Buffalo Mountain Natural Area Preserve | |
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Location | Floyd County, Virginia |
Coordinates | 36°47′45″N 80°28′37″W / 36.79583°N 80.47694°W |
Area | 1,146 acres (4.64 km2) |
Governing body | Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation |
Buffalo Mountain Natural Area Preserve is a 1,146-acre (4.64 km2) Natural Area Preserve in Floyd County, Virginia. [1]
Buffalo Mountain Natural Area Preserve covers the summit and slopes of Buffalo Mountain, a 3,960-foot (1,210 m) peak in southwest Virginia. [2] It is open to the public and includes a small parking area from which an approximately one-mile-long (1.6 km) trail may be traversed to reach the summit. [1]
The treeless summit is home to rare plant species including three-toothed cinquefoil ( Sibbaldia tridentata) and Rocky Mountain woodsia ( Physematium scopulinum); other rare plants, such as bog bluegrass ( Poa paludigena) and large-leaved grass-of-Parnassus ( Parnassia grandifolia), are found at seeps along the mountain's base. In total, the preserve protects thirteen rare plant occurrences, three rare animal occurrences, and six significant natural communities. [1] Buffalo Mountain is also the only place in the world where the mealybug Puto kosztarabi is known to live. [3][ dead link]