Locust Creek Natural Area
LINN 67 Locust Creek
Shellbark hickory
A 330-acre portion of Pershing State Park, including parts of Sections 14, 22, 23, 26 and 27, T57N, R21W, Sumner 7.5 min. topographic map. Designated June 3, 1979.
Natural Features
Locust Creek represents one of the last examples in northern Missouri of an active meandering river system and its associated oxbow sloughs, swamps and rich floodplain forest. It is a rare forested remnant in the Grand River Section of the Glaciated Plains Natural Division and offers high-quality examples of aquatic community types in that region of the state. Much of the forest consists of old-growth shellbark hickory, cottonwood, and bur, pin and swamp white oaks. Missouri's rare ostrich fern forms dense clumps at several locations. The area is owned by the Department of Natural Resources. For further information contact the Park Superintendent, Pershing State Park, Laclede, MO 64651, phone 816/963-2299.
