Ohio’s earliest European settlers found the sandy soils of the Oak Openings Region to be unfit for growing crops, but it didn’t take botanists long to figure out that this ‘sand country’ was unparalleled in the state for the propagation of rare and wild plants.

The 130-square-mile Oak Openings Region is a complex of oak savanna and wet prairie that developed on sand and clay deposited by glacial Lake Warren, the ancient predecessor of present day Lake Erie. The combination of porous sandy soils of the former beach ridges and an impervious clay layer beneath those soils creates an unforgiving environment that fluctuates from flooding in the spring to arid in midsummer.

The Nature Conservancy’s 750-acre Kitty Todd Preserve is a centerpiece of the Oak Openings Region and is a model of land management practices for the region. 

What You’ll See

Kitty Todd Preserve is composed of low-lying wetlands and windblown sand dunes populated by prairie, oak savanna, woodland and forest in a rural suburban area.

Home to the globally endangered black oak savanna community, the preserve has one of the highest concentrations of rare species of any nature preserve in the state.  Notable species include the lark sparrow, Karner blue butterfly and wild lupine. 

Current Conservation Work

Residential and industrial development in the area is accelerating, resulting in habitat loss and fragmentation.  The region also has suffered from cessation of natural disturbances such as fire and changes in hydrology caused by drainage ditches and filled wetlands.  The Conservancy has been working to combat these threats through land acquisition, education, and restoration efforts. 

• In 2007 the Conservancy restored 100 acres of wet prairie at Kitty Todd Preserve. 
   
• Published in 2004, "Living in the Oak Openings; A Homeowner's Guide to one of the World's Last Great Places" helps landowners restore unique habitats.
   
• In 2003, the Kitty Todd Preserve began taking part in a statewide butterfly monitoring program to identify the abundance of Ohio’s rare and common butterflies.
   
• In 1998 the preserve was selected as the first location for the reintroduction of the Karner blue butterfly, an endangered species whose caterpillar will feed only on wild blue lupine, which thrives at Kitty Todd.

• Because most Oak Openings species are dependent on frequent disturbance, especially fire, the Conservancy routinely employees specific management techniques such as prescribed burning and mowing to control woody succession.

• The Conservancy is educating the public and landowners through Blue Weekend, an annual spring event that offers hikes, lectures, and family events.

Nature picture credits (top to bottom, left to right): Photo © Randall Edwards/TNC (Kitty Todd Preserve); Photo © Ann E. Cutting (Karner blue butterfly).