MDC encourages landowners to look for signs of remnant sand prairie habitat on their property

BENTON, Mo. – Around the state, the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) and other conservation partners continually work to identify areas of ecological importance. Because of the diversity of Missouri’s natural landscape, there is a broad variety of habitats that MDC and its partners have marked of particular importance.

One such habitat can be found at Sand Prairie Conservation Area (CA) in Scott County, a 200-acre upland area that is managed for natural communities including sand prairie, sand savanna, and sandy swale ephemeral wetlands. Learn more about Sand Prairie CA at http://short.mdc.mo.gov/owB.

Other conservation partners in southeastern Missouri also recognize the importance of sand prairies and have dedicated resources to preserving this type of habitat. The Natural Resource Conservation Service administers the Sand Prairie Restoration Program which focuses on working with private landowners in Butler, Dunklin, Mississippi, New Madrid, Pemiscot, Scott, and Stoddard Counties who may have sand prairie communities on their property. Through this program, qualifying landowners can receive technical and financial assistance to establish permanent easements to protect this habitat on their land.

Preserving sand prairies is critical as they provide rare habitat for many species of conservation concern including: doubleform snoutbean, sand hickory, or jointweed. They also serve as a great home to more common species such as the northern bobwhite quail and the prairie racerunner.

Currently, MDC estimates that fewer than 2,000 acres of medium to high quality sand prairies and savannas remain in southeast Missouri. Of the remaining acreage, all acres have been altered or domesticated for agricultural purposes. Landowners are encouraged to look for prickly pear cactus, splitbeard bluestem or jointweed on their property as the presence of these species may indicate that there is remnant sand prairie habitat. If landowners do discover remnant sand prairie signs on their property, MDC encourages them to contact local Private Land Conservation staff to discuss opportunities for management on the property along with available cost-share options for those management practices.

Find local MDC Private Land Conservation staff by county at http://short.mdc.mo.gov/4ok.