Tallgrass Prairie - Remnants

Remnants

The tallgrass prairie survives in areas unsuited to ploughing: the rocky hill country of the Flint Hills, which run north to south through east-central Kansas; the eastern fringe of the Red River Valley (Tallgrass Aspen Parkland) in Manitoba and Minnesota; the Coteau des Prairies, which extends from South Dakota through Minnesota and into Iowa; and the far north portion of Oklahoma. In Oklahoma, the tallgrass prairie has been maintained by ranchers, who saw the hat-high grass as prime grazing area for cattle.

The 158 km2 (39,000-acre) Tallgrass Prairie Preserve in Osage County, Oklahoma, and the somewhat smaller 44.1 km2 (10,900-acre) Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve in Kansas, attempt to maintain this ecosystem in its natural form. They have reintroduced Plains Bison to the vast expanses of grass. Other U.S. preserves include Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie in Illinois, Broken Kettle Preserve and Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge in Iowa, Konza Prairie in Kansas, and Prairie State Park in Missouri. In eastern North Dakota is Sheyenne National Grassland, the only National Grassland on the tallgrass prairie. There are also several small tall grass prairie reservations in Cook County, Illinois, including the National Natural Landmark, Gensburg-Markham Prairie.

The original extent of Tallgrass Prairie in Canada was the 6,000 km2 (2,300 sq mi) plain in the Red River Valley, southwest of Winnipeg in Manitoba (see map). While most of Manitoba's tallgrass prairie has been destroyed through cultivation and urban expansion, relatively small areas persist. One of the largest blocks of remaining tallgrass prairie in Manitoba is protected by several conservation partners in a conservation area called the Tallgrass Aspen Parkland. The Manitoba Tall Grass Prairie Preserve, which occupies small portions of the rural municipalities of Stuartburn and Franklin, forms a part of the Tallgrass Aspen Parkland. This preserve contains about 4,000 ha (9,900 acres) of tallgrass prairie, aspen parkland and wetlands.

There is a small pocket (less than 5 km2/1,200 acres) of tallgrass prairie in the southwest corner of Windsor, Ontario, protected by Ojibway Park, and Spring Garden ANSI (Area of Natural Scientific Interest), along with the inter-connected parks: Black Oak Heritage Park, Ojibway Prairie Provincial Nature Reserve, and the Tallgrass Prairie Heritage Park. Aside from the Provincial Nature Reserve, all are operated by the City of Windsor's Parks and Recreation.