Recognizing prairie

Yesterday,  June 2 2018, was National Prairie Day. At least it was in the USA where tallgrass prairie has a considerably greater profile than here in Canada or Ontario. That is not to say that the recognition isn't deserved in Canada, as historically there were immense prairies of the tallgrass, mixed grass and short grass types covering the landscape. Even in Ontario there were some impressive tallgrass prairies.

But once people realized how fabulously rich the soils were, and how relatively little effort was required to convert them to agriculture since there were no trees in the way, the prairies disappeared quickly.

Nonetheless, tallgrass prairies of various types, and the related black oak savanna, still persist in Ontario. You just have to look a lot harder to find them.

In the mid-western USA there are still some relatively large prairie landscapes with some impressive vistas. Consider the following ones just from the state of Missouri.

Golden Prairie is a National Natural Landmark, consisting of more than 630 acres (254 ha) of unbroken prairie.

Schwartz Prairie is ~100 ha (240 acres).

 Birds like Scissor-tailed Flycatcher are frequently seen.

Prairie State Park is ~1300 hectares (3200 acres).....where the bison still roam (as you can see in the background of this next image).

 You can get quite close to these free-ranging bison at times.

This next one is actually in neighbouring Oklahoma, and is The Nature Conservancy's Tallgrass Prairie Preserve. It encompasses almost 16200 hectares (~40000 acres) and is the largest protected tallgrass prairie on the planet. About 2500 bison roam freely on this site.

The prairie plants of these tallgrass prairies are striking, such as this Shooting Star (Dodecatheon meadii). It comes in white (like the ones in the prairie patch in my yard)....

 ....and the very vibrant pink.

 Not surprisingly, these grasslands are wonderful for butterflies, such as the Regal Fritillary. Although its continental range is greatly restricted nowadays, it was historically known even from Ontario.

All that said, the tallgrass prairies and oak savannas in Ontario are impressive in their own right. They certainly aren't as large, which makes them less functional for many species of wildlife they formerly supported (there is evidence that bison occurred in the prairies in what is now Windsor). This next image is from Windsor, and is about as large as any remnant prairie there. The distinctive white flowers are a threatened species known as Colicroot (Aletris farinosa), and the largest remaining populations of it in Canada are at Windsor. (This photo showing the largest population of Colicroot at the time, was taken in July of 2009 and is now gone.)

 Walpole Island First Nation, at the northern extreme of Lake St. Clair, has the largest and best quality prairie remnants left in Ontario.

Dense Blazing-star (purple flowers) amidst goldenrod in late July

Butterfly Milkweed in June

Dense Blazing-star

 Some of the prairies at Windsor, specifically at Ojibway Provincial Nature Reserve, have intrusions of oak savanna as shown in this next photo. The white candelabra style flowers are Culver's-root (Veronicastrum virginicum).

 This next plant is Wild Lupine (Lupinus perennis), typical of prairie and savanna.

 Some sand prairies occur at Rondeau Provincial Park, such as these grassy beach dunes along the southeast corner of the park where Cylindrical Blazing-star abounds. It is mostly purple, but some white ones, as shown here, may occur.

There is also Black Oak Savanna at Rondeau, as shown in the next photo. This was taken in late March, when it was still dormant. It isn't extensive, and without active management such as fire, may eventually become hardwood forest.

Some readers will be familiar with Pinery Provincial Park, where there is some extensive Black Oak Savanna. However what most people don't realize, including most of the park staff it would seem based on the information that park dispenses, is that it is not a naturally occurring oak savanna at all, but primarily the result of past intensive human manipulation! But that is the subject of another post some other time.