Loess Hills property
to be protected

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This article was written and posted on INHF's website in June 1999.

Another piece of Loess Hills property is now protected as an addition to the Oak Ridge Conservation Area near Oto.

The Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation (INHF) has just purchased 80 acres from Jerry and Cecilia Bumstead of Mapleton. INHF is assisting the Woodbury County Conservation Board in repurchasing the area.

"This is the kind of project INHF loves to make happen: a willing landowner and a great piece of Iowa's natural heritage protected forever," said Mark Ackelson, INHF President. "As an added bonus, the land will become available for public use so that more people will have the chance to experience Iowa's beautiful Loess Hills up close and personal."

The Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation is a non-profit, member-supported organization that protects, preserves and enhances Iowa's natural resources for future generations. The organization recently launched a Voluntary Protection Initiative, designed to help willing landowners protect important lands in the Loess Hills.

The Bumstead property is very hilly land in the Loess Hills, on the western bluffs of the Little Sioux River. It is about half timber with the rest in pasture and hilly crop land. According to Rick Schneider, director of the Woodbury County Conservation Board, the property includes about five acres of prairie remnants with lead plant, little bluestem, Indian grass and other typical Loess Hills prairie plants. The property is also a haven for wildlife.

The Woodbury County Conservation Board will manage the land for wildlife and public hiking. Efforts are also underway to restore some of the native prairie remnants and plant additional native plants. Conservation board staff will also conduct controlled burns to remove non-prairie plants from the prairie areas.

According to Schneider, the new Bumstead acquisition-as part of the larger Oak Ridge Conservation Area-will also provide an important wildlife management area. Schneider notes that public areas are particularly important near urban areas like Sioux City.

For more information about land protection in the Loess Hills, contact David Zahrt, INHF Loess Hills Land Conservation Specialist, at (712) 353-6772.

For more information about Foundation news, e-mail Cathy Engstrom, Director of Communications, or call (515) 288-1846.

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