ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Wednesday, June 26, 1996 TAG: 9606260038
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-1 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: FLOYD
SOURCE: ELISSA MILENKY STAFF WRITER
NEXT SUMMER, the state intends to open to the public a tract on Floyd County's Buffalo Mountain that has been set aside to preserve rare plant and animal species.
Buffalo Mountain, a Floyd County landmark that has inspired the name of a high school mascot and once was the domain of Revolutionary War Gen. Henry "Lighthorse Harry" Lee, now will play a new role in the New River Valley.
The state is buying 1,000 acres atop the mountain to preserve as a natural area that will be open to the public by next summer. So far, 18 rare species of plants and a few animals have been identified on the mountain - including a small insect called a Kosztarab's mealybug that scientists believe exists nowhere else.
"Buffalo Mountain, without a doubt, is one of the most exceptional areas in the state," said Tom Smith, director of the Department of Conservation and Recreation's natural heritage division.
The purchase is part of the department's ongoing program to protect unique and important species and natural communities throughout the state. The program began after the Natural Area Preserves Act was passed in 1989 but was bolstered by a state bond referendum in 1992 that included $95.4million for parks and recreation.
Before the referendum, the state bought more than 1,000 acres on Poor Mountain for preservation with money from the state and The Nature Conservancy, a private organization.
The approximately $2million to buy the land on Buffalo Mountain will be funded through that state bond referendum. Seven other natural areas have been purchased with the bond money in other parts of the state, and negotiations are under way with property owners in Franklin County. Smith did not elaborate on the negotiations, which are in the early stages.
The land on Buffalo Mountain was once part of a larger tract given to Lee - the father of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee - as a reward for his service in the Revolutionary War. It was bought from the family-owned Lawson Co. Inc. Jack Lawson, a Floyd County farmer and businessman, is one of five family members who own more than 3,000 acres atop Buffalo Mountain.
Lawson's grandfather and great-uncle purchased the land from Lee's ancestors in 1906 with two other businessmen. Through the years, the land intermittently has been used for timber but has remained largely undeveloped. A fire tower erected during the 1940s, which the state soon will tear down, is the only man-made structure within view atop the mountain.
The family was approached about preservation efforts during the 1980s by The Nature Conservancy, but no final deal was ever reached. The nonprofit organization continued its contact with the Lawsons, however, and ultimately acquired the 1,000 acres June 17. It soon will transfer the land to the state.
The family will keep the remaining 2,000 acres.
"The holding costs were getting high on large tracts of land," Lawson said. "The real interest was the state acquiring the land so we knew it would be protected. We've always allowed public access up there, and we feel it's a special place."
The mountain, which inspired the name for the Floyd High School Buffaloes, is famous for a uniquely shaped peak that resembles a charging Buffalo hunched forward in concentration. At 3,971 feet, it is among the highest peaks in Virginia's Blue Ridge Mountains and is visible from many vantage points miles away in the New River Valley, including the Blue Ridge Parkway.
The mountain's elevation, wind-exposed openings at its summit and magnesium-rich soil makes it one of Virginia's most important natural areas, according to an ecological background paper supplied by The Nature Conservancy.
Plants usually found in Canada and the northern United States grow on Buffalo Mountain's cold, windy, treeless summit, including fir club moss and mountain rattlesnake root, the report said. Tall prairie grasses can be found below the summit, and a rare plant found only in the Virginia and North Carolina mountains called the Gray's lily grows in wet areas.
Smith said research on the mountain will continue, including further identification of insects and invertebrates. Some of the natural habitats also will have to be actively maintained, he said.
During the next year, an access road to the newly acquired land will be improved, and a nature trail and parking lot will be built. Aside from these additions, the land will remain the same.
"We're really managing the property for people's enjoyment," Smith said.
LENGTH: Medium: 89 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: GENE DALTON/Staff. 1. Buffalo Mountain's elevation,by CNBwind-exposed openings at its summit and rich soil make it one of
Virginia's most important natural areas, experts say. color. 2. The
family of Floyd County's Jack Lawson is selling 1,000 of its 3,000
acres atop Buffalo Mountain. He said state protection of the area is
a concern of the family's. Graphic: Map by staff.