Ripgut Prairie Natural Area
BATES 138 Ripgut Prairie
Sullivant's milkweed (Asclepias sullivantii) at Ripgut Prairie
A 136-acre portion of the 280-acre Ripgut Prairie Conservation Area, in two units, located eight miles south of Butler in the E1/2 of Section 33 and the SW1/4, NW1/4 of Section 34, T39N, R31W, Rich Hill 7.5 min. topographic map. Access is by a lane off a county road from Hwy B. Designated March 13, 1987.
Natural Features
Wet-mesic prairie and wet prairie of the Osage Plains Natural Division. This natural area is the only remaining high quality example of these types of prairie along the Marais des Cygnes River. The Bates County Drainage Ditch (manmade channel of the Marais des Cygnes River) traverses the area diagonally for about 1,700 feet. Dominant plants include big bluestem, cordgrass and cottonwood. Ripgut Prairie Natural Area is owned and managed by the Missouri Department of Conservation. For further information contact the Wildlife District Supervisor, Osage District Office, 722 E. Hwy 54, P.O. Box 106, El Dorado Springs, MO 64744, phone 417/876-5226.
