NPS
On the shorelines of three large rivers, scouring flood waters and winter ice create riparian prairies, special habitats that support nearly 40 different rare plant species. Thick with grasses and flowering plants, these riparian prairies share many characteristics with the tallgrass prairies of the American Midwest. However, riparian prairies are much smaller in size and are maintained by raging floods and scraping ice that wash over these habitats, scouring most trees and shrubs that are not adapted to disturbance. These habitats are globally rare because they occur in very few places in the world and are at risk of being damaged. Three things that could be harming the prairies are: invasive exotic plants, river flow regulation, and human recreation.
The Eastern Rivers and Mountains Network collects information on the condition of riparian prairies and how the prairies are changing over time. We use transects and plots to record the diversity and abundance of plants, as well as the cover of trees and shrubs. This long-term monitoring helps park managers protect the prairies and the rare plants that rely on them.
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- Locations: Gauley River National Recreation Area, New River Gorge National Park & Preserve
The word “prairie” usually conjures images of herds of bison, rolling hills of grass waving in the wind, maybe a covered wagon and a little house. While the prairies along the New and Gauley Rivers are much smaller in size, they contain the same tall prairie grasses as found in the Midwest. They also harbor many rare plant species. The Eastern Rivers & Mountains Network collects information on the condition of riverscour prairies and how they are changing over time.
- Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area
Park Restores Unique Riverside Habitat by Managing Invasive Plants
- Locations: Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area
Many unique native plants grow on the Calcareous Riverside Outcrops and Seeps in the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area. Over the past few years, park staff worked with the regional Invasive Plant Management Team, as well as an invasive plant control company, to remove invasive shrubs like autumn olive, honeysuckles, and multiflora rose.
Tags:
ermn riparian prairies
Documents
Source: Data Store Collection 4437. To search for additional information, visit the Data Store.
Source: Data Store Collection 4290. To search for additional information, visit the Data Store.
Source: Data Store Collection 9233. To search for additional information, visit the Data Store.
Source: Data Store Collection 4297. To search for additional information, visit the Data Store.
Contact
Stephanie Perles, Plant Ecologist
Last updated: September 14, 2022