Providing An Oasis Of Calm For Visitors With Ecological Zones, Each With Its Own Collection Of Plants, Animals, And Birds
Just minutes off busy I-44 as it passes through southwestern Missouri, the Wildcat Glades Conservation and Audubon Center provides an oasis of calm for visitors driving through as well as the residents of nearby Joplin, MO. “People say that our atmosphere is so calm and soothing,” Robin Standridge, development and volunteer coordinator at the center, tells The Buzz. “It makes a great stop for people who want a break from the interstate, but we also get a lot of local folks coming out to enjoy the quiet. I-44 is really close, but you’d never know it.”
The Wildcat Glades Audubon Center, soon celebrating its tenth year, is located on land leased from the city of Joplin, part of the larger city-operated Wildcat Park. A unique geological formation, the chert glades which exist in the area, prompted the center’s formation.
“Only a couple of places in the world have chert glades,” Chris Pistole, education director at the center, explains. “In the U.S., southwest Missouri has most of the chert glades. Of the 60 or so acres that remain, we preserve about half on our property.”
Chert, says Chris, is a type of flint, extremely hard. “It doesn’t erode quickly. Most of the Ozarks are formed of limestone, which does erode, forming caves. That’s why Missouri is known as the Cave State. But chert is different. Artifacts indicate that Native Americans came here to get chert for weapons and tools.”
While chert is found in many locations, chert glades are rare, Chris explains. “The glades have 15 inches or less of soil, and are often just bare rock where mosses and lichens grow. Our glades are dry most of the year. The plant and animal life found in the glades has adapted to the dry conditions. We call them Missouri’s deserts.”
In May and June, however, Chris says the glades come to life with numerous wildflowers and cactus in bloom. The glades go dormant in summer, he says, but the center has many other ecological zones, each with its own collection of plants, animals and birds, with something to see year-round.
“On the edge of the glades is a chert savannah, with larger oaks. The trees there are almost in a park like setting with sparse vegetation underneath, mostly prairie grasses and wildflowers. Most of the rest of the property is bottomland forest along Shoal Creek, with some upland forest above the chert cliffs.”
Trails lead throughout the Audubon Center’s property. “We have about 4 miles of trails,” Robin says. “They are beautiful and accessible, and lead to some wonderfully scenic views, the best in the area.” Trails run along the 50-foot high chert bluffs edging Shoal Creek, and to an overlook of the chert glades. Other trails lead into the metro Wildcat Park, where biking, fishing, boating, jogging and swimming are allowed. Wildcat also boasts the highest continuously flowing waterfall in Missouri, 20-foot Grand Falls on Shoal Creek.
“People are surprised that we have so many trails just 15 minutes from downtown Joplin,” Robin says. “We have indoor exhibits as well. My favorites are the center’s big windows with birdfeeders outside. If you watch for 20 minutes or so, you’ll see squirrels, cotton rats, and 20 or 30 birds.”
With such a diversity of environments, Wildcat Glades attracts a wide variety of bird species, with over 150 sighted so far. “We get both migratory and resident birds,” Chris Pistole says. “Many are feeder-type songbirds - cardinals, sparrows, indigo buntings, and painted buntings, probably the most colorful birds of all, and bluebirds, our state bird. Plus we see all seven species of woodpeckers found in Missouri and many waterbirds, including the Louisiana waterthrush. We’ve been focusing our conservation efforts on the Prothonotary Warblers. They are beautiful yellow birds, sometimes called swamp candles for how they stand out in the forest. We’ve put out 20 nesting boxes for them around the park.”
Another conservation project focuses on the Chimney Swift. “They’ve been declining in numbers, so we’ve built a nesting tower for them in front of the center,” Chris says. “We have a camera inside so visitors can watch the swifts nesting and raising their chicks.”
The “swift cam” is just one of the center’s exhibits popular with children. “We have an American kestrel that was injured and can’t return to the wild,” Robin says. “And Trevor the rabbit is a huge favorite.”
Wildcat Glades offers many educational programs, everything from water gardens to preserve water quality to art classes. A new Eagle’s Nest Nature Landing area invites kids to pretend to be a woodpecker and sit in a huge eagle’s nest. There’s a musical element, too, Robin says. “I’ll be out there banging a drum.”
None of this would be possible, Robin says, without the center’s many volunteers. “We have people who have donated over 3,000 hours, and they come from all walks of life. There’s a young mom who’s creating a YouTube video for us, and a retired surgeon who comes in every week and does building maintenance. We have a retired veterinarian, retired nurses, college students, each has something to offer. And since we don’t charge admission, we couldn’t stay open without them.”
Joan Banks, a retired librarian who has volunteered at the center’s gift shop since it opened, says the truly rewarding part of working at Wildcat Glades is watching the visitors come in. “So many just see the sign out on the highway,” she says. “They get out of the car and are thrilled to see what a great facility this is, and, of course, to meet the rabbit.”
Renee Wright
A graduate of Franconia College in Social Psychology, Renee has worked as Travel Editor for Charlotte Magazine and has written three travel guidebooks for Countryman Press among other writing assignments. She enjoys food and camping.
Make Sure To Stay At:
Joplin KOA, a convenient stop for rest and relaxation, food, fuel, shopping and entertainment. Big-rig sites include 50/30 amp, cable TV on selected sites under mature oak trees and full-hookup pull thrus.