Indiana Wetlands

By Coltin Gresser

Wetlands are not only a vital part of wildlife habitat and management. They are a crucial part of the water cycle of our planet. They are places that help with flood control. River floodplains are wetland ecosystems. When the river starts to overflow the excess water will flow into those low-lying floodplains and will be held there and eventually will recharge the underground water table. These ecosystems are nature’s “Britta” filters. When water is flowing through the vegetation and soil of the wetland, they will take out pollutants and certain nutrients to purify the water.

The Grand Kankakee Marsh

The Grand Kankakee Marsh was the largest wetland in the country. It started in what is present-day South Bend and expanded Southeast through Indiana and into Illinois. The Kankakee River meanders through the whole marsh. This ecosystem was the lifeblood of the native tribes of Miami and the Potawatomi. They fished, hunted, trapped, harvested, and gathered all types of resources from the area created by the marshland.

In 1679, Lasalle who was a French explorer led an expedition down the Kankakee River to discover the Mississippi River. While floating the river he was constantly writing in his journal just how diverse this land was in furbearers, plants, fish, and birds. This land was prized by hunters and trappers who were in the fur trade. People who were into hunting and fishing would not only travel to this marsh from other states, but many Europeans visited America just to say they were in the Grand Kankakee Marsh. Many presidents and other famous people hunted in the marsh. Our conservation President, Theodore Roosevelt, was one of the many who enjoyed the riches of the marsh.

Many Outdoor Clubhouses and hunting lodges were getting established along the river’s edge. This was starting to become more and more popular in the late 1800’s. After the Civil War farmers in the area started to learn just how fertile this wetland soil is. With new steam engine technology, ideas of draining the marsh were in the minds of many. It didn’t even take 50 years until the marsh was just a fraction of what it used to be.

Now farmlands and modern agriculture were taking over the land, that was once beautiful and tranquil marshlands. Old-growth forests were getting cleared-cut, and this hit the Wood Duck population hard. Due to habitat destruction duck populations in the following years were decreasing dramatically. By 1922 the Grand Kankakee Marsh was less than one- percent of its original land. PBS has a wonderful documentary Everglades of the North: | The Story of the Grand Kankakee Marsh | PBS. Rebuilding Our Wetlands

Many people, whether they are biologist, hunters, or just a person who loves the outdoors, agree we need to bring back our wetlands. In the state of Indiana, 800,000 acres of wetlands is only 4% of the total of Indiana’s land. Around 70-80 percent of Indiana was once covered in wetlands. Re-installing wetlands back into Indiana would not only help the species that are still in the state, but it will also help bring back species that were once in abundance. Mostly the group of animals that we would see coming back would be waterfowl and migratory birds. I personally know some waterfowl hunters who are always saying how sad duck hunting is in the state. Bringing these ecosystems back will not only bring revenue into the state from the increase of waterfowl hunters. It would also increase bird watchers that would travel to our state to see specific species to add to their life list.

Next time you are in or near a wetland, think about how you are standing in nature’s filter system to clean polluted water. How you are standing in a place that has the most fertile soil in the world and some of the most biodiversity of plant and animal species as well. Listen to the calls of the Wood Ducks flying overhead and feel the croaks of the American Bullfrog through your chest. Wetlands have sustained human life for thousands of years. The least we can do for them is to make sure they are not wiped off this earth.