Description
Sioux City Prairie is one of the nation’s largest native prairie tracts found in an urban setting. An area uniquely and delicately balanced between the city and the wild, Sioux City Prairie offers Briar Cliff University students and local high school students an outdoor classroom.
Why You Should Visit
Sioux City Prairie is a TNC-owned 150-acre tallgrass prairie preserve. The prairie and wooded valleys of this well-drained, high-relief landscape support a variety of plants and animals typically found further west in the Great Plains. The preserve also supports a diverse population of birds and it provides critical habitat for many species of prairie butterflies.
Location
Woodbury County, in the northern portion of the Loess Hills (within the metropolitan area of Sioux City)
Conditions
Sioux City Prairie is a combination of dry-mesic and loess hills. Species composition is similar to other prairies, but with the addition of species typically found further west in the Great Plains.
Why TNC Selected This Site
The threats to this area were rapid urban expansion and development. Parts of the site were being subdivided as it is within the city limits of Sioux City. As part of our effort to conserve and protect the Loess Hills area, TNC acquired the site in 1983.
What TNC Has Done/Is Doing?
We have released flea beetles on the site to help control leafy spurge and conduct prescribed fires on the site with the assistance of the biology students from nearby Briar Cliff University.