-
Difficulty:
-
-
Terrain:
-
Size: 
(not chosen)
Please note Use of geocaching.com services is subject to the terms and conditions
in our disclaimer.
This earthcache is located on the Philip A. Memorial Recreational Trail, This trail system passes from urban to forestland. There is parking at rt 840 and Clark mills rd or at the Boces on Middle settlement Road at N43.05.720 W075.19.210
Generally, wetlands are lands where saturation with water is the dominant factor determining the nature of soil development and the types of plant and animal communities living in the soil and on its surface . Wetlands vary widely because of regional and local differences in soils, topography, climate, hydrology, water chemistry, vegetation, and other factors.
Throughout the forests of the northern USA, bogs are a common feature in the landscape. Their origin is traced back to the end of the last glacial period 12,000 years ago. As the continental glaciers melted and retreated, their burden of transported rock and debris washed into valleys and lowlands. Lakes backed up in many valleys and shallow waters spread over low-lying terrain. In time, with the northward migration of vegetation into the formerly glaciated territory, aquatic and amphibious plants invaded some of the shallow pools and ponds, thereby converting them into bogs.
At the posted coordinates you will learn about this geological feature and the hydrologic (water related) benefits this wetland has on the surrounding area. The first hydrologic benefit is that the wetland helps to prevent flooding and store water. It functions as natural sponge that traps and slowly releases surface water, rain, snowmelt, groundwater and flood waters. This helps to lower flood heights and reduce erosion. Since this wetland is within and downstream of urban areas it helps to counteract the greatly increased rate and volume of surface water runoff from pavement and buildings.
Places called wetlands include rivers, creeks, swamps, marshes, bogs, and similar areas, which, in effect, are components of the drainage system of the land.
Three factors used to define wetlands include the presence of water, hydric soils, and wetland plants. These are also factors used to recognize or describe wetlands within the landscape. Of these, the presence of water is the most important factor -- given its role in the formation of hydric soils and, with hydric soils, its role in promoting the growth of wetland plants. Identifying wetlands and delineating the boundaries between wetlands and adjacent non-wetland areas involves the search for evidence of all three criteria.
Water The presence of surface water is an obvious component of wetlands such as ponds, lakes, and streams. A number of other wetland types, however, might have standing water or saturated soils only on a seasonal basis. These seasonally wet areas include some types of swamps and savannas. These wetlands undergo a yearly cycle that ranges from wet conditions when standing water is present and soils are saturated to periods when soils are dry. The length of wet or dry periods might vary from year to year, and some years parts of the cycle might be absent. When there is no standing water or saturated soils, other evidence for the presence of water is used to describe these wetlands.
Wetland evidence includes watermarks on trees, or the presence of hydric soils. Watermarks can consist of dried sediment that coats the base of trees or watermarks can take the form of a "moss" line consisting of the lower limit of growth of common mosses found attached to tree trunks.
?Six major wetland types are generally recognized:?1. marine (coastal wetlands including coastal lagoons, rocky shores, and coral reefs);?2. estuarine (including deltas, tidal marshes, and mangrove swamps);?3. lacustrine (wetlands associated with lakes);?4. riverine (wetlands along rivers and streams);?5. palustrine (meaning "marshy" - marshes, swamps and bogs,); 6. Freshwater swamp forests, or flooded forests, which are inundated with freshwater either permanently or seasonally
At the posted coordinates you can find information that will give you the answers to the following questions:
1. Wetlands are known to support how many plant species?
2. How many amphibious species have been found in wetlands?
3. A third of what native species can be found in wetlands.
4. What type of wetland are you visiting today?
5. Next look out over the wetland before you and see if you can notice any signs of changing water levels, What did you see? Are water levels rising or falling? I would like to use the answer to this question to chart seasonal changes in this area.
Pictures of you and your GPS are always welcomed but not required.
Additional Hints
(No hints available.)