11/4/2023 | Bennett Spring State Park | Lebanon, MO
Everyone is welcome to help improve the environment on Saturday, Nov. 4, at Bennett Spring State Park. Stream Team #5462 will clean up the area in and around the park’s namesake spring. Volunteers of all ages are welcome to participate, but children need to be accompanied by a parent or guardian. All scuba divers will be coordinated by James Presley. To preregister for diving, contact James at 417-883-5151 or James.Presley@diventures.com. Non-divers can check in at the nature center on the day of the event to obtain gloves and trash bags.
Bennett Spring State Park is located near the town of Lebanon in the Missouri Ozarks, and has many different natural communities, including rich bottomland and stream habitats associated with the spring valley, along with oak-hickory woodlands. Bennett Spring is one of the largest springs in the state, providing a daily average of more than 100 million gallons of water to a stream branch that flows into the Niangua River.
The Niangua is home to a group of salamanders called hellbenders. These prehistoric creatures have been around for more than 150 million years and are one of the largest salamanders in the world. One particular subspecies, the Ozark hellbender, can grow to more than 2 feet in length. True to its name, this type of hellbender is found only in the Ozarks, where it lives under large rocks in fast-flowing, oxygen-rich streams. Water quality is essential to its survival. The Niangua supports hellbenders by having cool, clear waters; a moderate-to-fast current; and plenty of places to hide. Join us in helping hellbenders and other organisms by removing trash from the Bennett Spring area, which flows directly into the Niangua River.
Event Time: 10 a.m. - 4 p.m.
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