Date of Project: Sat. July 13, 2019
Time: 10AM to 4PM Central Time
Location: Mantle Rock Preserve, Livingston Co.
Difficulty: Difficult
The Nature Conservancy’s Mantle Rock Nature Preserve, in Livingston Co., is a fascinating part of Kentucky. The centerpiece of the Preserve is a 30-foot high natural sandstone bridge spanning 188 feet (the longest sandstone arch east of the Mississippi) embellished by bluffs, shelters, honeycomb formations, fluorite deposits and a rock-lined stream. The nature preserve also contains extraordinary biological diversity, with spectacular springtime wildflowers and an upland forest interspersed with the best example of rare and fragile sandstone glades in all of Kentucky. Kentucky’s only known occurrence of June grass thrives here along with other glade species such as prickly pear cactus, rush foil, hairy lipfern, little bluestem, pinweed and poverty grass. Scattered deep soil pockets are dominated by gnarled and stunted post oak, blackjack oak, farkleberry and red cedar.
On July 13, the Kentucky Native Plant Society will be conducting a detailed floristic inventory of the sandstone glades, barrens, woodlands and mesic forests at this botanically fascinating site. Join with several of the region’s preeminent botanists as we attempt to locate, identify, and document as many plant species as we can. The data collected will be used by The Nature Conservancy as they develop long range management plans for this site.
If you would like to help with this project, we would love to have you join us. This will be a physically demanding, long, hot day, off trail for the most part, on rugged, rocky terrain. A good understanding and knowledge of the plants of Kentucky is essential. Although this will be a difficult day physically, it will also be immensely rewarding, with all of us learning from each other as we document an important ecoregion of Kentucky.
Bring a GPS or smartphone, hand lens (if you have one), and field notebook . A new way to document and assist in monitoring plants that KNPS has started using, is iNaturalist, if you have a smartphone, download the iNaturalist app and bring it along.
There are no services at the site so bring plenty of water.
Directions: We will meet at the main parking area of the Mantle Rock Preserve, just off of Lola Rd (Hwy 133)
Map
Registration: This project will be limited to 10 participants. You can
register by clicking on this link: Mantle Rock Inventory