Elephant Rocks State Park — Public Lands Institute

Geological age: ~1.47 billion years ago (granite intrusion)
Epoch: Proterozoic eon; Rhyacian period; Graniteville Granite pluton emplaced during Midcontinent Rift precursor activity; spheroidal weathering forms developed over millions of subsequent years
Taxa: 127 plants, 20 birds, 59 insects, 4 mammals, 23 fungi, 18 reptiles, 4 amphibians, 7 arachnids
Most observed: Prairie Lizard (Sceloporus consobrinus)
blackjack oak (Quercus marilandica)
shining sumac (Rhus copallinum)
Six-lined Racerunner (Aspidoscelis sexlineatus)
fragrant sumac (Rhus aromatica)
Native lands: Osage Nation (Wazhazhe) · earlier Archaic and Woodland period peoples; Osage ancestral domain included all of southern Missouri; forced removal 1825
Ecology: Igneous glade and savanna; rare lichen communities on granite surfaces; St. Francois Mountains endemic flora
Hydrology: Headwaters of Stout Creek; ephemeral drainage between boulder fields
Acreage: 132 acres
Conservation: Missouri State Park; Missouri State Natural Area (Elephant Rocks Natural Area)
Endangered species: none documented
GPS: 37.6370° N, 90.7260° W