Importance:
The proposed natural area was designated to protect two of the
rarest natural communities found in Michigan: lakeplain prairies and
savannas (also known as oak openings). Prairies are areas of flat or
hilly land covered chiefly by tall grasses and wildflowers, while
savannas are areas of widely spaced trees with grasses, wildflowers
and shrubs growing underneath. Lakeplain prairies and savannas are
those that grow in the clay soils that were once lake bottoms or
“lakeplains” of large lakes that covered much of southeastern
Michigan, which were themselves created by the meltwater of a great
glacier.
Prior to European settlement, lakeplain
prairies and oak openings spanned across 600,000 acres of southeast
Michigan’s landscape. Today, only patches of these communities
remain, totaling roughly 500 acres, and over 120 acres of that are
at Algonac. This decrease is mainly due to human influence: fire
suppression programs, changes in hydrologic processes and conversion
of land to farmland or other development. Through restoration
programs at Algonac and other sites, we are beginning to see a
slight increase in the number and quality of these remaining
patches.
In North America, prairies have more
different kinds of plants and animals than any of the other
terrestrial ecosystems, even more than forests. At Algonac, over 550
different kinds of plants have been counted, including some of the
more common prairie grasses and wildflowers, such as: big bluestem,
little bluestem, Indian grass, switch grass and blazing star.
Animals associated with the prairie and savanna communities include
grassland birds, deer and many insects. |
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