Devils Backbone Wilderness is a protected area in

Missouri Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...

that is maintained by the

United States Forest Service The United States Forest Service (USFS) is an agency within the United States Department of Agriculture, U.S. Department of Agriculture. It administers the nation's 154 United States National Forest, national forests and 20 United States Natio ...

and was designated as such by the

United States Congress The United States Congress is the legislature, legislative branch of the federal government of the United States. It is a Bicameralism, bicameral legislature, including a Lower house, lower body, the United States House of Representatives, ...

in 1980. The

wilderness Wilderness or wildlands (usually in the plurale tantum, plural) are Earth, Earth's natural environments that have not been significantly modified by human impact on the environment, human activity, or any urbanization, nonurbanized land not u ...

area now has a total of . Devils Backbone is located within the Willow Springs portion of the Ava-Cassville-Willow Springs Ranger District, of the

Mark Twain National Forest Mark Twain National Forest (MTNF) is a U.S. National Forest located in the southern half of Missouri, composed of nine disconnected parcels. MTNF was established on September 11, 1939. It is named for author Mark Twain, a Missouri native. The ...

, near Willow Springs. It was named for a prominent ridge down the center of the area. Devils Backbone Wilderness is one of eight

areas protected and preserved in Missouri.

Geography

The Devils Backbone Wilderness area is located in northeastern Ozark County about north of the

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the West South Central region of the Southern United States. It borders Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, Texas to the southwest, and Oklahoma ...

-Missouri border. It has a flatter topography than most of the

Ozarks The Ozarks, also known as the Ozark Mountains, Ozark Highlands or Ozark Plateau, is a physiographic region in the U.S. states of Missouri, Arkansas, and Oklahoma, as well as a small area in the southeastern corner of Kansas. The Ozarks cover ...

with a maximum elevation of . The nearest city is West Plains which is east.

Ecology

Flora

Devils Backbone offers a variety of recreational activities for visitors. In the spring season,

dogwood ''Cornus'' is a genus of about 30–60 species of woody plants in the family Cornaceae, commonly known as dogwoods or cornels, which can generally be distinguished by their blossoms, berries, and distinctive bark. Most are deciduous ...

, redbud, and serviceberry trees are flowering in full force. Then, in fall the foliage of the oaks, sassafras, and red maples begin to turn a vast array of reds, yellows, and oranges.

Fauna

For those interested in

wildlife Wildlife refers to domestication, undomesticated animals and uncultivated plant species which can exist in their natural habitat, but has come to include all organisms that grow or live wilderness, wild in an area without being species, introdu ...

White-tailed deer The white-tailed deer (''Odocoileus virginianus''), also known Common name, commonly as the whitetail and the Virginia deer, is a medium-sized species of deer native to North America, North, Central America, Central and South America. It is the ...

(''Odocoileus virginiana''), red and grey fox (''Vulpes vulpes'' and ''Urycyon cinereoargenteus''),

bobcat The bobcat (''Lynx rufus''), also known as the wildcat, bay lynx, or red lynx, is one of the four extant species within the medium-sized wild cat genus '' Lynx''. Native to North America, it ranges from southern Canada through most of the c ...

s (''Lynx rufus''),

skunk Skunks are mammals in the family Mephitidae. They are known for their ability to spray a liquid with a strong, unpleasant scent from their anal glands. Different species of skunk vary in appearance from black-and-white to brown, cream or gi ...

s (''Mephitis mephitis''),

squirrel Squirrels are members of the family Sciuridae (), a family that includes small or medium-sized rodents. The squirrel family includes tree squirrels, ground squirrels (including chipmunks and prairie dogs, among others), and flying squirrel ...

s (''Sciurus niger'' and ''S. carolinensis''),

coyote The coyote (''Canis latrans''), also known as the American jackal, prairie wolf, or brush wolf, is a species of canis, canine native to North America. It is smaller than its close relative, the Wolf, gray wolf, and slightly smaller than the c ...

s (''Canis latrans''), and

raccoon The raccoon ( or , ''Procyon lotor''), sometimes called the North American, northern or common raccoon (also spelled racoon) to distinguish it from Procyonina, other species of raccoon, is a mammal native to North America. It is the largest ...

s (''Procyon lotor'') can be seen roaming the limestone glades. Visitors, especially hikers should be aware of potentially threatening (but easily avoided) copperhead snakes (''Agkistrodon contortrix'') and Eastern

timber rattlesnake The timber rattlesnake (''Crotalus horridus''), also known Common name, commonly as the canebrake rattlesnake and the banded rattlesnake,Albert Hazen WWright AH, species:Anna Allen WWright AA (1957). ''Handbook of Snakes of the United States a ...

s (''Crotalus horridus'') are likewise commonly seen.

Recreation

The North Fork River is also main attraction for visitors to the area. There are three springs within Devils Backbone that feed the North Fork (Blue, Amber, and McGarr). There is even a canoe launch for the river which offers smallmouth bass, blue gill, and rock bass

angling Angling (from Old English ''angol'', meaning "hook") is a fishing technique that uses a fish hook attached to a fishing line to tether individual fish in the mouth. The fishing line is usually manipulated with a fishing rod, although rodless te ...

opportunities. Horseback riding is popular on a network of trails in the wilderness.

References

External links

* {{Authority control IUCN Category Ib Protected areas of Ozark County, Missouri Wilderness areas of Missouri Mark Twain National Forest