Wetlands 101

The following column appeared in the July 19 Pittsburg, Kan. Morning Sun:

Since Woods Edge was part of the Pittsburg Garden Tour last month, we have received several letters and e-mails requesting additional information about the diversity of habitats we have developed.

For us, the goal was to become better stewards of the plot of Earth we’re borrowing for our lifetime. To achieve that we had to help it become healthy.

A key characteristic of healthy communities is biodiversity. Biodiversity is the variation of life forms within a given ecosystem. Ask yourself this question: Would you expect to see more wildlife on a Bermuda grass football field or in a section of Ozark forest of the same size? A more diverse plant community attracts a more diverse animal community and so on.

We continue to strive to create biodiversity at Woods Edge. Even though our domain encompasses a mere two acres according to the County Clerk, we are fortunate to be caretakers to several ecosystems — albeit small and fragmented ones — typical of southeast Kansas habitats, including a small tall-grass prairie and a wetland.

The prairie and wetland may be small, but they create a fragment of biodiversity to offset some of the acres of manicured golf course-style lawns in Crawford County.

Four years ago we utilized the technical expertise of Mark Sooter at the Natural Resources Conservation Service to engineer a wetland ecosystem in a low-lying area of our backyard.

According to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, wetlands are areas that are covered by shallow water or have waterlogged soils for long periods during the growing season. As such, wetlands are the transition zone between land and water. Wetlands must possess indicators in all three criteria including hydrology, soils, and vegetation.

Wetlands are often referred to as “nurseries of life” because they host a tremendous diversity of plants and animals. Most wetlands dry up during part of the growing season, providing suitable conditions for growth of plants suited for moist-soil areas.

At our Woods Edge wetland, we release water in the late spring through a water control structure to mimic natural conditions and stimulate moist-soil plant growth. In early fall, we use wooden boards to block the outflow pipe and impound any runoff rainwater. This, in turn, provides a resting spot for migrating waterfowl.

Sometimes the autumn rains come, sometimes they do not, so it is a bit of a management gamble. But, then, nature is not a series of planned events, either.

Many species of frogs, turtles, snakes, birds, and mammals visit our wetland throughout the year. The diversity of plants that grow there attracts a very diverse array of both aquatic and terrestrial visitors seeking food, water, and shelter.

The barn swallows that nest each year under our patio eaves fly hundreds of insect bombing runs over our wetland — and neighboring properties — every day in order to feast from an insect buffet.

Likewise, Gambusia affinis, better known by their common name of “mosquito fish,” gorge themselves on mosquito larva in the shallow water. In the twilight hours, Little Brown Bats can consume half their body weight in mosquitoes each night. Scientific studies have revealed that a single colony of bats can eat 6.3 billion insects per year … that’s billion with a “b.”

Other benefits:
• Wetlands slow the movement of storm water, thus protecting against erosion and flooding.
• As water goes out of a wetland it is filtered and most of the bacteria and other harmful substances are cleaned out.
• Wetlands also filter pesticides, wastes, nitrogen, phosphorous, and agriculture fertilizers from adjacent land, which means they are kept out of larger bodies of water.

From a certain “golf course” point of view, the Woods Edge wetland, and its surrounding native prairie buffer, may look a bit ragged. But take a closer look and one will find a unique ecosystem teaming with biodiversity, one that contributes to the environment rather than takes away from it.