Tucker Prairie is a 146-acre tract of virgin tall grass prairie in Callaway County, Missouri. This tract of land is the largest prairie remnant in mid-Missouri. It has never been plowed.
Owned by the William C. Tucker family for 125 years, the University of Missouri purchased the tract of land in 1957 with funds from the National Science Foundation, The Missouri Chapter of The Nature Conservancy, the Alumni Achievement Fund of the University of Missouri in Columbia, and several private individuals. The area was designated a National Natural Landmark in 1978 and a State Natural Area in 1998. It is managed and maintained as a research prairie by the Division of Biological Sciences at the University of Missouri, with help from the Missouri Department of Conservation.
The rich, virgin soil of Tucker Prairie supports more than 250 species of plants adapted to this region over thousands of years, including about 70 families and 150 genera (see Tucker Prairie Flora). Grasses average about 50 percent of the ground cover, with big bluestem, little bluestem, Indian grass, and prairie dropseed as the dominant species under normal weather conditions. Tucker Prairie has an extensive subterranean clay pan that makes tree growth difficult, thus enhancing its unique qualities.
The prairie is used as a research tract principally by faculty and students of the University of Missouri but outside researchers are welcome.
Research and Educational Activities on the Prairie
Anyone wishing to conduct research or classes on Tucker Prairie must complete and submit an application at least two weeks in advance of the planned start date for the project. Applications must be completed with enough detail that the committee can consider the project’s potential impact on the prairie and on other research. Projects that go on for more than one field season must submit a new research application annually.
All individuals indicated by the permit-holding researcher as potentially being on the prairie must review and confirm, via the Rules and Hazards form, that they have read and understand the Tucker Prairie Rules and Hazards. This review and confirmation must be completed annually at the time of application approval and prior to commencing work on the prairie. Violation of the rules by any project personnel will result in withdrawal of research permission by the Division of Biological Sciences.
Prescribed Burns
Prescribed burns are carried out twice per year and can occur on any day between August 1 through October 15 and between January 1 through March 15 when weather is appropriate. Only Missouri Department of Conservation personnel are permitted on the prairie during a prescribed burn.
Contact
Division of Biological Sciences University of Missouri Phone: 573-882-8985 Email: biology.missouri.edu