Cajun Prairie Habitat Preservation Society

The landscape image for Louisiana in many people's minds, is often that of a swamp or marsh so it usually comes as a surprise to many people that there is (or more correctly, was) a well developed prairie (some estimates up to 2.5 million acres) in Louisiana et al.  Much of southwestern Louisiana inland from the marsh, south of the pine savannah region, and between the Atchafalaya and Sabine rivers was historically a distinct grassland.  Early names given to the region include Attakapas Country and the Great Southwestern Prairie but a more fitting name is Cajun Prairie since many of its early settlers were Cajuns. This prairie was developed in an area that receives more than 50 inches of rainfall per year. Forests usually develop in areas with more than 30 inches of rainfall per year.  Plausible explanations for the prairie development in this area include: (1) a hard clay pan layer 12-15 inches below the soil surface that would retard the growth of tree roots; (2) fires that would kill woody plants but not harm the herbaceous perennials including grasses; (3) grazing animals including bison that once roamed this area; (4) winds that would uproot trees especially during heavy rains that might accompany a hurricane; and (5) lack of the proper mycorrhizae for the development of tree to root relationships.  

      Today, most of the prairie has been destroyed and replaced by cultivated crops, in particular rice.  A few remnant prairies remain mostly along railroad rights-of-way.  Most of these remnants were never tilled or have not been tilled since the railroad acquired the land ca 150 years ago.  The estimated total area of intact Cajun Prairie today is 100 acres.