Points of Interest:
- Listen for the calls of least bitterns at dawn and dusk in the spring.
- Look at the unusual flowers and fruits of the bur-reed plant.
- Catch glimpses of migrating waterfowl and sora rails in the spring.
Natural Features Description:
This small freshwater marsh was one of the areas on the Ted Shanks Conservation Area that was found to contain remnant populations of later-successional marsh plants during a 1974 botanical inventory of the area just four years after the Conservation Department had purchased the land. The area contains a mix of robust emergent marsh plants such as bur-reed, river bulrush and water smartweed. It provides migratory habitat for sora rails and in the past least bitterns and king rails were present during their breeding seasons.
This natural area is within the Ted Shanks Conservation Area. From Louisiana, Missouri, take Highway 79 north and then turn right (east) on Highway TT. Continue on TT past Ashburn, over the railroad tracks, and to the area headquarters. From the area headquarters you will take area gravel roads to reach the parking lot near the natural area. Use a map of Ted Shanks Conservation Area to help you navigate to the natural area. Hunting and fishing are permitted.
United States