Anoka Ecosystems
Anoka County is almost entirely within the Anoka Sandplain ecosystem of the North Central Hardwood Forest. The landscape is dominated by fine sandy knolls and flats and is surrounded by large peat deposits and mineral hydric soil areas.
The landscape can be divided into three categories, which include dry upland, mesic upland, and wetland or shoreland. The dry upland areas support oak forests and oak savanna, while the mesic upland areas support mixed hardwood forests which can include red maple, trembling aspen, and northern pin oak. The wet areas support a variety of wetland types, including open water marshes, cattail swamps, sedge meadows, shrub and hardwood swamps, tamarack and spruce bogs and white cedar swamps (Wovcha et. al 1995). The Minnesota County Biological Survey, a group of ecologists from the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, have designated some natural areas not greatly altered by human activity as Natural Communities. Use the mapping utility to see if there are any natural communities in your neighborhood.
Wildlife on the Sandplain
Anoka County's diverse upland and wetland habitat support a variety of rare birds, amphibians, reptiles, insects and plants. A few examples are the sandhill crane, Blanding's turtle, hognose snake, Karner blue butterfly, and rhombic-petaled evening primrose. All of these special wildlife and plant species are dependent upon and play an important role in a particular ecosystem, which is an interacting community of living things and their environment.
Sources:
Coffin, B. and L Pfannmuller (eds). Minnesota's Endangered Flora and Fauna. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 1988.
Wovcha, D., B. Delaney, and G. Nordquist. Minnesota's St. Croix River Valley and Anoka Sandplain: A guide to Native Habitats. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 1995.
