Konza Prairie Research Natural Area

Konza Prairie Research Natural Area is an 8,600 acre tallgrass prairie preserve owned by The Nature Conservancy and managed by the Division of Biology at Kansas State University. You are standing on the northeast corner of the site which stretches south for five miles to Interstate 70 and four miles west. The Konza Prairie is one of the largest land tracts in North America dedicated to research on the ecological processes that characterize and maintain the tallgrass prairie. Research at the site is supported by Kansas State University, The Nature Conservancy, the Kansas Agricultural Experimental Science Foundation, and numerous other agencies.
Major research programs involve the primary forces that shape the prairie - fire, grazing by large mammals, and climate. Over 50 watersheds on Konza Prairie are systematically burned. Burning occurs at variable frequencies (every 1, 2, 4, 10, or 20 years) and during different seasons. Burning is used to analyze how the natural phenomenon of fire affects and sustains the tallgrass prairie. In addition, native bison and domestic livestock graze selected watersheds to determine how the interaction of grazers and fire influence the biological diversity and productivity of the prairie ecosystem. Researchers from across the United States and the world come to Kansas State University to study soils; hydrology; and plant, insect, bird, and mammal populations in the Konza's unique living laboratory.
Access to Konza Prairie is limited due to the ongoing scientific research and the presence of bison. However, a public nature trail is open daily from dawn to dusk, accessible from the preserve entrance 6 miles south of Manhattan on McDowell Creek Road.

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Show me all markers in:  Manhattan, KS  |  Riley County  |  66502  |  Kansas  |  United States of America

Geology at Konza
The Tallgrass Prairie
Manhattan's Union Pacific Depot - Revived
Yuma Street
Change & Growth
Colorado Street
The American Veteran
Riley County Courthouse
Carnegie Library
Amanda Arnold Arch

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