GENTRY -- Almost 40 people were in attendance at a field trip held Saturday at Chesney Prairie Natural Area, located off of Bill Young Road, southeast of Gentry. The event was co-hosted by the Northwest Arkansas Audubon Society and the Ozark Chapter of the Arkansas Native Plant Society.
Those in attendance viewed and photographed native prairie plants, including blazing star (or liatris) in bloom at the prairie, and a variety of birds, butterflies and insects.
According to a fact sheet made available by the Arkansas Natural Heritage Commission, "Chesney Prairie Natural Area is one of the few tall-grass prairie remnants left on the Arkansas portion of the Springfield Plateau. Much of its flora and fauna is representative of the once-extensive upland prairies and savannas of the western Ozark Mountains. Sager Creek runs through the prairie, creating a wooded riparian corridor."
The 83-acre Chesney Prairie is owned by Arkansas Natural Heritage Commission and is managed by Joe Woolbright. Woolbright is the founder of Ozark Ecological Restoration, Inc., of Siloam Springs.
According to the ANHC website, the Arkansas Natural Heritage Commission has been working to conserve Arkansas's natural landscape since 1973. "ANHC's professional staff conducts on-the-ground field surveys to locate and evaluate occurrences of natural communities and rare, threatened and endangered species. Research findings and results are often published in scientific journals and presented at national, regional and state forums."
Joe Neal, Joe Woolbright and Terry Stanfill will also be making a short presentation to the Siloam Springs Parks and Recreation Review Board regarding conservation efforts and use plans for the Siloam Springs City Lake. The meeting is at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday at Siloam Springs City Hall.
General News on 07/15/2015