Doolittle State Preserve

Doolittle Prairie is a 26-acre remnant of native tallgrass prairie. This state preserve is located two miles south of Story City, in Story County. It is named after the Doolittle family, particularly William Doolittle, who first settled the land in 1855. The property was purchased in 1979 from his grandchildren. It was dedicated as a state preserve in 1980 for its biological and geological features. 

About the Land

The preserve is located on a level upland dotted with temporary and seasonal marshes in a pothole complex that is characteristic of much of the Des Moines Lobe landform region. This region was glaciated about 12,000 to 14,000 years ago, making it some of the most recently glaciated terrain in Iowa. One result of this recent geologic history is a poorly drained landscape. At the time of settlement in the 1850s, this area consisted of numerous shallow wetlands surrounded by tallgrass prairie. Subtle drainage links between these wetland depressions mark the paths taken by glacial meltwater as the stagnant ice of the Altamont glacier slowly melted. Most of these potholes were subsequently drained for agricultural purposes, but Doolittle Prairie is one of the few unaltered prairie-pothole wetland complexes remaining in the Des Moines Lobe region. 

Land Use History

The north 15 acres of the preserve was never plowed or grazed, but hay was harvested from this “wild meadow” until the late 1960s. The southern portion of the preserve (south of the former fence row) had a history of grazing. The southwest corner was plowed until 1965, although recently it was replanted with seed harvested from the northern portion. The access road was planted with prairie seed in the 1980s. 

Flora & Fauna

Fourteen potholes are found in this preserve. The largest potholes retain water throughout the summer and are characterized by bulrush, sedges, smartweed, water plantain, and arrowhead. Yellow-water crowfoot and common bladderwort are found in the pothole basins in wetter years. 

The poorly drained wet prairie surrounding the potholes and the wet depressions throughout the preserve are dominated by sedges, bluejoint grass, woundwort, and water horehound. These wetland communities blend into the surrounding prairie, which is dominated by big bluestem, switchgrass, Indian grass, rattlesnake master, purple prairie clover, prairie blazing star, Culver’s root, and compass plant. 

This preserve supports a diverse flora and fauna, with a total of nearly 220 native plants, forty-five birds, several mammals, and thirty-one butterflies. The preserve is in continual bloom from April until the first harsh frosts of October. 

Yellow stargrass, prairie ragwort, violet wood sorrel, bastard toadflax, and spiderwort are among the many beautiful forbs that carpet the prairie on the early days of spring among the porcupine grass and Junegrass. Throughout the summer, many additional species bloom, including swamp milkweed, spotted water hemlock, gray-headed coneflower, ironweed, slender mountain mint, and wild onion. By fall, color is provided by asters, sneezeweed, sawtooth sunflower, rough blazing star, and bottle gentian. 

The Story County Conservation Board uses the preserve as an educational site; students from Iowa State University use it for a study site. 

Hunting is allowed. 

Similar state preserves in Iowa include Hoffman Prairie, Liska-Stanek Prairie, and Kalsow Prairie. All of these tracts have mesic prairies with scattered potholes.