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Lower Duck River River Property Preserved
This summer, a conservation easement on 338 acres in Hickman County was donated by Lee Hunter, an orthopedic surgeon in Columbia, TN. This property is a classic western highland rim landscape best described by its long ridges and steep hill sides with substantial oak-hickory forests. This property includes the watersheds of Panther Cave, Mud Branch and Stairstep Hollow, plus over half a mile of frontage on the lower Duck River. These drainages contain significant flora in their rocky outcrops and northern slopes of thickets of mountain laurel. Panther Cave itself is located within a steep valley there and is locally loved as a special geologic feature with a 15’ waterfall that flows out at a constant rate. A recent survey of the cave found waterfalls, bat roosts, flowstone and rimstone formations. Local lore reports that more than 200 people have been in the cave at one time. According to the Tennessee Division of Natural Heritage the Cerulean Warbler (Dendroica cerulean), a state and federally listed rare species, has been observed nearby. In addition, cave biologists recently observed grey bats (Myotis grisescens) inhabiting Panther Cave year round. Grey bats have been listed as a Federally Endangered Species since 1976 and are one of only two species so designated in Tennessee. This Lower Duck River Watershed area is also home to fifteen at-risk fish and mussel species and four fish and mussel species listed as Endangered. Within a 5-mile radius of this property, The Land Trust also protects significant lands owned by Lee and Nancy Fleisher, Fred and Fay Baker and Bill and Shirley McEwen. Thank you, Lee!
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