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<br />I <br />I <br /> <br />.- l_ -,{'^ .>;.< ~ 'r <br />'QOO:48 {) <br /> <br />development. However, most of these lands are in private ownership and <br /> <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br /> <br />survival is uncertain. <br /> <br />Eastern deciduous forests and flood plain forests are extensive along the <br />Missouri River and, to a lesser extent, along some of the major tributaries. <br />The Loess Hills region of Iowa contains the greatest acreage of eastern <br /> <br />deciduous forest. In other scattered areas, particularly in northwestern <br /> <br />Missouri, southeastern Nebraska, and northeastern Kansas, relics of the former <br /> <br />oak-hickory-prairie savanna occur in upland regions several miles from the <br /> <br />river bottoms. <br /> <br />Forested lands occupy less than 5 percent of the total subbasin landscape <br />but provide a large portion of the habitat base for deer, quail, squirrel, <br />cottontail, and wild turkey. They are also the last refuges for regionally <br />threatened, rare, or declining fauna such as the woodchuck, southern flying <br /> <br />I <br />I <br /> <br />squirrel, whip-poor-will, pileated woodpecker, several species of warblers, <br /> <br />I <br />I <br />I <br /> <br />several raptors, and several reptiles and amphibians. Several species of <br /> <br />plants also depend upon the hardwood forest for survival. <br /> <br />Widely scattered relics of the tall-grass prairie ecosystem persist in the <br /> <br /> <br />upper reaches of the Little Sioux River, including the prairie lakes region in <br /> <br /> <br />Iowa, and along the Loess Bluffs of the Missouri River. These lands support <br /> <br /> <br />much of the original native prairie flora and fauna including many species <br /> <br /> <br />which are naturally rare or are regionally declining. Examples include the <br />northern greater prairie chicken (Nebraska and Kansas only), white-tailed <br />jackrabbit (extinct in Kansas), spotted skunk, Franklin ground squirrel, <br /> <br />prairie falcon, and certain reptiles. Populations of the endangered white <br /> <br />lady-slipper, an orchid, may persist in certain remote areas. Certain <br /> <br />agricultural regions, especially where good interspersion of land uses occur, <br /> <br />afford excellent upland habitat and provide key habitat for wildlife. <br /> <br />I <br /> <br />I <br />I <br /> <br />I <br />I <br /> <br />8-3 <br />