Hoosier Prairie State Nature Preserve
Encyclopedia
Hoosier Prairie began in the 1970s as wasteland that conservation organization found of a unique interest. From a core of 304 acres (123 ha), it has grown to 1547 acres (626 ha) of diversity biological interest. The area was designated a State Nature Preserve in 1977. The sandy soil creates a variety of habitats, from oak barrens, wet prairie, including sedge meadows and prairie marshes. More than 350 native species of vascular plants have been identified. A minimum of 43 species are uncommon in the State of Indiana.
Wheelchair Accessible The first 0.15 mile (0.241401 km) is considered to be wheelchair accessible. It is a wide gravel path. You can travel partway into the prairie, along the 'old field' restoration area on the west. A line of trees on the east open to provide views into the prairie marsh.
The trails into the prairie are chipped bark pathways, which can have the surrounding grasses and forbes
leaning across them. They are only a single file track in width and not suitable for walkers or persons walking side by side.
Prairie marsh trail is a 0.25 mile (0.402335 km) circular trail from just beyond the midpoint of the accessible trail back to the end of the accessible trail.
Savanna trail is 0.3 mile (0.482802 km) circular trail from the eastern edge of the Prairie marsh trail, returning to the same point on the marsh trail.
, prairie parsley
, Indian paintbrush
, rose pogonia
and the tall Indian grass
. Some unusual creatures seen in the prairie include the Red-headed Woodpecker
, Sedge Wren
s and the brown butterfly
. Among the prairie "potholes', which hold water most of the year, there will be reptiles and amphibians.
. With little assistance, the field has begun to revert to native prairie. Prairie maintenance is dependent upon a natural regime of fire, which has been suppressed in this urban area. Therefore, the Indiana Department of Natural Resources has assisted the regeneration by mechanically removing trees, woody brush and implementing 'prescribed fires'. Evidence of the success of the restoration can be seen in the increase in prairie indicator plants and birds:
Indicator Species
in the Northern Woods allowing brackens and sweetferns to thrive amid the prairie vegetation. This is an Oak Savanna with widely spaced trees, predominately oaks surrounded by an understory of wildflowers and grasses. These savannas can survive through droughts because the oaks and the prairie plants have taproots that reach down to the water table. Beyond the oaks is an open 'wet prairie' which includes a variety species that are more common in wetlands than prairies.
Indicator Species
Wheelchair Accessible The first 0.15 mile (0.241401 km) is considered to be wheelchair accessible. It is a wide gravel path. You can travel partway into the prairie, along the 'old field' restoration area on the west. A line of trees on the east open to provide views into the prairie marsh.
The trails into the prairie are chipped bark pathways, which can have the surrounding grasses and forbes
Forbes
Forbes is an American publishing and media company. Its flagship publication, the Forbes magazine, is published biweekly. Its primary competitors in the national business magazine category are Fortune, which is also published biweekly, and Business Week...
leaning across them. They are only a single file track in width and not suitable for walkers or persons walking side by side.
Prairie marsh trail is a 0.25 mile (0.402335 km) circular trail from just beyond the midpoint of the accessible trail back to the end of the accessible trail.
Savanna trail is 0.3 mile (0.482802 km) circular trail from the eastern edge of the Prairie marsh trail, returning to the same point on the marsh trail.
Location
The prairie is located on West Main Street, Griffith, Indiana. The area is accessible from a parking lot on Main Street (E 53rd St) just east of Kennedy Avenue. A trail, leads off through the prairie to the east.Wildlife and Plants
Rare habitats exist in the Hoosier Prairie Preserve, including the dry black oak barrens, wetland pools, and moist prairies. The areas support over 350 native plants. Of these, 43 are uncommon or rarely seen within Indiana. These rare plants include the white wild indigoBaptisia alba
Baptisia alba, commonly called White Wild Indigo or White False Indigo, is a herbaceous plant in the bean family Fabaceae. It is native from central and eastern North America.'...
, prairie parsley
Parsley
Parsley is a species of Petroselinum in the family Apiaceae, native to the central Mediterranean region , naturalized elsewhere in Europe, and widely cultivated as an herb, a spice and a vegetable.- Description :Garden parsley is a bright green hairless biennial herbaceous plant in temperate...
, Indian paintbrush
Castilleja
Castilleja, commonly known as Indian paintbrush or Prairie-fire, is a genus of about 200 species of annual and perennial herbaceous plants native to the west of the Americas from Alaska south to the Andes, northern Asia, and one species as far west as the Kola Peninsula in Siberia...
, rose pogonia
Pogonia ophioglossoides
Pogonia ophioglossoides is a species of orchid occurring from central Canada to the east-central and eastern United States. It is the type species of the genus Pogonia. It is also known as the "Snake Mouth Orchid"....
and the tall Indian grass
Sorghastrum nutans
Sorghastrum nutans, commonly known as Yellow Indiangrass, is a North American prairie grass found in the central and eastern United States and Canada, especially in the Great Plains...
. Some unusual creatures seen in the prairie include the Red-headed Woodpecker
Red-headed Woodpecker
The Red-headed Woodpecker, Melanerpes erythrocephalus, is a small or medium-sized woodpecker from temperate North America. Their breeding habitat is open country across southern Canada and the eastern-central United States.-Taxonomy:...
, Sedge Wren
Sedge Wren
The Sedge Wren, Cistothorus platensis, is a small songbird of the Wren family. It was formerly known as the Short-billed Marsh Wren, and in South America is known as the Grass Wren. There are about 20 different subspecies which are found across most of the Americas...
s and the brown butterfly
Satyrinae
Satyrinae, the satyrines or satyrids, commonly known as the Browns, is a subfamily of the Nymphalidae . They were formerly considered a distinct family, Satyridae. This group contains nearly half of the known diversity of brush-footed butterflies...
. Among the prairie "potholes', which hold water most of the year, there will be reptiles and amphibians.
Restoration
The field where the parking lot is located along Main Street, south and west towards Kennedy Avenue is an old wheat field. As late at 1970, it was planted in 30 acres (12.1 ha) of winter wheat. It was purchased as a buffer for the prairiePrairie
Prairies are considered part of the temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome by ecologists, based on similar temperate climates, moderate rainfall, and grasses, herbs, and shrubs, rather than trees, as the dominant vegetation type...
. With little assistance, the field has begun to revert to native prairie. Prairie maintenance is dependent upon a natural regime of fire, which has been suppressed in this urban area. Therefore, the Indiana Department of Natural Resources has assisted the regeneration by mechanically removing trees, woody brush and implementing 'prescribed fires'. Evidence of the success of the restoration can be seen in the increase in prairie indicator plants and birds:
- Flora (Plants)
- big bluestem
- tall coreopsis
- goldenrodGoldenrodSolidago, commonly called goldenrods, is a genus of about 100 species of flowering plants in the family Asteraceae. Most are herbaceous perennial species found in the meadows and pastures, along roads, ditches and waste areas in North America. There are also a few species native to Mexico, South...
- asters
- Fauna (specifically birds)
- meadowlarks
- sparrows
- goldfinchAmerican GoldfinchThe American Goldfinch , also known as the Eastern Goldfinch and Wild Canary, is a small North American bird in the finch family...
- bobolinkBobolinkThe Bobolink is a small New World blackbird and the only member of genus Dolichonyx.-Description:Adults are 16–18 cm long with short finch-like bills. They weigh about . Adult males are mostly black, although they do display creamy napes, and white scapulars, lower backs and rumps...
Prairie marsh trail
The Prairie Marsh trail is a 0.25 mile (0.402335 km) loop trail that passes through two habitats, a tallgrass prairie and a marsh. This area is considered a virgin prairie as it has never been tilled or grazed. Both the prairie and the marsh are dependent upon fire to maintain their openness and diversity of plant life. The prairie continues to exist because the plants have adapted to fire by developing roots structures that survive underground as the fire sweeps across the surface removing woody and non-prairie plants. The specialized root structures include rhizomes, bulbs, corms, and tubers. Prairie plants send their roots down a few inches to as much as 16 feet (4.9 m). Each plant can expand its territory horizontally through its roots, depending on the species from 5 feet (1.5 m) to 20 feet (6.1 m).Indicator Species
- big bluestem
- Indian grassSorghastrum nutansSorghastrum nutans, commonly known as Yellow Indiangrass, is a North American prairie grass found in the central and eastern United States and Canada, especially in the Great Plains...
- white wild indigoBaptisia albaBaptisia alba, commonly called White Wild Indigo or White False Indigo, is a herbaceous plant in the bean family Fabaceae. It is native from central and eastern North America.'...
- Wild QuininePartheniumParthenium is a genus of flowering plants in the aster family, Asteraceae. The name is derived from either the Greek word παρθένος , meaning "virgin," or παρθένιον , an ancient name for a plant. Members of the genus are commonly known as feverfew. Notable species include Guayule and P...
- rattlesnake masterEryngium yuccifoliumEryngium yuccifolium is a common herbaceous perennial plant, native to the tallgrass prairies of central and eastern North America, from Minnesota east to Ohio and south to Texas and Florida. In the Chicago Region this species has a coefficient of conservatism of 9...
- leadplantAmorpha canescensAmorpha canescens is a 1–3 feet tall deciduous shrub in the Pea family that is native to North America. It has very small purple flowers which are grouped in racemes. The compound leaves of this plant appear leaden due to their dense hairiness...
Savanna trail
The Savanna trail is a 0.3 mile (0.482802 km) loop trail from the eastern edge of the Marsh trail. This habitat mimics the pine savannasEastern savannas of the United States
The eastern savannas of the United States covered large portions of the east side of the continent until the early 20th century. These were in a fire ecology of open grassland and forests with low ground cover of herbs and grasses....
in the Northern Woods allowing brackens and sweetferns to thrive amid the prairie vegetation. This is an Oak Savanna with widely spaced trees, predominately oaks surrounded by an understory of wildflowers and grasses. These savannas can survive through droughts because the oaks and the prairie plants have taproots that reach down to the water table. Beyond the oaks is an open 'wet prairie' which includes a variety species that are more common in wetlands than prairies.
Indicator Species
- SavannaSavannaA savanna, or savannah, is a grassland ecosystem characterized by the trees being sufficiently small or widely spaced so that the canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to reach the ground to support an unbroken herbaceous layer consisting primarily of C4 grasses.Some...
- SweetfernComptoniaComptonia is a monotypic genus in the family Myricaceae, order Fagales. It is native to eastern North America, from southern Quebec south to the extreme north of Georgia, and west to Minnesota. The common name is Sweetfern or Sweet-fern, a confusing name as it is not a fern.It is a deciduous...
- BrackenBrackenBracken are several species of large, coarse ferns of the genus Pteridium. Ferns are vascular plants that have alternating generations, large plants that produce spores and small plants that produce sex cells . Brackens are in the family Dennstaedtiaceae, which are noted for their large, highly...
- Black Oaks
- White Oaks
- Sweetfern
- lowlands or wet prairie
- Prairie cordgrassSpartina pectinataSpartina pectinata is a species of cordgrass known by the common name prairie cordgrass. It is native to central North America.-External links:***...
- bluejoint grassCalamagrostis canadensisCalamagrostis canadensis is a species of grass, having three or more varieties, in the Poaceae family. It is known variously by the common names of Bluejoint, Bluejoint reedgrass, Marsh reedgrass, Canadian reedgrass, Meadow pinegrass, and Marsh pinegrass.-Varieties:Calamagrostis canadensis takes...
- sedgesCyperaceaeCyperaceae are a family of monocotyledonous graminoid flowering plants known as sedges, which superficially resemble grasses or rushes. The family is large, with some 5,500 species described in about 109 genera. These species are widely distributed, with the centers of diversity for the group...
- pink orchidCaladenia carneaThe Pink Fingers Orchid is a deciduous terrestrial orchid species which grows throughout eastern Australia and Tasmania. It is the type species of the genus Caladenia....
- marsh blazing starrLiatrisLiatris is a genus of ornamental plants in the Asteraceae family, native to North America, Mexico, and the Bahamas. These plants are used as a popular summer flowers for bouquets.They are perennials, surviving the winter in the form of corms....
- prairie sundropsOenotheraOenothera is a Genus of about 125 species of annual, biennial and perennial herbaceous flowering plants, native to North and South America. It is the type genus of the family Onagraceae, the Evening Primrose Family. Common names include evening-primrose, suncups, and sundrops.The species vary in...
- marsh phloxPhloxPhlox is a genus of 67 species of perennial and annual plants found mostly in North America in diverse habitats from alpine tundra to open woodland and prairie. Some flower in spring, others in summer and autumn....
- Phlox glaberrima
- Prairie cordgrass
See also
- Cowles BogCowles BogCowles Bog is named for Henry Chandler Cowles of the University of Chicago. Dr. Cowles is credited with the creation of the concept of Ecology. It was here at Cowles Bog that Dr. Cowles did his pioneering work. The bog is a National Natural Landmark. Cowles Bog is more than 8,000 years old and...
- Pinhook BogPinhook BogIndiana’s only true bog is a special geologic feature of this region which preserves a large variety of plants with extraordinary adaptations for survival. See insect eating plants and tamarack trees; walk on a boardwalk that is placed upon a floating mat of sphagnum moss. Pinhook Bog is about , a...
- Indiana Dunes National LakeshoreIndiana Dunes National LakeshoreIndiana Dunes National Lakeshore is a U.S. National Lakeshore located in northwest Indiana and managed by the National Park Service. It was authorized by Congress in 1966. The national lakeshore runs for nearly along the southern shore of Lake Michigan, from Gary, Indiana, on the west to Michigan...
- Indiana Dunes State ParkIndiana Dunes State ParkIndiana DunesDesignationState Park; National Natural LandmarkLocationPorter County, Indiana, USAAddress1600 N 25 EChesterton, IN 46304Nearest CityPorter, IndianaCoordinatesAreaDate of Establishment1925...