowa art stamp prints: Park, $ 189 value Artist Year Stamp Design lf will h Mrs. George Preston, Indian artifact collection for of Spa! John Bald, Davenport 1977 Trout Anamosa Wapsipinicon State Park, que Oc Paul Bridgford, Altoona 1980 Waterfowl $350 value 1980 Trout Mr. Frank Deutmeyer, Stone Truck rims for Wapsipinicon Jain AI} Patrick Costello, Maquoketa 1979 Habitat City Quarries, Anamosa State Park, $250 value week eo Nick Klepinger, Reasoner 1976 Waterfowl Mr. Roger D. Perkins, Two electrical junction 'ers a~ 1978 Waterfowl Anamosa boxes for Wapsipinicon ttural an:. 198 1 Trout State Park, $179 value ies tau~r• earche Jim Landenberger, Cedar Rapids 1974 Waterfowl Mr Bert Katz, Katz Salvage Reinforcing rods for Usts. T 1975 Trout and Auto Parts, Inc .. Wapsipinicon State Park, ill be 1979 Trout Manon $200 value Thomas Murphy, Brooklyn 1973 Waterfowl Jim Smtth. Spint Lake .9-acre donation to be an Andrew Peters, Council Bluffs 1979 Waterfow I addition to Ea t Okoboji (now Omaha) 1980 Habitat Slough Ken Prestley, Bettendorf 1976 Trout Wtlfred Bohr, Winneshiek Public access to Cardinal SSISS p County Marsh lubuqu. Brad Reece, Des Moines 1981 Waterfowl Dr. Hany Liventals, 5,880 pounds of sunflower for th Mark Reece, Des Moines 1975 Waterfowl Indianola seeds, $1.400 value be .. Er Maynard Reece, Des Moines 1977 Waterfowl Paul Hursh 30-acre tract of land in Iowa 1981 Habitat County Nfinne~ 1982 Trout nois an Edward and Grace 2'12-acre tract of land in Craig Ritland , Waterloo 1974 Trout ;sions £ Anderson, Woodward Woodward Tom Walker, Council Bluffs 1982 Waterfowl ! aquat Cedar Rapids Bass Masters $2,500 contribution for 1982 Habitat .S, ffi)Cl purchase of a new boat dock es. mJ, The collection currently consists of 13 Iowa waterfowl at Pleasant Creek Recreation ~pes. stamp prints, II Iowa trout stamp prints, and 6 Iowa habitat Area stamp prints. The waterfowl stamp art contest program was ') ba Omaha Audubon Society Cedar plywood for kestril =\~ jjdl·' initiated in 1972 and was followed by stamp art contests for boxes, $55 value e spea.• trout and habitat programs in 1974 and 1979. be Jar AJI prints in the collection are currently being rematted Crossman Arms Company 200 pairs of shoottng gla ses j spe~· and reframed for permanent display at the Wallace State for the Big Creek Shooting Range. $500 value rion ·'' Office Building. The collection will also be available for I Wild! public touring exhibition upon request. Nevada Community $50 contribution to replace School District U.S. and Iowa flags at the Conservation Education OTHER DONATIONS Center Lions Club, Algona 15 squares of shingles and Dietz Comer Antique Study $ 100 for restoration of labor to reshingle lodge at Club Des Moines dwelling at Plum Grove A.A. Call State Park, $855 Mr. and Mrs. Rick Chase, $50 for water connection value Solon hook-up at George Wyth CRST, Inc., Cedar Rapids I 00 truck rims for Pleasant :r. State Park Creek Recreation Area, .non ~~ Alice Ocheltree, Ma on City $50 for wildlife $2,500 value :llll CO)l Mr Ed White. Monticello I 00 truck nms for eSa~ Black's Tire Company and Truck rims for Lake Wapello Wreckers. Monticello Wap iptmcon State Park. ·h tndu ~ Horsman Tire Service, State Park, 5>725 value • c3JllP1 Ottumwa $2.500 value William C. Brown Books for E. B. Lyons Mr. Btll Halpin, Halpin Tire 30 truck nms for Pike~ Peak Publishers, Dubuque Nature Center. S I 01.50 Servtce. Prairie du Chien, State Park. $90 value value Wtsconsm Mr. and Mrs. Don Lakm. Ob ervation beehive for Mr and Mrs. Paul Sagers, Stone for restorattve work at Dubuque E. B. Lyons Nature Center. Maquoketa Maquoketa Caves State 5) 100 value Park. $500 value 17 FORf ATKINSON RENDEZVOUS equij CONSERVATION BOARDS PRESERVE b\ e SEPTEMBER 29-30 AND RECONSTRUCT PRAIRIE lel\c othe1 Demonstration of frontier tte of the rendezvous for the By Steve Lek:wa and Steve Dermand ~) I crafts, cooking and life tyles past six year , delighting h.w.e will again bring the partially thousands with its recreation eqUIJ restored Fort Atkinson State of 1840's frontier life. Over nece Preserve back to life during 150 "buckskinners" complete prarr the Seventh Annual Fort At with tepee , trade blankets c kinson Rendezvous, Sept. 29- and period garb will present 30. The event is sponsored by tomahawk throwing contests, ~ the Iowa Conservation Com black power shooting demon ~oun mission and the community of strations, cannon firing by an has Fort Atkinson with the ap 1840 military unit, and dem proval of the Iowa Preserves onstration of period crafts rive Board. such as rope making, canoe has Fort Atkinson, located 14 construction, candle making agen miles southwest of Decorah and weaving. ~ ' e on Highway 24, has been the prog Most of the state was settled individuals through manage- 11 between 1840 and 1860 and ment agreements. Another boar FOREST CRAFf FESTIVAL the past 130 years have been nine areas encompassing J 43 ~at hard on prairie in Iowa. Only acres are managed through re~o to be Held Oct. 13 and 14 3,000 acres of the original 29 lease and easements. Cost- legis million acres of prairie are sharing funds such as Iowa's Con: The variety of uses for ment to visitors without dis protected today and county Wildlife Habitat Stamp pro- cour wood will be the theme for the turbing the ecological bal conservation boards manage gram have helped fund an prof fourth annual Forest Craft ance. nearly 2,000 of the e acre . additional 19 area contam- llaff Festival to be held Saturday Other demonstrations will Recent research conducted ing 439 acres. cent and Sunday, Oct. 13 and 14, include ways to use food as by Iowa's Natural Areas In The prairie remnants ~rv: at Lacey-Keosauqua State fuel , which woods bum best, ventory have identified near managed by county conser- lheir Park, south of Keo auqua in as well as how to proper! y ly 25,000 additional acre of vation boards include five 16Q Van Buren County. manage a woodlot. prairie remnant till in private major types and a number of 11ere The festival will feature Participants wi ll have a or public hands, but unpro umque maller areas such as ~aile ways to use wood for crafts chance to try their ski ll with a tected. County conservation sand prairies and floodplain Year and building, using wood as cross cut saw or buck aw. boards played an important prairies. The major types in- tech fuel and ways to use the forest Festival goers can also learn role in this re earch. Profes elude: pothole prairies of and for maximum wildlife bene to identi fy trees, see a sawmill sional county conservation northwe t and north-central lllvo fit. The festival is sponsored in operation, learn how timber board employees were able to Iowa, hill prairies of north- attra by the Iowa Conservation is cut and how to produce top identify and document local eastern Iowa, the famous and Commission and the people grade lumber. pratne remnants. Many Loe s Hills along the Mis- as ~ of Van Buren County. The Forest Craft Festival is board are now striving to souri River, the outhem roll- Prau Craftsmen from Iowa and free and open to the public. protect these remnant area in ing clay prairies, and the Poe surrounding states will be The exhibits and demonstra a number of ways, including black oil mesic prairies of Tall~ demonstrating various ways tion will be open from I0 a. m. acquisition, education, and the central and western por- and to work with wood and will until 6 p.m., both days . Free through Iowa' recently tions of the state. Hill have some of their creations bus transportation from pa sed property tax exemp Native prairie remnants are lhe 1 for sale. Some of the demon downtown Keosauqua will be tion program, commonly only a part of the count} latic strations will include a wood provided from lO a.m. until called the "Slough Bill. " conservation board's prairie each powered car, log home con 5:30 p.m. Lacey-Keosauqua Con ervation boards ac program, however. Many lc struction, sculpting and carv State Park is located in Van quire and manage prairie tn boards have active praine re- !J.hk ing, antique furniture restora Buren County in southeast a number of ways. Nearly constructiOn programs as lallg tion, chai nsaw carving and Iowa, 38 miles southeast of half of the I ,945 acres coun well. This effort is barely ten lo~J. 1 yardstick and broom making. Ottumwa on Highway I . ties manage has been pur years old , and already more llah1 The Iowa Conservation Van Buren County wtll be cha ed outright with funds than 2,800 acres of new fno Commission will demon trate holding its Fall Festival of from the boards' own internal prairie has been e tabllshed COn cannot nettmg, a harmles Colors the arne weekend. budget . Some 250 acre m Twenty-five seed dnlls have lng method of live-trapping wild Activitie will include an Au 16 areas have been donated been acquired by county con- 'Time birds and ammals The com tumn Arts and Craft Festival, to county conservation servation boards during this 'aJ t rnisslOn wlll also demonstrate tours of Benton port homes, a board . Over 150 acres in 19 time, pnmarily for prame re- 'hat ho~ a woodland can be quilt show, antique and flea area were acqutred from construction effort5 The lha1 managed to provtde enJoy- markets and hot air balloon other agencie and private statewide di tribution of thiS futu1 18 equipment and the coopera tive spirit which county con servation boards share with Leaders in Conservation other agencies and individu This column usually de in vogue. It was Hayden and als ensures that all Iowans scribes the work and interests other ptoneer spirits that have access to the special of a contemporary conser helped provide the diversity THE NATURE equipment and expert advice vationist. Although the two our state contains today. necessary for successful individuals included here are CONSERVANCY BOHUMIL SIDMEK prairie establishment. no longer living, their dedica County conservation tion to the preservation of It is true our prairies, after The Nature Conservancy boards have made special ef prairie in Iowa must be pre ruling Iowa for several thou is a national , nonprofit, forts to utilize local seed sented in this special issue. sand years, vanished in the member-governed conserva sources in several cases. Seed blink of an eye. Their pass tion organization . Its main has been harvested mechan ing, nearly unremarked, was concern is the preservation of ically and by hand from na ADA HAYDEN a tragedy but would have ecological diversity through tive remnants. Excess seed Dr. Ada Hayden was the been even more so without the protection of natural areas. has been shared with other first woman to earn her the writings of Dr. Bohumil Over 1, 500,000 ac res agencies and individuals for Ph.D. from Iowa State Uni Shimek. Hi s observations, throughout the United States u~e m their reconstruction versity. She was a student of began around I 875 and con have been preserved through programs as well. the Iowa flora and curator of tinued until his death in 1937, the efforts of the Conservancy. manage The county conservation the university herbarium. Al provided a glimpse of Iowa The Iowa Chapter of the Anot ~ boards have long recognized though she studied all plant when it was a young state. Nature Conservancy was orga ;mg 1~ that the key to wise use of our communities, her special in Shimek was first a geologist, nized in 1963 as an outgrowth resources lies not only m second a botanist and mala throu~ terest was the rapidly vanish of intere t in conservation and s. Co. legislation but in education. mg prame. cologist. He wrote exten land preservation by a number s lo''· Conservation boards m 45 Her concern culminated in sively on Iowa prairies and of private citizens and profc - mp pr counties now have full -time a survey of prairies under a was one of the first to sound sional conservationists. Today, professional naturalists on the alarm over their disap fund ~ grant awarded by the Iowa members range from layperson contair staff, and more than 75 per Academy of Science wherein pearance. He collected and to scientist, from casual birder cent of the boards offer con she located and described na entered the specimens into to professional archaeologist. mnanl· servation education as part of tive prairie tracts and urged vanous herbaria. Because All share a single goal - the conser their overall program. Some their preservation. Working his specimens were unnum preservation of natural environ I 60 programs on prames without sophisticated serial bered, we have no way of ments for future generations. 1de fil~ unber were given by county con er photographs or map , she knowing how many vouchers The Iowa chapter has ac vation boards during the past was able to track down and he contributed, but it is com quired a number of areas the such oodpla.. year to schools, civic groups, describe in detail 32 prairies mon to ee his name on a large t of which is the Loess technical workshop group and give the location of 89 herbarium sheet whenever a Hills Nature Preserve. This ~rpe5 If and others. Boards are also others. All this came from a case is opened. 790-acre tract of picturesque iries o involved in large workshops $100 grant! Often her de Shimek was instrumental hills is located 12 miles north of h-eenna. in forging Iowa's early con north attracting hundreds of people scription was accompanied Sioux City. Ridgetop prairies ,r and lasting several days such by a black and white photo servation plan and even pro overlooking deep, wooded farno~ as Cerro Gordo County's graph of the prairie. This posed an extensive prame ravines are a fme example of :he Mi• Prairie Marsh Rendezvou , work, completed in I945 and protection plan. Unfortunate this unique landform. 1em~t Pocahontas County 's published in 1946, provided ly, it was not implemented. The conservancy has also and rtt Tallgrass Heritage Gathering the emphasis for the purcha e His tireless collecting and been instrumental in the estab rune~ and the well-known Loess of three prairie gems - now ambitious writing have pro lishment of the Iowa natural tern r Hills Prairie Seminar which all state preserves. One vided us a wealth of informa areas inventory, a system for the Monona County Conser prairie, located m Howard tion on the original prairie. gathering and making available vation Board helps sponsor County and purchased by the His efforts still bear fruit - a information on critical habitats each year. State of Iowa prior to her few weeks ago, two of us and other features of ecological Iowa ts the only state survey, now bears her name. were investigating the status importance. The Iowa registry which falls entirely within the Another, described m her of a plant Shimek had collect of natural areas, another state tallgra s prairie community. original report and located in ed in 190 I and had not been chapter program, encourages Iowa has also lost more of its Emmet County, wa pur reported in the state since. the pre ervation of important native plant cover than mo t, chased with open pace fund We went to the site , guided natural lands in pnvate owner- if not all, other states. County in 1978. Her reports continue by the information on the hip. conservation boards are play to be of value. herbarium sheet label. There For further information on ing an important role in re Hayden was a forward it was - a small clump this organization of dedicated minding people of their natu thinking con servationist, persisting in the same loca conservationists contact: The ral heritage and seeing to it ahead of her time. She pro tion after 80 years. I followed Nature Conservancy Iowa that ignificant elements of vided the rationale for prairie his footsteps and found his Field Office. 424 lOth Street. that heritage are pre erved for protection, nearl y ignored spirit still living on the native Suite 304, Des Moines. Iowa future generati.ons to enjoy. during her lifettme. but nov. pram e. 50309. Phone(515)244-5044 hn! 11e1 the: !X>S and ~!i I'Je' bad aT! Nature nd! l'er sett Tale • v.it By Wayne Schennum life A major factor leadmg to the persis Augu ·t By thts t1me, the Old World crd tence of prairie remnants in northern plants have pas eel their pnme eason of for Kids 'e~ Iowa is the tradition of harvesting native growth (May to June), while the prairie Itee or "wild" hay. All of the large prairie gra es are in the m1dst of their. . Taxie - exc remnants in this region of rich agricul Contmued haying in m1d-Augu t, or The Good-Natured Badger oar tural soils, both privately owned and even earlier, thus selects against the tho e now in public ownership, were prairie grasses and favors the Old World By Dean M. Roosa luc u ed to harve t praine hay, includmg the pecie . Many of the praine forb wh1ch Badgers are among the most no mg state's largest blacksoil prairie, Hayden reach peak growth in Augu t gradually non en e animal on the prame The) ~e Prairie, in Howard County. A number decrease in size as their food re erves can dig like machines, fight like de 1\0 of other mailer remnant are or were are depleted by the early harvest. mons and generally take a pretty om der aJ o u ed a native hayfields. Many of Again, farmers mdicate that August (or ber view of life. Built in the most too these prairies are in the pothole region earlier) haying IS done to complete the compact manner wtth long. sharp Sh( of northwest and north-central Iowa so work before the fall grain harvest and to claws, they have caused many dogs to on that a small number of remnants of the leave more time for the hay to dry wi h they had shown better judgment 1\o onginal vast expan e of this prairie Fortunately, the early harvest has liule before challenging a fight. Badgers rna)' can marsh complex have been pre erved by impact on many prairie wildltfe spec1es. reach a weight of over 20 pounds as dai the haying tradition . Prairie birds nest and fledge young adults, with an overall length of 30 we· Consultation with some of the Iowa earlier and nearly all obligate prairie mche . They are built low to the ground I\ a; fanners who continue to harvest prairie butterfl1e complete the1r life cycle by and appear almost flat a they rush bur hay indicates why this tradition persists. the end of July. through the vegetation. It is only the T~ In contrast to Old World grasses and Until the push for monoculture of lucky prairie vi itor that catches a IUD legumes adapted to the cool temperate soybeans and com, praine hayfields and glimpse of one. Probably every native all\ climate of northern Europe, prairie large prairie pasture were more com pra1rie had a pair in pre ettlement days. sen grasses and fl owers are better adapted to mon in Iowa. Now very few remain. and many prairie relicts have a pair ran the cycles of drought and heavy rain 'fradition and an appreciation for the today. But they have learned to live m gin and violent temperature fluctuations of aesthetiC and nutritional values of fann field and woodland edges. so I the Midwest, as well as to 1ts oils. prairies by their owners are in every Iowa still has a goodly number. 01\ They are thus more nutritious and most case re ponsible for the persistence of Because of their serious approach to dJg useful in improving the health of sick the e few known remnant . These life, it was truly remarkable when a llh cattle. One could infer that mamtaming Iowans who manage these area prop fan1ily enled on the ndge of a pnurie m the cattle on prairie hay would then keep erly are preserving a piece of the1r what is now northern Iowa. You see, 1\o them health1er, also. heritage and, at the arne time, learning they... but wait. I'm getting ahead of tha Many prame hayfields in Iowa have about the prairie and its pragmatic value my elf. Let me start at the begmmng en1 been "ennched" with Old World hay to the1r farming operation . They are Before there was a place called lov. a. can plants such as timothy and red clover, solely responsible for the protection of there was a eem1ngly never-endmg lot by discing in the seed of the e plants. our only remainmg large Iowa blacksotl grassy wildemes in the upper Midwest nd1 Thts has been done agam because of prairie , large enough to support the Th1s, the tallgrass prame. was mter- ~ tradltlon, based on greater fam1lianty prame and much of its ammal life, as persed w1th potholes. dl) gravelly He with Old World plants This practice the state's first settlers aw them. ndges and the greatest array of wJldltfe ~(IJ d1sturbs the native pratrie sod during Imaginable The praine was magmfi ne dtscmg, and m the years folio""' mg. Wayne Schennum serves as ecologist cent: badgers and b1son loved H. cranes ~I presents the prairie plants w1th severe for the commission's Natural Areas In and cerlews cherished 1t, and the new n. c -:>mpetitton espec1ally when the time ventory. He received a Ph.D. in biology trickle of p1oneers both hated 1t and ~ of haying is constdered Iowa farmers from the Univenity of Illinois in 1975. were awed by It Occasionally, a generally hay their prairies m mid- schooner would be !leen slowly travel- 20 ling across the land. The dry ridges were treasured places for animals - they provided a good view, were com po ed of material that was easy to dig, and here grew the shorter gras es that pennitted smaller animals a favorable view. These dry ridges often contained a badger den and a family that claimed a large tract as their own. On a certain ridge in this presettlement land a pair of very ordinary badgers met, courted and settled into a den. The prairie abounded with tasty morsels, the prairie was lush, life was good. The following spring the e two very ordinary badgers gave birth to three very ordinary kits and one which inher ited all the proper badger traits - except the somber outlook. This one, named Taxie, was enthralled with life lger - today we might call him happy-go lucky. While the other three were snooz tOSI 01" ing, Taxie was busy exploring - ftrst e. The\ the dark comers of the den, then that like de· wonderful breezy area ju t outside the :t} som· den. His mother, being a serious badger, 1e mos: took a dim view of these wanderings. • sharp She would occasionally find him high on the ridge, chasing butterflies; she dog~ to Jdgrnenl would explain as only a mother badger can that being so far from the den is •ers ma' dangerous and such frivolity was ... ;unds J.' well, not badger-like. While the mother 1 of ' was teaching her new famil y to dig and ! groune hunt, fight and utilize their camou flage, .e} ru~h Taxie just might be stretched out in the the JnlY sun , enjoying the gentle breeze that is ttches ~ always present on the prairie. The 'Y nau'e serious business of hunting was the :nt da}' farthest thing from his mind, and dig leave. Not so for Taxie. He would sneak emerge in the spring. He lived life to the , a pa:! ging ... that was pure drudgery. into their camps at night, dig in the extreme and was not at all well under ; )i\e ;n Later that summer, Taxie was on his trampled grass, hassle their dog, should stood by other badgers with whom he jg,es. ~ attempted to play. "What nonsen e!" . own. He eventually learned to hunt and they have one, and leave before anyone . dig, teathily capture small mammals got up in the morning. Once, however, they seemed to ay. roach tr 1 when he got hungry and fight under only he wa captured by a pioneer that was He lived for II fun -filled years on the ,,hen 3 the most dire circumstances. But, he well acquainted with badgers in Indiana ridges in the tallgrass prairie, this ,rrune tn would much rather bedevil the harrier and northern Illinois. The settler put unique land that was to become Iowa. You ~ee that nested in the nearby wale - he Taxie in a makeshift cage and put the His brothers and sisters dispersed to mead (l enjoyed the swoops and dives, alann cage in the back of the chooner for other ridges in the prairie, grew up and rjnntnf calls and near-misse when he got clo e others to ee. This would have been a raised families. Taxie never mated or ed Jowa. . ~ to the ne t. He would neak to the nearby temble ~hock to any badger except raised a family: partly becau e he was :r.end If: ndge where a pair of burrowing owls had Taxie - this was a new expenence and too busy enJoying life, but also because ~fid''e't taken up re idence in an old badger den. he even slightly enjoyed tt. But, after of a law of nature that decrees that those as inter· He enjoyed their funny calls when two day he tired of it and used hi s members of a spectes which are dtffer !1!'3 ,.ell\ alanned. His most plea ure came from powerful muscles and sharp claws to ent from the nonn seldom mate. Thus, ~~vildW sneaking up on a grazing bison and wreck the cage and escape. Taxie's good-natured genes were not ·rnagntfi delivering a cuff to the animal' nose. And so Taxie grew to adulthood - passed on to the race - leaving badgers tt. crJil'' The surprised nort and occasional stam he bacame a beautiful badger with to be serious animals, generally wtthout dJe ne'' pede were pure fun to Taxie. distinctive black and white facta! pattern humor who can dig like machines, fight d it 3fld The rather sudden intru ton of ettlers and glo sy coat. The true extrovert, he like demons and generally take a pretty ,nail)· a mto the prairie cau ed many animal to was the last to hibernate. the first to somber vtew of life. [\ [J"J\d· • 21 - WARDEN'S DIARY Iowa's I The Love of Fall The tate preserves law allows the Did Governor to de ignate areas as state nret preserve . After such de ignation, these "5 tracts are given the highest form of rerru protection available. To date, 21 tracts loca - of native prairie have been so desig- accc nated. Many are owned by the State of raph Iowa, orne are owned by The Nature · .:65 Conservancy, one each is owned by '\!er Linn, Web ter, and Warren County !"m1 Conservation Boards, one i privately Dian owned , and one is owned by the Uni- enrc versity of Northern Iowa. The e prairies oasc erve as living museums of native Iowa 0\1 By Jeny Hoilien hawk circle in the ky and the ·hauntmg and as outdoor laboratories for cientific v The weather ' changing now. Leaves cry of the wild goo e moving outh in the studie . 0 are beginning to tum as the air cleans fall nati1 Anderson Prairie itself of its sticky moisture and takes on a I had a friend , not too long ago, who dedi new crispness. Deep blue skies frame the was always going to do thi or that one The Ander on Prairie, located three mile north we t of E therville in Emmet Cia pure white billowy cloud as they drift day! We were alway goi ng to take time • acros your world . It all puts a bounce in and go fi hing or hunting or omething. County. con i ts of 200 acre . Its inclu- T your tep as you take a deep breath and But things alway kept getting in the sion in the state pre erve y tern en- ~ E ready yourself for the best time of the way. Too many thing had to be done. J sures protection for at lea t two plants one year - the fall . I look forward to it each helped carry him to his grave recentl y. and one bird listed on the state endan- wa} year. I guess I look forward to all of the He never made it to retirement and for gered pecies list. run easons, but e pecially the fall. It' har the life of me I can't recall all of tho~e Situated on the We t Fork of the De ~or ve t time - the apple are bright red on thing he wa o bu y with. I'm ad for Moine River. the Ander on Prairie is Cla1 the trees and it's a bu y time - getting all the time we mi ed. 1 miss him and typical of the knob and kettle topog- 1g· ready for winter, cutting and stacking the wish that we could go back in rime and raphy left by the retreat of Iowa· most prai firewood , putting up the onions and redo what we should have taken the time recent glacier. The rolling terrain ri es 1!Jel potatoes, getting the canning done. to do. from native prairie to an oak-hickory lh() Don't you feel orry for tho e who are Take time today and tomorrow to fill avanna draining to the river. The oil too busy doing other things to get in your oul with the richne of the out-of unique prairie land cape includes high txllr volved in the finer things of life? Gather door and rekindle that pirit and warmth gravell y hill and mall pothole . nai ing nuts, cracking them and picking out your fo lks started in you so long ago. Among the rare flora are ki uentails and as a the meats to make those delicious That warm glow and good feeling you ' II prairie bush clover. Other native specie cookies and pies later on this winter - it have when you appreciate and feel as found here are pale purple coneflower, hould be a requirement, no , I gue that one with mother nature will grow and Michigan lily, butterfly weed, rattle- Crc wouldn't work at all. You can't mandate, grow. And after you've grown to that snake master. and leadplant ~ I require or legi late things of that nature. new level you '11 find till another mira The rare upland andptper has sue- ~ They have to be part of your life, part of cle. You'll want to hare with a friend or cessfully ne ted on the pratrie. Its high- Cha something you love or at least appreci a son or daughter that pecial feeling. pitched whi tie can be heard on quiet ~q ate. Love will come with time, if you But remember you can 't force it. Expo e mornings and evenings in May. Redtails <111 have time. them to it, let them ee and feel that and mar h hawks hunt the area; ong- 1nc Take the time to do tho e thing now. special feeling, that warm rich glow birds uch a bobolinks, ve per par- 15lc Don 't just dream about tho e thing you you've learned to love - "THE GOOD rows, and meadowlarks are heard in ~ did when you were young. Your folk did LIFE." You'll have to be patient and pring and summer. Goldfinches ne t ~dt them with you , remember? They proba wait. They'll be busy for a long time. after the thistles bloom in late summer. Prai bly didn't explain that part to you. That Some take longer than others. but be Due to the di appearance of natural exa~ part was for you to learn as you marured. patient, they'll come to realize someday prairie fire and grazing bt on, pre- kno They've hopefully invested in you the just what you were trymg to do for them. scribed burn are part of the pre erve · ~ expenences of the "Good Life." The They 'II get there, if you've planted the maintenance. ,..Qj huntmg and fi shmg, picking berne , right eed . They'll mature and know ~ct gathenng nuts, walkmg in the wood what you and I know. And with Jove Cayler Prairie ~ wtth homemade bread baking in the they'll pass it on to others. Cayler Prairie was purchased in ~~ oven lunng you homeward, watching a Have a good fall! 1960. This 160-acre tract i located in SIOj 22 removed annually, but there is no rec ord of tillage in the prairie's history. Freda Haffner Preserve In 1972 a gift from Freda Haffner allowed the Iowa Chapter of The Nature z's Preserves Conservancy to purchase this 11 0-acre By Dean M. Roosa tract. The outstanding feature is the largest kettlehole in the state and one of the largest known. The tract is located ows the )ickinson County, three miles east and Dinesan Prairie approximately four and one-half miles as state hree miles south of Lake Park. About Consisting of 20 acres three miles northwest of Milford. m, these 75 acres are upland prairie and the northeast of Harlan, this gently rolling The area around the kettlehole, fonn of ·emainder mesic to lowland prairie. It is prame was maintained in its native though formerly pastured, supports a 21 tracli ocated at the edge of a moraine, which condition by the owner, Derald Dinesen, prairie flora of over 250 species of o desig 1ccounts for its gently rolling topog who realized the Iowa prairie was nearly plants. Approximately 40 acres of -aphy and diverse plant life of which State 01 a thing of the past. prairie remain; 60 acres of ground l65 species of 53 plant families have ! Nature A diver e mesic prairie flora is pres formerly farmed will eventually be med b xen recorded. Some of the more abun ent, with an unusual amount of fal se planted to prairie species and restored CounP :lant plants from this prairie are lead indigo, porcupine grass and prame to prairie. pnvateh olant, blazing star, prairie ro e, gold horsetail . Other species noted on a May the Un· ~nrod , prairie clover, scounng rush, visit include: round-headed bush clover, Gitchie Manitou pasque flower, wild pea, yellow cone ! prame1 rattlesnake master, golden alexander, This 91 -acre tract is located nine ive Iowa f1ower, ground cherry, and prairie violet pale-spiked lobelia, larkspur, prairie tur miles northwest of Larchwood , in the ;cientlfic as well as some very rare species. rup , June grass, butterfly milkweed , very northwest corner of Iowa. The Cayler Prairie was designated as a puccoon, tickseed, toadflax , native name "Gitchie Manitou" IS derived national natural landmark in 1966 and milkweed, compass plant, Canada from Sioux Indian for "Great Spint. " dedicated as a state preserve in 1971. anemone, leadplant, birdfoot violet, The unusual rocks that outcrop in this :ed three false goat's beard, and tick-trefoil. preserve belong to the oldest rock for ,Emme Clay Prairie The prairie serves as excellent habitat mation exposed m Iowa, the Sioux [IS inciU· The Clay Prairie is a 2.64-acre tract for birds such as bobolink, dickcissel, Quartzite. This Precambrian outcrop, ;tem en· in Butler County, three miles south and western and eastern meadowlark, ves dated at 1.2 billion years old, is pink per sparrow, ring-necked pheasant and 1o planb one mile east of the junction of High colored and extremely durable; the e endan· ways 3 and 14 at Allison. It was upland sandpiper. rounded quartz sand grains which origi purchased in 1961 by the University of The following small mammals are nally composed the rock are still vis : the DP Northern Iowa and named for John B. known to inhabit the prairie: prame ible to the eye, but they are not com ?ralJle ,, Clay, who was instrumental in pre erv vole, meadow vole, white-tailed jack pactly cemented by silica, giving the e wpog· ing the prairie. Although small , the rabbit, thirteen-lined ground quirrel, rock a glassy appearance. The edges of ,a's mo' prairie is known to support at lea t 98 and cottontail . rock blocks long exposed to the wind have been smoothed and polished to a 'llJil rise1 species of plants. In May, hundreds of Doolittle Prairie - Plover Tract :-htckol) shooting stars can be seen; this IS high gloss. Several active prairie potholes dot the ter. The fo llowed by purple avens, Indian This preserve has been a favorite area paintbrush, downy gentian, and rattle 25-acre Doolittle Prairie Preserve, evi for Iowa botanists since the last century. des high dence of the Pleistocene glaciers that totholes snake master. The prairie was dedicated Many rare plants, some of which repre as a state preserve in 1976. influenced this part of Iowa. It IS sent the only Iowa occurrence, are 1tails an.! located two miles south of Story City in e specte' found here. Examples are prickly pear, Story County. Its unique, poorly drained buffalo gra , spikemoss, Oregon neflO\\e' Crossman Prairie landscape and deep black soil make it a i. rattle· woodsia fern , sand cherry, and a num Glenn Crossman of Riceville donated type of prairie that is very rare in the ber of species of xeric mosses and this 10 -acre prairie remnant to the Iowa state today. The preservation of this lichens. The north portion 1s native has sue Chapter of The Nature Conservancy for prairie will ensure the protection of this Its tugh· prairie, and fire is now being used to perpetual protection as a preserve . It is area's virgin soil proftle. inhibit woody invasion; the south suc on quiel an example of a wet tallgrass prairie, Doolittle Prairie represents a mesic RedtaJI' cessional area will eventually be planted • n•' once common in this part of the state. It to-hydric prairie type and is a good to prairie. ea: so c is located in Howard County, three miles example of the tallgrass prairie. It holds per spat· northwest of Riceville. The prairie pro an excellent diversity of native gras es Hayden Prairie heard vides suitable habitat for many pecies of and forb , some of which are rare. Named for Dr. Ada Hayden, profes •h es · ne'· prairie plants. some very rare. For Notable among these are ladie ' tres es, sor of botany at Iowa State University ·sUJillllet example, the swamp birch i currently blue flag iri and clo ed gentian . A and life-long prairie enthusiast, this >f na(llf'J. known from only a few locations in recent plant urvey identified 135 spe 240-acre prairie was purchased in 1945. ;on. Pre·. Iowa. Other notable members of the cies, nearly all natives of the tallgrass It was the first prairie preserve acquisi ,rese!'\e , prairie flora include everal pecies of biome. Important wildlife ne ting and tion . About 140 acres are upland orchids, the wood lily, marsh marigold, winter cover i provided by thi patch of prairie, the remainder is mesic or wet and a grove of quaking aspen. Dominant native Iowa. prairie. It i located four miles west and gras es are big bluestem , bluejoint and Previous owners of the prairie were five miles north of the junction of sloughgrass. . aware of its importance. Hay has been Highways 63 and 9 near Cresco. 23 - - - ~ - - This prairie was in the ownership of Notable on the prame is blazing tar artichoke, tall coneflower, compass one family for 78 years and was cut for which blooms from August through plant, wild indigo, New Jersey tea, and hay and occasionally pastured. It is the October. A few spikes of white blazing fringed loosestrife. Among the grasses largest unbroken native prairie remain star have been seen among the purple. are big bluestem, porcupine grass, and ing in Iowa. The wet areas host hor etail and great prairie drop eed. The tallgra s environ From a di tance the blue-gray pasque lobeha In addition to liatris. the me 1c ment al o provides needed cover for flower, earliest of the prairie flower , areas of the preserve support ha1ry wildlife. puccoon, tail cinquefoil, false indigo, was mistaken by pioneers for prairie Rock Island Botanical Preserve smoke . Other flower visitors may en whorled milkweed, wild trailing bean, counter are shooting star, white and pale purple coneflower, big and little This 17-acre area was given to the purple prairie clover, meadow rue, lead blue tern, Indian gra . paspalum gra s. Linn County Conservation Board by the plant, wild strawberry. oxeye, loo e and ide-oats grarnma, to name a few Rock Island Railroad to be et aside a a strife, wild indigo and prairie ro e. botanical pre erve. The tract consists of About 150 species of plants have been Liska-Stanek Prairie an upland dry sand prairie and a low found on this prairie. This 20-acre native prairie is owned land marshy area, and hosts a wide Designated as a registered national and managed by the Web ter County array of flora and fauna. The preserve is natural landmark in 1966, it was ded Conservation Board. It i located five within the city limits of Cedar Rapids. icated as a tate preserve by the m1les outhwest of the junction of The low area had been used as a · Pre erves Advi ory Board and the Con Highways 169 and 20 at Fort Dodge. source of fill for railroad construction, servation Comrnis ion in 1968. It was purchased in 1972 and de ig and soil had been removed to an imper vious layer. The series of temporary nated as a state preserve in 197 6. It is pools cau ed by this disturbance has Kalsow Prairie mainly a mesic prairie with two shallow pothole Some of the characteristic created an interesting habitat which upport everal uncommon wetland This 160-acre tract, located 1n vegetation one may find i compa Pocahontas County, one mile we t, five plant, blazing star, needle grass, purple plant pecies. Among the e 1 sphag miles north of Man on, was purchased coneflower and prairie unflower. Birds num mo . in 1949. Since then it has been the include the bobolink, meadowlark, August visitors may find bulrush, subject of studies on its soil, vegetation, swamp sparrow, blue-winged teal , dick manna grass, ricecut gra s, hybrid cattail, Michigan lily, duck potato. fungi, vertebrate . and management A ci sel, and redwinged blackbird. complex of 14 shallow pothole~ and woolgra , and water plan tam . Lower their drainage ways are spread across Marietta Sand Prairie vascular plant include ere ted wood fern, mterrupted fern, sen itive fern. the prairie. The Marshall County Conservation and water horsetail. Among the dicots The diverse tract, with over 240 Board purchased this 17-acre prairie in were river birch, sand milkweed, purple species of plants, begins the flowering 1983, to protect an example of one of coneflower. hog peanut, wood betony, eason with prairie violets, ~hooting Iowa' most unusual prairie type - the New Jersey tea. fringed gentian. yellow stars, prairie phlox, and hoary puccoon: sand prairie. The praine is located on an puccoon, and Indian pamtbru h. next come anemone. black-eyed Susan. upland of the Southern Iowa Drift Plam, The wet areas provtde u1table habi butterfly weed, compass plant, purple and was formed from wind depo ited tat for ducks, woodcocks, crayfish, sev coneflower, blue flag and wood lily. materiaL To make the area more unus eral species of amphibians and a species Later in the year, oxeye, purple prairie ual yet, a permanently wet Carex swalc of snail not found in other local habi clover, and rattlesnake master appear. and aspen wetland is located on the tats. The sandy prairie i home for the The fmal color i added by closed and lower slope. hog-no ed nake, and a variety of song downy gentian. silky aster, and the taJJ Among the more unu ual plants are birds have been sighted at the pre erve grasse . Some of the vertebrates wh1ch sand reed, purple lovegrass, marsh fern, may be found are masked shrew, har sensitive fern, bead grass, and spotted Rolling Thunder Preserve vest mouse, deer mouse, upland sand horsemint. Thi 123-acre rolling prairie was piper, killdeer, bobolinks, pheasant , northern praine skunk, and smooth purcha ed in 1980 by the Warren Coun Nestor Stiles Prairie ty Con ervation Board. usmg habitat green snake. The Nestor Stile Prairie. consisttng stamp fu nd a part1al payment. It I This tract wa dedicated into the state of 10 acres, was donated into the typifi e the topography of the Southern preserves system in 1968. preserves system by Margarite Whiting Iowa Drift Plain, with a wooded ravine in honor of her father, its namesake. Mr. and rolling loess-capped uplands. It is Kish-Ke-Kosh Prairie Stile wa a Cherokee County banker located four miles east. one-half mile The Kish-Ke-Kosh Praine Preserve and con ervationist who purchased and north of New Ytrginia. is located m Jasper County just S0uth protected everal natural areas in the Because of the vanety of habitats. of Reasnor. county. The preserve 1s a lowland from dry uplands to mes1c htll ides to The Kish-Ke-Kosh Prairie, named tallgrass prairie, a typical element of the an interm1ttant stream, th1s prairie has after an Indian chief who lived in a original rolling prairie landscape of a rugh diversity of plant life i nclud~ several-county area along the Skunk northwestern Iowa. It i located in ing blaJtng tar, dropseed. compass R1ver, is charactenstic of tallgrass Cherokee County one-half mile south plant, lead plant, and the major prames once found along the Skunk west of Aurelia. prame grasse~. R1ver hills. Topographically. the pre Hab1tat for the rare as well as the serve cons1sts of rolhng hilb wtth a usual spectes of prame plants is pro Sheeder Prairie predominant knoh-ltke hilltop. mter- vtded at the preserve. Notable forbs Sheeder Prairie, purcha ed in 196 l spersed v. 1 r s~ .!r"' et swales include swamp milkweed, Jerusalem from Oscar Sheeder, son of the original 24 :om pas. GitchU! ManiJou State Preserve is locared in til£ norlhwest tea, and conrer ofthe state (left). This sea ofblazing si/U (below) is part of : grass~ Caylee Prairie locared in Dickinson County. The outstanding ass. and feature of the Freda Haffner Preserve is the state's largest enVIron· nver for kettlehole (bottom). 'Ye n to the rd by the !Side as a msists or j a low· a wide ~serve 11 Rapids. ;ed as ~ ;truction . .n unper· :mporan. :mce bas tt wludl wedancl s spbag· bulruSh , hybnG potato 1. Lower !(! wood ive fem. he dicob .d. purple d betOD)· n. yeUo\1 h. 1ble habt· fish. se'· a specte' .cal hab 1e for !he , 0 f Son£" · presef\e Urie ''~ -en coun ;g habttal ,ment. It southe!11 led ravi~ lllds. It ,, .half rni" 25 homesteader, 1 located four mile we t nearby. The plain pocket mouse, the short-billed marsh wren, grasshopper and one rrule north of Guthrie Center. grasshopper mou e, and the southern sparrow, song sparrow, and meadowlark It is of rolling topography, reflecting the bog lemming are examples. More com are known to nest here. rolling, loess-mantled Kansan glacial mon small marnrnals are the prairie Centuries to fo rm, perhaps two surface upon which it is located. Al vole, western harvest mouse, short decades to destroy, of the thirty million though only 25 acres, 54 plant families tailed shrew and white-footed mouse. acres of original prairie, now less than of over 180 species contribute to it l 0,000 acres remain. So tough yet flora . This diversity is due to its varied so fragile, so complex yet so easily Williams Prairie topography of dry prairie, mesic prairie destroyed, the people changed the and drainageway . The Williams Prairie is located in prairie and the prairie changed them. It Some of the commonly encountered Johnson County, two and one-half miles continues to change people, as wit early flowering plants are star gras , northwest of Oxford. It is a shallow, nessed by the new wave of prairie hoary puccoon , prairie false dandelion, bowl-shaped prairie with only a small enthusiasts, by the many restoration prairie phlox, prairie violet and com portion of dry upland. This 30-acre projects, by prairie conferences, by the mon lousewort. Later, one may fi nd tract was purchased by the Iowa Chap publication of books about prairies and purple coneflower, white snakeroot, ter of the Nature Conservancy and by legislative attempts to save these compass plant, cup plant, goat's beard, dedicated as a state preserve in 1976. It cornerstones of our past. ground plum, and prairie turnip. The is located 16 miles from the Univerity flowering year clo e out with prairie of Iowa , making it easily available to Dean M. Roosa has worked for the State sunflower, gentian, big and little blue classes as an outdoor laboratory. Preserves Board and as sUite ecologist for stem, rigid goldenrods and silky a ter. Some of the more unu ual vegetation the conservation commission since 1975. This prairie was dedicated into the include bunchflower, Turk's cap lily, He has a Ph.D. in botany from Iowa State state's preserve system in 1968. blazing star, and bottle gentian. The University. Stinson Prairie Stinson Prairie, owned and managed by the Kossuth County Con ervation Profile ofan Endangered Species Board, was purchased in 1969 and designated a a state preserve in 197 1. This 32-acre prairie is perched on the Bogb ean edge of the Algona moraine and is located four miles west and one mile (Menyanthes trifoliata) south of Algona. There are four basic vegetation types: dry, mesic, swales, and potholes. For its size, it is very rich, with at least 175 species of plant known to occur. Some of the more common species are lead plant, pasque flower, purple coneflow er, many-flower aster, blazing tar, toothed sunflower, mountain mint, but terfly weed and an array of tallgrasses. Thrin Loess Hills Preserve Located two miles north of Turin in Monona County, this 220-acre pre erve was dedicated in 1978. On the tops of the loess hills exist plants characteristic of the Great Plains, By Dean M . Roosa and Bill Pusateri the Menyanthaceae, but others place it some of which are found nowhere else In the early days of Iowa, this plant in the Gentianaceae fami ly. The leaf is in the state. Some of these are: soap was probably a fairly common wetland three-parted and the flower is white weed, skeleton weed, Locoweed, and plant. Bogbean or bog buck bean with fringed petals. The root is fleshy sumpweed . (Menyanthes rrifoliata) is a northern and the plant spreads vegetatively as Other species reported on this pre species, fairly common in northern welJ as by seeds. It often makes exten serve include side-oats grarnrna, prairie Minnesota , Wisconsin, and circumpolar sive tands on the shallow margins of turnip, large-flowered penstemon, red in northern parts of other countrie . It is marshes and bogs, often existing as a root, gray dogwood, prairie larkspur, now one of Iowa' rarest plants, pre monodominant population. Although a purple coneflower, btg blue tern, and sently known from only three sites, one boreal species, the two most southern little bluestem. each in Wright, Dickinson, and Mu - populations are the Muscatine County, Many loess hill habitats, including catine Counties. Iowa and Reynolds County, Missouri this one, are subject to invasion of It prefers shallow pennanent prairie sites. woody spectes. so fire is a necessary potholes, marshe and bogs, where it Notification of new populations management component. blooms in late May and early June. hould be sent to botanists in the State Some rare mammals are found m th1s Most botarusts put it in its own fami ly, Con ervation Commission. prese 'e, or on "Pas much hke 1t ta) place tl 1e leaf~ is white is flesh) jvelY ~ !S exteO· lCginS of :ing as a though a 50uthero coun~: :MJssoUfl 1uJarioos the State cor ~ dis: fao He1 abll ~r ~ plcr 10\1 fori far sur · •vel bm blo for E\1 Ita[ aln ll()j In SOl an fot Sp! set !0( pel tin hil Milkvetch (top), silver-leaved scurf pea (above) yellow coneflower (right) and switchgrass (page 27). follow ing spring from an underground The mature fruits which are reminiscent small white appressed hairs. The flow hoot system. One of the most spec of small stout bananas have a pulpy ers are small, being only about one tacular forbs of the Iowa prairie is the consistency similar to dates. A red third of an inch long, but they are one of compass plant (Shilphium lacciniatum). colored fermented liquor has also been the deepest blue-colored flowers to be As the name implies, the large, highly made by boiling the young flower found in the Loess Hills prairie commu dissected leaf blades have a tendency to stalks. This concoction was said to nity. The latter species is found rather face the sun during dayl ight hours. make an individual courageous. Con infrequently in Iowa. Hence, Indians and early settlers were tinued boiling produces a syrup to be Psoralea esculenta is known as In able to use this knowledge for direction rubbed on rheumatic joints. dian breadroot. It is a handsome plant al purposes- the living compa s of the 'rucca is also known as soapweed, growing to about two feet in height and prairie. You cannot miss the compass for it contains a chemical called saponin about two feet wide. The leaves are plant. Rising five to ten feet in height, it which when agitated in water produces palmate with five leaflets like the previ towers over all of the other prairie a soapy, detergent with great sudsing ously mentioned Psoralea species. The forbs . Being a member of the aster potential. This detergent quality is flowers are much larger, paler in color family it bears the characteri stic not har h so it has been used medicin and covered by long hairs which appar sunflower-like flower heads of golden ally for the cleansing of wounds and ently grow from inside of the sepals. An yellow ray flowers. Red-winged black skin disorders, as well as a popular enlarged ball-shaped food storage organ birds are often found perched on these shampoo. is developed below ground. It is this bios oms affording them a wide vista The other large family of plants food storage organ which gives this for their displays of tenitorial defense. which is well represented in the Loe s plant the name of Indian turnip, for this Even though it is a deep-rooted species Hills is the pea, bean or legume family, starch-fllled structure was eaten like a (taproots are known to grow down to what plant taxonomists traditionally potato by Indians and early pioneers. It almost 15 feet), the compass plant does called the leguminoseae or more recent is good that this practice has been not withstand intense grazing pressure. ly renamed the fabaceae . There are discontinued, otherwise this species In fact, the leaves are so nutritious and several species of milkvetch specie of may have become extremely rare. tasty that it is one of the ftrst species to significance because of their relatively Sensitive brier (Schrankia nuttallii) is be sought by foraging animals. There small di tributions. Bent milkvetch (As another legume species with a very fore, it is one of the first nati ve species tragalus disrortus), Missouri milkvetch limited range in Iowa. It is presently to disappear when a prairie area is (Astragalus missouriensis) and low known only from old historical records transferred to pasture. Hence, compass milkvetch (Astragalus lotiflorus) are ex and is now considered to be presumed plant is a good indicator of prairie amples of a few of these. The milk extirpated. The stem displays curved quality. vetches are low-growing perennials spines which gives it an additional There are other prairie indicators as with tiny compound leaves. Flowers are common name of catclaw. The leaves well. Some of these are the purple and usually pinkish in color and re emble are like those of a sensitive plant, many yellow coneflower, mentioned in the typical pea or bean fl ower in shape. tiny leaflets which fold up when touched . Wildflower of the Month. Also, rattle When in fruit , they have been called Sensitive brier might well be called snake-master (Eryngium yuccifolium), rabbitbrush for the crescent-shaped bashful brier by the shy of heart. The as its scientific name implies, has leaves hairy fruit has the appearance of a flowers are like a purple or lavendar like the yucca. This member of the rabbit' foot. powderpuff, for the flowers lack petals carrot family may also grow up to five One of the most common species is and are composed primarily of a ball feet in height. The flowers are white the groundplum (Astragalus crassicar shaped arrangement of colored stamens and rather inconspicuous, but are pus). This milkvetch is larger than the projecting from the center of the flower. formed into several round , globular others. The long, compound leave We would certainly like to relocate this spheres or "buttons." Indians and early can have as many as 23 leaflets. The species in Iowa. settlers believed that a concoction of the flowers are a light purple in color. The Locoweed or Lamberts crazyweed root would cure snakebite. fruit or legume is a plump, succulent, (Oxyrropis lambertii) is related to milk 'rucca (litcca glauca) i a deep rooted reddi h-green pod approximately an vetch and scurf-peas and have a similar perennial which grows as lonely en inch in diameter at maturity. It is these growth habit. The flowers are more tinels on steep , dry eroded bluffs and plum-like fruits which gives this plant striking, being borne in long purple to hilltops of the Loess Hills. Sometimes it its name. Caution should be used when bluish-purple clusters. On a few occa grows where the native prairie grasses considering eating groundplums since sions yellow or pure white forms can be are no longer able to retain a foothol d. they are a relative of the poisonous found . Locoweed is an increaser, and In this way it is a valuable fir t line of locoweeds. Deer and other animals cattle soon learn to recognize it for its defen e against soil ero ion and acts as apparently find them quite palatable distasteful qualities and leave it alone. a pioneer species around which the prairie and probably are responsible for spread With a lack of grazing competition, the gras e may become ree tabli hed. ing the eeds far and wide throughout seed production increases and the spe Even though it may not bloom annu the prairie. cies becomes more plentiful. If con ally, yucca is well worth waiting for. A The genus Psoralea (with a silent sumed , it causes a type of poisoning tall majestic flowering talk bearing "p") is also a well-represented legume known as the blind staggers- general many large, creamy white tlowers ar group. Psoralea argophylla and disorientation followed by a loss of ise from the center of a ba al leaf Psoralea tenuifolia are the silver-leaved muscle control and resulting in death. clu ter. Both the flower and fruits are scurf-pea and the many-flowered curf Skeletonweed (Lygodesmia juncea) is known to be edible. The fle hy, succu pea. The former is easily distingui hed probably one of the most prol ific in lent flowers were sliced and added to by the whitish coloration of the whole creasers of the loess. It is a member of 11alad or cooked alone a a vegetable. plant which is due to the pre ence of the sunflower family and grows upright 29 and is a highly branched perennial commonly found in the dryer prairies of prame gentians; downy, stiff, bottle. growing up to two feet in height. The we tern Iowa (Ceonothus ovarus). If and fringed gentians; and the beautiful leaves are reduced to tiny inconspicuous you ever fmd them growing in the arne golden hues of the diverse prairie adaptations to extreme xeric environ prairie area, I would be interested in grasses. ments; thus, the remaining green skele knowing about it. We are in the business of docu ton-like tern and branches carry on the There are a multitude of additional menting and preserving Iowa's nath e photo ynthetic capacity of the plant. pratrie pecie which should be men grasslands. We need your help. Please The stems are commonly found having tioned; like the early spring blooming let us know about prame remnants you bladderlike insect galls. It has been pasqueflower , pu sytoes, prairiesmoke have found. We are especially interested reported that children have made chew and purple avens, butterfly milkweed , in knowing about the true prairie indi ing gum from the milky sap which turns the pring violets, Indian paint brush , cators and rare prame species. yellow after coagulation. Supposedly, blue-eyed grass, and yellow star-grass. the "yellow gum " turns a bright blue Midsum mer species like lousewort, Bill Pusateri, serves as a botanist jot upon chewing. Indians have been said spiderwort, hoary puccoon, wild straw the commission's Natural Areas lnven· to have used plant extracts of skeleton berries, larkspu r, bergamont mint, t()ry. After receiving a B.S. degree from weed as an eyewash. Cattle ranches in Michigan lily and wood lily. Coe College in 1973, he earned an M.S. othec states have ascribed poisonous Late fal l pecies include a plethora of in botany from Southern Illinois· properties to this species. asters and goldenrods and the lovely UniversiJy. Another member of the pea famjly which must be mentioned as a true prame indicator is leadplant (Amorpha canescens). It gray-lead-green ti ny compound leaves and a false belief that this species was an indicator of lead ore gives leadplant its name. These leaves are a real contrast to the spikes of beautiful purple flowers bearing golden yellow stamens. Unfortunately, lead plant disappears with consistent , yearly mowing. As a more woody species, it needs to continue its life cycle and produce stout roots and seeds periodi cally. Without this occasional reprieve, it will soon be extirpated from an annual ly mowed meadow. Other shrub-like prairie indicator spe cies include both the prairie rose and New Jersey tea. The prairie rose (Rosa), the state fl ower of Iowa, is another one of the deep-rooted species. Botanists have recorded root depths up to 25 feet. There are many species of native and nonnative ro e . AU have very lovely flowers and provide protection, food and shelter for a variety of aruma! spectes. Like many of the preceding species, the New Jersey tea has been known to • I create major problems for the early farmers who ftrst plowed the grass ~ lands. So much so that New Jersey tea was nicknamed pest of the plowman, i redroot, and even the very descriptive, rupture root! The heavy burls of New I Jersey tea were known to stop and dull many an early plow. As its name I implies, a tea was made from the dry leaves and u ed as a general blood tonk. There are two species of New Jersey tea in Iowa. One, an eastern spectes of the prairie of eastern Iowa (Ceorwthus americanus) and one more Iowa's state flower, the prairie rose. tants you nterested irie indi· 15 lnven· ,-ee from 'an M.S. lllinoiJ • THE BEGINNING ... It was overpowering this thing called prajrie; The breeze, the smells, the heat, the beauty. It wanted nothing - except to be left alone to grow, to mature, to evolve; It asked so little, yet gave so much with dignity acquired in ageless time. THE DECLINE ... It was overpowered by the rumble rrund of man. It succumbed with only a gentle sigh to be lost forever, i Changed from grassland to grainfield, eroded, washed , overcome. THE RESURGENCE ... Tiny remnants, nearly overpowering with gentle breeze, fragrance, and beauty; They give us an eternal hope, a glimpse into the past: They ask so little- give so much They are lonely places; they are lovely places; They are prairie. Dean M. Roosa