THE WETLANDS

There are dozens of wetland types, but they all have a common characteristic – they are periodically saturated with, or covered by water. The wetlands of North Pikes Creek are beaver wetlands. They were created by beavers hundreds of years ago. The wetland habitats found on the Conservation Area property are varied and include…

Beaver Ponds. As much as 7 feet deep, these ponds are stair-stepped down the headwaters of the creek. They provide numerous ecological benefits, such as aquifer recharge and the discharge of cool water downstream, filtering runoff from roads and farms, and providing homes for a variety of wildlife, including trumpeter swans, black ducks, otters, and of course, beavers, the keystone species that have created this wetland complex at the head of North Pikes Creek.

Emergent Marsh. These are shallow wetlands and have water in them year round. The head of North Pikes Creek originates in a spring fed emergent marsh. This marsh provides habitat for ducks, herons, frogs, turtles, and dragonflies, and also serves as an important filter for water runoff from nearby roads.

Shrub Thickets. This wetland type is found along the shoreline of the ponds and the creek and its tributaries, where they occupy the zone between open water and the forest. These thickets are characterized by small trees and woody shrubs such as alder and dogwood. Ferns, sedges, grasses, and wildflowers grow among the shrubs. Seasonal flooding keeps these thickets from becoming forests. Shrub thickets provide valuable habitat for migratory and nesting songbirds.

Forested wetlands. Often referred to as “swamps”, this type of wetland forest is found between the thicket zone and upland forest. The soil is saturated during much of the growing season and is covered by standing water seasonally due to snowmelt and rain runoff. These wet forests allow water to spread out across the landscape. Two types of forested wetlands occur intermixed on the Conservation Area property, hardwood swamps and coniferous swamps. These northern forested wetlands provide important habitat for a variety of species, including, owls, hawks, bats, amphibians, warblers, flycatchers, thrushes, woodpeckers, and ducks.

Ephemeral ponds. These seasonally flooded basins fill with water following snowmelt and spring rains, but usually dry out by mid-summer. They provide critical spring breeding habitat for invertebrates and many amphibians, such as frogs and salamanders. They also provide food for the more than 120 species of birds and seven species of bats, who benefit from the robust insect production in these seasonal ponds.

Wetlands are among the most biologically productive ecosystems in the world. They create cool microclimates, increase diversity in plant and wildlife species, improve water quality, increase salmon and trout populations, recharge our aquifers, protect our communities from flooding, and serve as carbon sinks. Wetlands, such as the North Pikes Creek Wetlands, are vitally important for many reasons, including as….

A stopover site for birds. Migratory birds, including both game and non-game species, regularly move between summer breeding grounds and wintering areas, some traveling as much as 500 miles a day. Migratory birds use rest stops, known as stopover sites, along the way. Wetlands provide the preferred stopover sites that birds use for rest, food, and recharge on their long journey. Thousands of landbirds and hundreds of raptors use the North Pikes Creek Wetlands landscape as a stopover along their journey around, or across, Lake Superior. The North Pikes Creek Wetlands is a WDNR-designated Tier-I stopover site, and also a birding hotspot. You can enter your North Pikes Creek Wetlands avian sightings at eBird.org/home.

A base of the food chain. Algae and aquatic plants grow in the nutrient rich water of beaver ponds. This organic material supports microscopic organisms, which are eaten by a variety of invertebrates. These become food for fish, birds and mammals. An entire food chain is supported by the North Pikes Creek Wetlands’ beaver ponds.

A nursery for young. Wetland habitats support 32% of Wisconsin’s threatened and endangered species. Approximately 50 bird species rely on shrub thickets and young forest habitats surrounding wetlands at some point in their life cycle. The North Pikes Creek Wetlands’ beaver ponds, wetlands, and ephemeral ponds provide the appropriate habitat needed for a wide variety of birds, fishes, reptiles, amphibians, and bats, to breed and raise their young.

A flood buffer. An acre of wetlands can store as much as 1.5 million gallons of floodwaters. North Pikes Creek and its wetlands lie in a nearly mile wide valley that receives, absorbs, and controls outflow of a significant amount of water runoff from three directions. The wetlands serve to slow the velocity and control the volume of this substantial runoff, which lessens flooding and reduces bank erosion downstream.

A water filtration system. Wetlands break down pollutants from water runoff- purifying and cleansing the water that flows downstream and eventually into Lake Superior’s Chequamegon Bay. Wetlands also protect downstream spawning areas from sedimentation, including North Pikes Creek, a Class I trout stream that harbors a self-sustaining population of brook trout. Less than one mile south of the Wetlands, North Pikes Creek flows into the 1,400-acre DNR-owned South Shore Lake Superior Fish and Wildlife Area, an important nursery for coho and Chinook salmon, and steelhead, rainbow, brown, and brook trout.

Groundwater recharge. The North Pikes Creek wetland is a recharge-discharge wetland that functions like a giant sponge. The wetland absorbs and holds snowmelt and runoff, which percolates slowly into the ground, refills the aquifer in the recharge cycle, and releases water from the aquifer during dry periods. In the discharge cycle, the wetlands provide cool water to the lower creek, which is an essential requirement for the trout fishery during summer months, and for local fruit farmers who depend on the aquifer for irrigation.

A carbon sink. Wetlands are efficient carbon sequestering systems. Wetlands have the ability to store carbon from the atmosphere, where it’s held until a wetland is drained or degraded. When disturbed, carbon is released back into the atmosphere as methane. Wetlands accumulate large carbon stores, holding as much as 40% carbon in their soils, making them an important sink for atmospheric carbon dioxide.

A role in climate resilience. The changing climate has brought more frequent and severe weather events, which makes it increasingly important to store water on the landscape. Beaver wetlands and healthy watersheds play a significant role in creating resilience to climate change. Beaver wetlands are, thus, a nature-based solution to a consequential and growing problem.

A valuable educational resource. The wetlands provide an opportunity to study a prime example of one of the most biologically productive ecosystems in the world. The Friends of the North Pikes Creek Wetlands’ Beaver Hollow Outdoor Education Area serves as an accessible wetland education classroom and living laboratory for local K-12 students, youth groups, community groups, and researchers, and can serve to nurture the next generation of environmental stewards.

An opportunity for community recreation. Along with other benefits, the wetlands offer an opportunity to experience a natural environment and view wildlife. The Friends’ North Pikes Creek Wetlands Conservation Area property offers a variety of nature-based outdoor recreation opportunities for both the local community and visitors to the region, including nature appreciation, wildlife viewing, bird watching, photography, walking, cross country skiing, and snowshoeing. Enjoyment and appreciation of forests and streams, and native fish and wildlife, improves the health and quality of life of the community.