Minnesota Seasons - Carver Park Reserve


Carver Park Reserve

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			Hennepin County




Size	3,300 acres

Maps	Three Rivers Park District Summer Map Lowry Nature Center trail map

Parking	Lowry Nature Center N44 52.916 W93 40.943

Hiking Trails	Turf hiking trails – 21.6 miles Paved hike/bike trails – 8.5 miles One leg of the Lake Minnetonka LRT Regional Trail begins in the park.

Ecological Classification	Province	Eastern Broadleaf Forest Province
	Section	Minnesota & NE Iowa Morainal
	Subsection(s)	Big Woods
	Land Type Association(s)	Maple Plain Moraine

Native Plant Communities¹	Southern Mesic Maple-Basswood Forest Sugar Maple - Basswood - (Bitternut Hickory) Forest Sugar Maple Forest (Big Woods) Tamarack Swamp (Southern)

Ownership	Three Rivers Park District

Links	Three Rivers Park District Carver Park Reserve Lowry Nature Center

Comments

Images
Horse Trail Entrance

Lowry Nature Center and Hiking Trail Entrance





Amphibians

	western chorus frog (Pseudacris triseriata)

Birds	One bird species with protected status in Minnesota has been seen here: Threatened – Trumpeter swan (Cygnus buccinator) Trumpeter Swans can be seen at the Fred E. King Waterfowl Sanctuary on Lutsen Lake. They can be viewed from a blind at the end of Carver Park Road. In 2011 a pair of Trumpeter Swans and four cygnets could be seen on Crosby Lake.

	American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos) Barn Swallow (Hirundo rustica) Black-capped Chickadee (Poecile atricapillus) Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata) Blue-winged Teal (Anas discors) Brown-headed Cowbird (Molothrus ater) Canada Goose (Branta canadensis) Clay-colored Sparrow (Spizella pallida) Downy Woodpecker (Picoides pubescens) Eastern Bluebird (Sialia sialis) Eastern Wood-peewee (Contopus virens) Gray Catbird (Dumetella carolinensis) Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias) Great Egret (Ardea alba) Green Heron (Butorides virescens) Hairy Woodpecker (Picoides villosus) Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos) Mourning Dove (Zenaida macroura) Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis) Red-winged Blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus) Ring-necked Pheasant (Phasianus colchicus) Trumpeter Swan (Cygnus buccinator) Turkey Vulture (Cathartes aura) White-throated Sparrow (Zonotrichia albicollis) Wild Turkey (Meleagris gallopavo) Wood Duck (Aix sponsa) Yellow-rumped Warbler (Dendroica coronata)

Insects and Arachnids

	band-winged meadowhawk (Sympetrum semicinctum) common wood nymph (Cercyonis pegala nephala) four-spotted skimmer (Libellula quadrimaculata) goldenrod gall fly (Eurosta solidaginis) great spangled fritillary (Speyeria cybele) Halloween pennant (Celithemis eponina) monarch (Danaus plexippus) ruby meadowhawk (Sympetrum rubicundulum) twelve-spotted skimmer (Libellula pulchella) widow skimmer (Libellula luctuosa)

Mammals

	American beaver (Castor canadensis) American red squirrel (Tamiasciurus hudsonicus) eastern chipmunk (Tamias striatus) eastern gray squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis) whitetail deer (Odocoileus virginianus)

Plants	One plant species with protected status in Minnesota is found here: Threatened – Sullivant’s milkweed (Asclepias sullivantii) University of Minnesota Herbarium Plant List Plants frequently found in: Southern Mesic Maple-Basswood Forest MHs39 Sugar Maple - Basswood - (Bitternut Hickory) Forest MHs39a Sugar Maple Forest (Big Woods) MHs39c Tamarack Swamp (Southern) FPs63a

	alfalfa (Medicago sativa ssp. sativa) American basswood (Tilia americana) American bugleweed (Lycopus americanus) American elderberry (Sambucus nigra ssp. canadensis) American elm (Ulmus americana) American vetch (Vicia americana ssp. americana) American white waterlily (Nymphaea odorata) bastard toadflax (Comandra umbellata) bird’s-foot trefoil (Lotus corniculatus var. corniculatus) bittersweet nightshade (Solanum dulcamara) black cherry (Prunus serotina var. serotina) black medick (Medicago lupulina) black raspberry (Rubus occidentalis) black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia hirta) black-seeded plantain (Plantago rugelii var. rugelii) bland sweet cicely (Osmorhiza claytonii) bloodroot (Sanguinaria canadensis) blue spruce (Picea pungens) blue vervain (Verbena hastata) boxelder (Acer negundo var. negundo) broad-leaved arrowhead (Sagittaria latifolia) broadleaf enchanter’s nightshade (Circaea lutetiana ssp. canadensis) bull thistle (Cirsium vulgare) bur oak (Quercus macrocarpa var. macrocarpa) butterfly weed (Asclepias tuberosa ssp. interior) butternut (Juglans cinerea) Canada moonseed (Menispermum canadense) Canada thistle (Cirsium arvense) Canadian tick-trefoil (Desmodium canadense) Canadian woodnettle (Laportea canadensis) chokecherry (Prunus virginiana var. virginiana) clammy groundcherry (Physalis heterophylla var. heterophylla) cleavers (Galium aparine) clustered bellflower (Campanula glomerata) clustered black snakeroot (Sanicula odorata) common blue violet (Viola sororia) common buckthorn (Rhamnus cathartica) common burdock (Arctium minus) common dandelion (Taraxacum officinale ssp. officinale) common milkweed (Asclepias syriaca) common motherwort (Leonurus cardiaca) common mullein (Verbascum thapsus) common ragweed (Ambrosia artemisiifolia) common yarrow (Achillea millefolium) Culver’s root (Veronicastrum virginicum) cup plant (Silphium perfoliatum var. perfoliatum) curly dock (Rumex crispus) cut-leaved toothwort (Cardamine concatenata) Deptford pink (Dianthus armeria) eastern redcedar (Juniperus virginiana var. virginiana) false sunflower (Heliopsis helianthoides var. occidentalis) foxtail barley (Hordeum jubatum ssp. jubatum) garlic mustard (Alliaria petiolata) giant ragweed (Ambrosia trifida var. trifida) glossy buckthorn (Frangula alnus) gray dogwood (Cornus racemosa) grayleaf red raspberry (Rubus idaeus ssp. strigosus) green ash (Fraxinus pennsylvanica) grove sandwort (Moehringia lateriflora) heal-all (Prunella vulgaris) ironwood (Ostrya virginiana var. virginiana) Jack-in-the-pulpit (Arisaema triphyllum) kidney-leaved buttercup (Ranunculus abortivus) large-flowered bellwort (Uvularia grandiflora) leadplant (Amorpha canescens) lesser bladderwort (Utricularia minor) lesser duckweed (Lemna minor) marsh skullcap (Scutellaria galericulata) Missouri gooseberry (Ribes missouriense) Morrow’s honeysuckle (Lonicera morrowii) narrow-leaved cattail (Typha angustifolia) northern bedstraw (Galium boreale) northern hackberry (Celtis occidentalis) northern lady fern (Athyrium filix-femina ssp. angustum) northern pin oak (Quercus ellipsoidalis) northern red oak (Quercus rubra) paper birch (Betula papyrifera var. papyrifera) plains cottonwood (Populus deltoides ssp. molinifera) pointed-leaved tick-trefoil (Desmodium glutinosum) prairie dropseed (Sporobolus heterolepis) prairie peppergrass (Lepidium densiflorum var. densiflorum) purple giant hyssop (Agastache scrophulariifolia) purple prairie clover (Dalea purpurea var. purpurea) quaking aspen (Populus tremuloides) Queen Anne’s lace (Daucus carota ssp. carota) red clover (Trifolium pratense) rough cinquefoil (Potentilla norvegica) round-headed bush clover (Lespedeza capitata) round-leaved dogwood (Cornus rugosa) rue anemone (Thalictrum thalictroides) sensitive fern (Onoclea sensibilis) sharp-lobed hepatica (Anemone acutiloba) silver maple (Acer saccharinum) smooth sumac (Rhus glabra) smooth yellow violet (Viola pubescens var. scabriuscula) spotted St. Johnswort (Hypericum punctatum) spreading dogbane (Apocynum androsaemifolium) staghorn sumac (Rhus hirta) starry false Solomon’s seal (Maianthemum stellatum) sugar maple (Acer saccharum ssp. saccharum) Sullivant’s milkweed (Asclepias sullivantii) swamp milkweed (Asclepias incarnata ssp. incarnata) tamarack (Larix laricina) Tartarian honeysuckle (Lonicera tatarica) timothy (Phleum pratense) variegated yellow pond lily (Nuphar variegata) Virginia waterleaf (Hydrophyllum virginianum var. virginianum) white avens (Geum canadense var. canadense) white campion (Silene latifolia ssp. alba) white clover (Trifolium repens) white prairie clover (Dalea candida) white snakeroot (Ageratina altissima var. altissima) white spruce (Picea glauca) white sweet clover (Melilotus albus) wild bergamot (Monarda fistulosa) wild grape (Vitis riparia) wild leek (Allium tricoccum) wild sarsaparilla (Aralia nudicaulis) winter vetch (Vicia villosa ssp. villosa) wood anemone (Anemone quinquefolia var. quinquefolia) woodbine (Parthenocissus vitacea) woodland strawberry (Fragaria vesca ssp. americana) woundwort (Stachys pilosa var. arenicola) yellow goat’s beard (Tragopogon dubius) yellow sweet clover (Melilotus officinalis) yellow wood sorrel (Oxalis stricta)

Reptiles

	western painted turtle (Chrysemys picta bellii)

Visits	4/27/2006 7/8/2011