Prairie Lake NEON - United States of America

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Basic Information
Site Name
Prairie Lake NEON
Short name
PRLA
Country
United States of America
Web Address
https://www.neonscience.org/field-sites/prla
Site Manager
Andrea Anteau
Site Description
Prairie Lake (PRLA) is an aquatic NEON field site located on the Missouri Coteau approximately 15 km (9.3 mi.) west of Pingree, North Dakota. PRLA sits in a 4.5 km2 (1112 acre) watershed, on land managed by the State of North Dakota Land Trust. The region includes a patchwork of grasslands, agricultural, and wetland/aquatic communities embedded in a matrix of small agrarian communities. The landscape at PRLA is characterized by rolling hills covered in mixed-grass prairie with a high concentration of wetlands. This site is part of NEON's Northern Plains Domain (D09). D09 has one other aquatic field site and three terrestrial field sites. PRLA is colocated with the Dakota Coteau Field School (DCFS) terrestrial field site.
Relationships to other sites
This site groups with:
Last modified
2025-09-18 15:36:54

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General Characteristics and Status
Site Status
Operational
Year Established
2014
Observed properties
Affiliation and Network Specific Information
Affiliation
GERI✔This site is a verified "GERI" member.
NEON✔ (PRLA)This site is a verified "NEON" member.
Photos
PRLA plant diversity training
PRLA plant diversity training
Geographic
View in site map
Centroid/Representative Coordinates

Latitude: 47.15909 Longitude: -99.11388

Size
ca. 447.00ha
Elevation (average)
565.00msl
Elevation (min)
494.00msl
Elevation (max)
592.00msl
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Site information [.json]

Centroid/representative coordinates [.shp] [.kml] [.geojson]
GEO-BON Biome
Fresh water lakes
Biome
Fresh Water Lakes
Ecosystem Type
Agricultural
Grasslands
Lakes
Fresh Water Lakes
Air Temperature: Average Annual
4.90°C
Precipitation Annual
490.00mm
Geology
The Missouri Coteau is the geologic feature that extends from east-central South Dakota through southwestern Saskatchewan. The Coteau rises 91-152 m (~300-500 ft.) above the Drift Plain to the east. It has a hilly landscape composed of knobs and kettles, which in turn are comprised of glacial till. There is also glaciofluvial material found in the area which was deposited by the stagnation of glacial ice. The geology at this site is characterized by glacial sediments of mud, clay and silt. More specifically, the parent materials are mostly Wisconsin age, fine-loamy glacial till, and alluvium derived from the till. In addition to the till, the northeastern section of the site consists of sandy and gravelly glacial outwash.
Vegetation
The Northern Plains Domain is dominated by prairie grasslands, including a combination of short and mid-stature grasses, and croplands. The riparian vegetation at PRLA is primarily composed of grasses and occasional trees. The surrounding area is dominated by Kentucky blue grass (Poa pretensis (L.)), silverberry (Elaeagnus commutate), and fireberry hawthorn (Crataegus chrysocarpa).
Soils
The soil order at this site is Mollisol. The soil family is fine-loamy, mixed, superactive, frigid Typic Haplustolls.
Hydrology
The area surrounding PRLA is a matrix of small lakes, ponds, and ephemeral prairie potholes. PRLA is a small "terminal wetland" lake, containing mostly sand substrate, with some macrophytes (sedges) and few areas of pebble/cobble. The bank material at the lake is peat and sedges.
Site Type
Non-stationary land-based site
Design of Experimentation
mainly experimentation
Scale of Experimentation
catchment scale
Design of Observation
mainly observation
Scale of Observation
entire catchment
Permanent Power Supply
No
Accessible All Year
Yes
Permanent Operation
No