A sea of grasses and wildflowers known as the tallgrass prairie once covered America's heartland. Now one of the most endangered ecosystems in the world, it is home to many inhabitants that are struggling to survive. Thousands of acres of rolling prairie once surrounded El Dorado Springs during pioneer settlement, and these grasslands were used for hunting, livestock forage, and even a golf course when El Dorado Springs was a resort town in the early 1900s. Today, The Nature Conservancy, the Missouri Department of Conservation, and private landowners are restoring these grasslands so future generations will be able to experience Missouri's natural heritage.