Oronoco Prairie SNA

Oronoco Prairie Scientific and Natural Area (SNA)
Oronoco, Olmstead county, MN | 80 acres; kame oak savanna, dry gravel prairie, bluff prairie, and restored prairie, exposed limestone bedrock, intermittent streams

Park/Area Notes

This rectangular site sits in a small valley with low hills and steep-sided slopes. Intermittent streams which flow to the Zumbro River run through the area. There are spots of exposed limestone bedrock scattered around the site.

At least six rare plant species have been found on the site and native grasses carpet the valley. Referencing the Open Space section of iNaturalist, of 230+ species observed at the site, 163 were for plants, 61 for insects, 12 for birds, and 4 for spiders

There are no maintained trails but there are traces of old vehicle tracks that can function somewhat as footpaths. In late May, the vegetation was low enough we had no trouble navigating the SE corner of the site we explored. We did not travel further into the site where I suspect the steeper slopes were.

There are no facilities. Parking is off road and should accommodate at least two cars. I don't think there's adequate shoulder space for parking on the street. We didn't encounter any nuisance flying insects (flies, gnats, mosquitoes) in our late-May morning visit and the open nature of the eastern half of the site may discourage them at different times of the day/year. We did not pick up any ticks but we were wearing clothing sprayed with permethrin.

Visits

May 22; mid-morning to noon
We followed an old vehicle track from the parking area toward a grassy mound. We circled this mound, skirting the tree-lined south border of the SNA and followed the vehicle track back to the car. This resulted in us exploring the SE quadrant of the site. I think I was a little turned around and thought we were heading west when we were actually heading southwest. From what I can tell from satellite views, heading straight west would likely have led us to a creek and the ' steep-sided slopes' described at the DNR's webpage for the SNA.

The grass was only about shin high and not hard to navigate. We observed 11 species of blooming wildflowers, a few more plants that were identifiable by their foliage, some ferns, and some shelf fungi on an old tree stump. There were quite a few spiders but most were scurrying under the low vegetation and last year's leaves and I only got photos of 1 Wolf Spider. Also observed: Prairie Mound Ants, Sweat Bee, Plume Moth, and a Sawfly. Birds seen/heard: Lark Sparrows, Grasshopper Sparrow, Field Sparrow, and Indigo Bunting.

I liked this site and, if we were in the area, I would enjoy visiting it again although likely not if the grass got too high (we're moderately tick-phobic). Sites in the area that we also visited and are worth revisiting: Carley State Park, Whitewater State Park, and Kellogg Weaver Dunes SNA.

Useful links/info

small parking area on the west side of 18th Ave NW (County Rd 112), south of 100th St NW
Oronoco, Olmstead county, MN
44.139678, -92.488654
Google Plus Code: 4GQ6+VF Oronoco, Minnesota

MN DNR: Kellogg Weaver Dunes SNA
MinnesotaSeasons.com: Oronoco Prairie SNA
iNaturalist: Oronoco Prairie SNA Open Space page
iNaturalist Oronoco Prairie SNA Point of Interest page
iNaturalist 2022 BioBlitz: Oronoco Prairie SNA
eBird Hotspot reports: Oronoco Prairie SNA
eBird Checklist: Oronoco Prairie SNA
my iNat observations at Oronoco SNA | May 22, 2023
all iNat observations at Oronoco SNA
Flickr album: "Oronoco Prairie", photos by Joshua Mayer | includes some photos of the general prairie terrain