Native Oaks Ridge
Easement
The McKenzie River Trust purchased a conservation easement on the property. Funding was provided by the Bonneville Power Administration and Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife’s Willamette Wildlife Mitigation Program. The landowners, Doug and Linda Carnine, also donated a portion of the easement value.
Oak and prairie habitats are increasingly rare in the Willamette Valley.
Meet Native Oaks Ridge
Why it’s important
The Native Oaks Ridge Conservation Easement protects 326 acres of oak savanna, oak woodland, upland prairie and conifer forest above the Row River. Oak and prairie habitats are increasingly rare in the Willamette Valley. The property is approximately a mile from the Cerro Gordo Conservation Easement, building a network of natural areas, providing a corridor for plants and animals to move throughout the Row River region.
Wildlife and Plants
There are a number of important plant and animal species at Native Oaks Ridge. Golden paintbrush, a threatened plant species introduced on the property in partnership with the US Fish and Wildlife Partners for Fish and Wildlife Program, is thriving in the upland prairie. The oak woodland, savanna, and upland prairie host numerous other iconic native Oregon wildflowers, including camas, rosy checker-mallow, Oregon iris, shooting star, and many more. Bear, deer, elk, cougar, bobcat, coyote, western bluebird, and acorn woodpecker have all been seen on the property.