Stay in Touch with MDC news, newsletters, events, and manage your subscription
Xplor reconnects kids to nature and helps them find adventure in their own backyard. Free to residents of Missouri.
A monthly publication about conservation in Missouri. Started in 1938, the printed magazine is free to residents of Missouri.
KIRKSVILLE, Mo. – The Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) announces a new addition to Morris Prairie Conservation Area (CA), the Alfred J. and Joanna C. Anesi Tract. The 128-acre Anesi Tract was made possible by a donation from the Anesi family through the Missouri Conservation Heritage Foundation. The new tract will be restored to grassland habitat with prescribed burning, invasive plant control and seeding native grasses and wildflowers.
“It’s humbling to know the Anesi family had a vision for supporting conservation and wanted citizens to have a place to enjoy and use for generations to come in northern Missouri,” said MDC Deputy Director Aaron Jeffries.
The Alfred J. and Joanna C. Anesi Tract of Morris Prairie CA is expected to open to the public in spring 2027. In the meantime, several improvement projects are scheduled for this winter including perimeter fencing and access improvements.
Morris Prairie CA contains one of the highest-quality prairie remnants in northern Missouri, the Morris Prairie Natural Area. At 340 acres, the property’s grassland habitats support more than 200 native plants, including several uncommon species such as bunchflower, prairie dropseed, and Indian paintbrush.
Learn more about Morris Prairie CA at http://short.mdc.mo.gov/oxX.
