Oak Openings Preserve Metropark is a nature preserve located in Swanton Township, Ohio , owned and operated by Metroparks Toledo . Most of the park is an oak savanna ecosystem, characterized by alternating wetland and vegetated dunes .
4-559: The park hosts the Beuhner Center, an interactive nature center. There are over fifty miles of trails in Oak Openings Preserve. The park gets its name from the region in which it is located. Oak Openings Preserve lies within the larger Oak Openings Region . The region hosts over 180 rare species of plants and animals. This is over one-third of all rare species found in the state of Ohio . According to The Nature Conservancy ,
8-486: Is considered by The Nature Conservancy as having a similar ecological importance as the Florida Everglades and is one of the 200 "Last Great Places on Earth". This unique area was formed after the last ice age when the continental glacier melted leaving behind a large lake called Lake Warren . Over time, this lake was gradually reduced to present day Lake Erie and left behind a large tract of sandy soil to
12-468: The Oak Openings Region is one of the 200 "Last Great Places on Earth". This Northwest Ohio location article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Oak Openings Region The Oak Openings Region is a globally rare ecosystem composed of over 1,300 square miles (3,400 km ) of Michigan and Ohio. The land consists largely of oak savanna and grassland prairie. It
16-544: The west. The area was frequented by wildfires that only the thick-barked oak trees could survive. When pioneers arrived after first crossing through the Great Black Swamp they called the area the "Oak Openings" as a comparison to the thick swamp. Today, the Oak Openings Preserve Metropark is the largest intact piece of mostly dry savanna remaining. The largest sections of swamp and savanna, are in
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