Hanging Bog State Preserve

Summary

Hanging Bog State Preserve is a 16-acre (6.5 ha) forest that is on the edge of the Cedar River valley in Iowa.[1] It was deeded to The Nature Conservancy in 1968, and it became a state preserve in 1981.[2]

Hanging Bog State Preserve
IUCN category V (protected landscape/seascape)
Map showing the location of Hanging Bog State Preserve
Map showing the location of Hanging Bog State Preserve
Location in Iowa
Map showing the location of Hanging Bog State Preserve
Map showing the location of Hanging Bog State Preserve
Location in United States
LocationLinn County, Iowa
Nearest cityPalo, Iowa
Area16 acres (6.5 ha)
Established1981
Governing bodyIowa Department of Natural Resources

The bog has an area that is perennially wet because when water passes through the ground, there is a layer that the water cannot get through, causing the water to surface on a hillside and also form tufa. There are terraces formed by tufa on the lower slopes of the wooded hillsides, which are the namesake of the forest.[3]

Skunk cabbage starts to bloom in the forest when there is still snow. There are over 170 species of plants in the forest, as well as 23 species of bryophytes. Spring wildflowers and ferns can be found in the forest.[2] It also contains sugar maple, basswood, and red oak.[1]

References edit

  1. ^ a b Iowa State Preserves Guide. Iowa Department of Natural Resources. November 1992. p. 85.
  2. ^ a b Herzberg, Ruth (2001). The Guide to Iowa's State Preserves. University of Iowa Press. p. 65. ISBN 9780877457749.
  3. ^ "The rare skunk cabbage thrives at this preserve in eastern Iowa". The Nature Conservancy. Retrieved November 26, 2018.

External links edit

  • U.S. Geological Survey Map at the U.S. Geological Survey Map Website. Retrieved January 6th, 2023.

42°01′59″N 91°46′01″W / 42.033°N 91.767°W / 42.033; -91.767