Ouachita River Nature Preserve

 

Tree

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Ways of Giving. By joining the Conservancy today, you will be welcomed into a family of dedicated individuals committed to protecting nature and preserving lives. 

Creating a Lasting Legacy

Charlie Thomas, vice president of Calion Lumber, a business his family owns, purchased the land in 1958. “When I purchased the land," he said, "I knew I was purchasing one of the Natural State’s finest treasures. I wanted to ensure the land remains natural and well managed, which is why we decided to donate an easement to The Nature Conservancy.”

In the Know: 'Conservation Easement' Defined

A conservation easement is a voluntary restriction placed on a piece of property by the landowner to conserve its habitat or open space values. While it is a legally binding agreement that limits certain types of uses or prevents development from taking place now and in the future, the landowner retains all other rights of ownership. 

A tour at the Ouachita River Nature Preserve

Why the Conservancy Selected This Site. Calion Lumber Company, based in Calion, Arkansas, donated a 2,900-acre easement to The Nature Conservancy in 2007 to create the Ouachita River Nature Preserve. The preserve, located just north of Camden in Ouachita County, includes six miles along both sides of the lower Ouachita River, where just one major conservation site -- the Felsenthal National Wildlife Refuge -- existed before. 

The preserve, comprised of old-growth bottomland hardwood forests with embedded cypress-tupelo sloughs, provides habitat for deer, turkey, black bear and many other animals. Some trees here are over six feet in diameter. Its location along the Ouachita River helps maintain water quality for endangered mussels and fish, like the Alabama shad (Alosa alabamae), and for people, too.

What to See: Plants

  • Bald cypress (Taxodium distichum)
  • Tupelo gum (Nyssa aquatica)
  • Overcup oak (Quercus lyrata)
  • Water oak (Quercus nigra)

What to See: Animals

  • Black bear (Ursus Americanus)
  • Otter (Longra canadensis)
  • Mink (Mustela vison)
  • Marsh hawks (Circus cyaneus)
  • Prothonatory warbler (Protonotaria citrea)
  • Downy woodpecker (Picoides pubescens)

What the Conservancy Has Done/Is Doing. The Conservancy, working with Calion Lumber Company, has developed a conservation forestry management plan that focuses on the sustainable harvest of timber on 1,900 acres of the property. The remaining 1,000 acres will not be harvested.

NOTE: The land, which remains the property of Calion Lumber, is still being used by the company and is not open for public use.

Photos at top (left to right): Conservancy staff and friends enjoy a tour of the Ouachita River Nature Preserve © Jay Harrod/TNC; © Jay Harrod/TNC