Yosemite adding 400 acres of meadow, forest
FRESNO, Calif. — Visitors to Yosemite National Park will soon have more room to roam after officials on Wednesday announced a 400-acre expansion, the largest in nearly 70 years.
The addition to the park in California features wetlands and a grassy meadow surrounded by tall pine trees on rolling hills that are home to endangered wildlife.
Ackerson Meadow is located along Yosemite’s western boundary. The area was purchased from private owners by the Trust for Public Land, a non-profit conservation group, for $2.3 million and donated to the park.
Officials told The Associated Press that Yosemite will preserve the land — historically used for logging and cattle grazing — as habitat for wildlife such as the great grey owl, the largest owl in North American and listed as endangered by California wildlife officials.