Prairies

Red Feather Prairie

Ever wonder what the settlers saw when they first arrived in the Midwest? It was a whole different landscape than we see today. Iowa was once a sea of grass. About 85 percent of Iowa was covered by tall grass prairie. Big bluestem would have been a common site. It's one of the tallest grasses, reaching 8 feet. Prairie habitat is important to both people and wildlife. Historically, people have depended on prairie plants and wildlife for food, medicines, and materials. Perhaps the greatest legacy of the prairie is the fertile soil, which has become the basis for Iowa's economy. The landscape of Iowa has undergone a drastic change in the past 150 years. Of the 30 million acres of prairie that covered Iowa at the time of settlement, only one tenth of one percent remains today. When we lose prairie, our feel for Iowa history is also lost.

Red Feather Prairie was the original borrow site for the Saylorville dam. Poor soil conditions made reforestation unfeasible. The Corps of Engineers began the Red Feather prairie reconstruction project in 1981. Red Feather is Iowa's second largest restored prairie at 170 acres. The Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge is now the largest restored prairie with over 5,000 acres. Red Feather has approximately 10 species of grasses and over 40 species of forbes. Saylorville park rangers manage the prairie by burning or haying on a 4-year rotation. The prairie is Saylorville's richest birding area with approximately 142 species including nesting Henslows' sparrows, bluebirds, and bobolinks.

Prairies

Teacher Resource: Live on the Prairie - Visit this site and build your own prairie!