Spring 2004

Dead Stick Pond

Sheets of water with standing dead trees mean one thing: the water came up, and the trees died. Is this a bad thing?

Often the "culprit" is beavers. In the 10,000 years since the glacier (our ecological equivalent of A.D.), beaver ponds have been a part of the natural world here. They look like this. At sunrise, the blue-gray-pink of the water mirrors the blue-gray-pink of the sky as it has for millennia. Some of our waters today are here because of people rather than beavers. A poorly planned road and a blocked culvert can kill the trees over many acres.

The dead trees here had recently crept onto the drained farmland that was acquired for a forest preserve, but they don't survive when the land is returned to its original "squelshiness." Herons and wood ducks will land on them while the dead trees stand. They're beautiful, but temporary. More and more owners of conservation land are going to substantial expense to revive soggy habitats so much appreciated by waterfowl, mink, fish, blue flag iris, and thousands of other species, including our own. Wetlands can be every bit as rich and fun as prairies and woodlands. Bring tall boots, old sneakers, or a canoe.

Notice the young, light green vegetation emerging from the mud flat that circles the dark island. Drained wetlands often have a seed bank that can last for decades and will work like "Wetland in a Can"--just add water.

Dead trees in the water may also mark a place where ancient wetlands are being restored by the intentional disabling of drainage tiles, which costs money to do right. The Chicago District of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has been one of the nation's leaders in wetland restoration. In recent years, they've spent millions of dollars helping forest preserve districts restore wetlands and associated ecosystems--to improve water quality, reduce flooding and erosion, and provide habitat for wildlife and for us. But this year, the Corps' major wetland restoration fund is being slashed by an administration that wants to spend the money elsewhere. End of story? Hope not. There's plenty of indication that the public won't sit still forever and watch conservation slide backward.

If only the Corps of Engineers could live on bark, like beavers! But somehow they need appropriations to do their work.

Photo by Ray Mathis. Words by Stephen Packard. Nature preserved at Crabtree Forest Preserve near Palatine.

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