Iron Springs Bog SNA

Iron Springs Bog SNA is a scientific and natural area (SNA) of Minnesota, United States. It is located in Clearwater County and spans 231 acres. Iron springs bog is located in Minnesota's Chippewa Plains, two miles northeast of Lake Itasca, which is the headwaters of the Mississippi River and a popular tourist destination. Contrary to its name, Iron Springs Bog does not actually contain a bog. Rather, the wetland portion of the SNA is a fen fed by calcium-rich groundwater. The SNA is composed of both wetland and forest habitats. Iron Springs Bog hosts numerous rare plant species, notably orchids and carnivorous plants. Due to Iron Springs' proximity to the University of Minnesota's Itasca Biological Station, it has been the subject of various research papers focusing primarily on nutrient cycling and chemistry. The land occupied by the SNA is the ancestral land of the Anishinaabe and Lakota people.