Turtle Mountain

Turtle Mountain, ND

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TOPIC: Turtle Mountains, ND
http://groups.google.com/group/entstrees/browse_thread/thread/b8a3252554a61ca3?hl=en
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From: ForestRuss@aol.com
To: entstrees@googlegroups.com
Sent: Thursday, April 10, 2008 9:21 PM
Subject: [ENTS] Re: yellow poplar leaves bud break

Lee:

I attended NDSU Bottineau for my first two years of forestry school and got to see a lot of the state when I had chances to go home on weekends with fellow students. The incredible fertility of the Red River valley just blew me away and the 12 foot drop in elevation as you enter the actual flood plain of the valley is the most noticable 12 foot elevation change I have ever witnessed.

Bottineau where the forestry school is (or was) located is a small town about 80 miles north of Minot and at the base of the Turtle Mountains. I got to learn all sorts of interesting geologic history there but what sticks with me the most was that the Turtle Mountains are the terminal moraine for one major ice sheets from the last ice age. The elevations were about 300 feet higher than the incredibly flat northern Great Plains to the south of the mountains and you could easily see 100 miles.

There were several tree species in the Turtle Mountains that would not exist any other place in ND which was 50th of all the states in total acreage of forest cover.....behind Rhode Island by a couple hundred thousand acres.

At that time (the late 60s) they were concerned about Devils Lake drying up...a few years ago I read that because of wet weather it had expanded and covered more square miles than any time ever.

Russ

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TOPIC: ENTS] Turtle Mountains, ND
http://groups.google.com/group/entstrees/browse_thread/thread/9e81de996ccfa2de?hl=en
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== 1 of 3 ==
Date: Thurs, Apr 10 2008 7:40 pm
From: Lee Frelich

Russ:

Yes, its so flat between Fargo and Grand Forks that it makes curbing on the
side of the streets look like hills. Thats one reason why its so hard to
model biome distribution in the area. Some models indicate that
northwestern MN and northeastern ND should be part of the boreal forest. In
reality, the prairie-forest border goes almost straight north in that area,
and is to the east of the Red River of the North, in MN and there is very
little forest in ND, just a few patches in the Turtle Mountains. Its one
of the sharpest prairie-forest borders in the world, going from boreal
forest to prairie in about 30 miles, and no one can really explain why,
although one of my graduate students is taking on that task. Maybe it has
to do with the snow--there is always more snow cover to the east in MN.

Lee

== 1 of 1 ==
Date: Thurs, Apr 10 2008 6:53 pm
From: "Edward Frank"

Russ,

The Turtle Mountains sound like an interesting place. It made me look up the area on the internet. If others are interested there is a nice website about the area:
https://www.dmr.nd.gov/ndgs/ndnotes/ndn15-h.htm from the North Dakota Geological Survey North Dakota Notes No. 15.

The site reads in part: "The predominant covering of aspen is interspersed with black poplar, ash, birch, box elder, elm, and bur oak. A large part of the vegetation consists of shrubs like hazel, chokecherry, saskatoon, nanny berry, dogwood, highbush cranberry (Pembina), and pincherry. Fire played an important role in the development of present-day vegetation. Prior to settlement, the Turtle Mountains were periodically swept by fire caused by lightning and by human activity. Plains Indians noticed that a heavy growth of new plants appeared in burned areas. They also knew that forests did not attract bison so they routinely set fire to the wooded areas. Prairie winds then carried the fires for many miles. This practice may represent one of the earlier attempts by man to attract animals by manipulating the environment."

Landsat Image of the Turtle Mountains: http://www.ndsu.edu/nd_geology/nd_space/landsat3.htm

Turtle Mountains State Forest: http://www.ndsu.nodak.edu/ndsu/lbakken/forest/stateforest/turtle_mtn.htm

The Turtle Mountain State Forest is the largest block of forested land in the State Forest system. It contains examples of prairie grasslands, at the south end, with steep draws and oak Savannah forests. As you climb out of the foothills heading north towards the Canadian border, you will experience dense aspen forests, mixed hardwood forests, small lakes and wetlands. Wildlife is abundant with deer, moose, ruffed grouse, waterfowl and songbirds common. There is an extensive trail system for hiking, mountain biking and horseback riding during the summer and snowmobiling and cross-country skiing in the winter. Within the boundaries of the State Forest are Strawberry Lake Recreation Area, Hahn's Bay Recreation Area and Twisted Oaks picnic area. All provide trail head access to the trail system.

https://www.dmr.nd.gov/ndgs/ndnotes/ndn14_h.htm

Ecoregions of North and South Dakota: http://www.npwrc.usgs.gov/resource/habitat/ndsdeco/46b.htm

Ed Frank

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