Sleeping Giant: History & Rare Ecosystem
By Nicholas DiGiovanni on May 26, 2012, 11:24pm
Use your ← → (arrow) keys to browse more stories.
Rising to 739', Sleeping Giant (3 Miles North of Hamden, 2 Miles WSW of Wallingford) is a visible attraction in the Greater New Haven Area. According to Native Americans of the Quinnipiac Tribe, the giant stone spirit Hobbomock (or Hobomock), a prominent wicked figure in many stories (see Pocumtuck Ridge and Quinnipiac), became enraged about the mistreatment of his people and stamped his foot down in anger, diverting the course of the Connecticut River (where the river suddenly swings east in Middletown, Connecticut after several hundred miles of running due south). To prevent him from wreaking such havoc in the future, the good spirit Keitan cast a spell on Hobbomock to sleep forever as the prominent man-like form of the Sleeping Giant. Sleeping Giant hosts a combination of microclimates unusual in New England. Dry, hot upper ridges support oak savannas, often dominated by chestnut oak and a variety of understory grasses and ferns. Eastern red cedar, a dry-loving species, clings to the barren edges of cliffs. Lower eastern slopes tend to support oak-hickory forest species common in the surrounding lowlands. Narrow ravines crowded with eastern hemlock block sunlight, creating damp, cooler growing conditions with associated cooler climate plant species. Talus slopes are especially rich in nutrients and support a number of calcium-loving plants uncommon in eastern Connecticut. Because the ridge generates such varied terrain, it is the home of several plant and animal species that are state-listed or globally rare. Rare snakes hide in between rocks during the summer. Some up to 4 feet in length!
Additional Sources: Wiki
Use your ← → (arrow) keys to browse more stories.
