Mafic The mafic rocks also typically have a higher density than felsic rocks. The term roughly corresponds to the older "basic rock" class. Mafic lava, before cooling, has a low viscosity, in comparison with felsic lava, due to the lower silica content in mafic magma. Water and other volatiles can more easily and gradually escape from mafic lava. As a result, eruptions of volcanoes made of mafic lavas are less explosively violent than felsic-lava eruptions. Most mafic-lava volcanoes are shield volcanoes, like those in Hawaii. Mafic Mafic is an adjective describing a silicate mineral or igneous rock that is rich in
Grayson Glades Natural Area Preserve Grayson Glades Natural Area Preserve Grayson Glades Natural Area Preserve is a Natural Area Preserve located in Grayson County, Virginia. Its centerpiece is an extremely rare wetland type known as a "mafic fen", which are situated upon soils rich in magnesium and fed by springs. The site is at the headwaters of a small stream system supporting additional mafic fens. Among the rare species found on the property are tuberous grass-pink ("Calopogon tuberosus"), ten-angled pipewort ("Eriocaulon decangulare" var. "decangulare"), large-leaved grass-of-parnassus ("Parnassia grandifolia"), queen-of-the-prairie ("Filipendula rubra"), sticky false-asphodel ("Triantha glutinosa") and Canada burnet ("Sanguisorba canadensis"). The preserve is owned and