Great Dismal Swamp
The Great Dismal Swamp is a state-protected swamp area in the coastal plains of the states of Virginia and North Carolina in the United States since 1973 . The area consists of around 500 km² of wooded wetlands and a 12.5 km² natural lake, Lake Drummond , in its center. The Dismal Swamp Canal, completed in 1805, runs along the eastern edge of the swamp .
history
According to scientific research, the Great Dismal Swamp was formed during the last significant shift in the American continental shelf. The origin of Lake Drummond is controversial, the oval shape may be due to the impact of a meteorite . From archaeological finds show that before about 13,000 years ago, the first people in the marshes lived. Around 1650 there were only a few Indians there , while the immigrant Europeans initially showed no interest in the settlement. The Governor of the Province of Carolina , William Drummond , discovered the lake that bears his name during a hunting trip in 1665. William Byrd II led a survey party through the swamp in 1728 to determine the line between Virginia and North Carolina. George Washington first visited the area in 1763 and founded the Dismal Swamp Land Company with the aim of draining and clearing parts of the swamp. An approximately 8 km long drainage ditch on the west side is still called Washington Ditch today . Between 1780 and 1862 the swamp was a temporary abode for runaway slaves , the Great Dismal Swamp Maroons , and a station of the legendary Underground Railroad .
In 1805 the Dismal Swamp Canal was opened. It runs along the eastern edge of the swamp and is the oldest working canal in the United States. Today it connects Chesapeake Bay with Albemarle Sound and over 2,000 boats and yachts pass through the canal annually.
Logging the swamp was an economically profitable activity until 1976. The entire area is ravaged by periodic forest fires and has been completely cut down at least once. Agricultural, economic and settlement projects destroyed large parts of the swamp, which is now less than half its original size. Around 260 km of roads were built before the establishment of the nature park to remove the wood. These roads affected the natural hydrology of the swamp, obstructing the surface flow and causing permanent flooding in some places. After the logging campaigns, the natural tree population of cypresses and pines was largely replaced by red maple.
In 1973 the Great Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Refuge was established after a donation of 49,100 acres (198.7 km²) and the reserve is intended to preserve one of the last great pristine landscapes in the United States. The aim of the renaturation measures is to restore and preserve the natural biological diversity as it existed before human intervention.
Flora and fauna
The swamp tree population consists mainly of pines ( Pinus ), white false cypresses ( Chamaecyparis thyoides ), red maples ( Acer rubrum ), bald cypresses ( Taxodium distichum ) and poplars ( Populus heterophylla ). Peat moss ( sphagnum ) and evergreen shrubs grow in the unforested areas and in the rest of the marshland . The red maple is the most common and is spreading more and more, while the trees that were predominant in the past, such as cypresses and pines, now only make up 20 percent of the tree population. Three plant species in the swamp deserve special mention, namely the dwarf forest lily ( Trillium nivale ), the silky mock camellia ( Stewartia malacodendron ) and the worm fern ( Dryopteris celsa ). The dwarf forest lily can be found in the north-western swamp area and flowers annually for two weeks in March. The silky mock camellia is also native to the northwestern part of the swamp. The worm fern is one of the rarest North American ferns and is more common in the Dismal Swamp than elsewhere.
Since its establishment as a nature reserve, over 200 different bird species have been counted in the marshland, 93 of which nest there. The highest number of bird species was observed between April and June when the migratory birds arrived. In winter, American bluebirds and starlings migrate to the swamp in large flocks. Two species of wood warbler , the Swainson's wood warbler ( Lymnothlypis swainsonii ) and the green wood warbler ( Dendroica virens waynei ), are more common here than in other parts of the US coastline. Among the interessantesten bird species also include the Wood Duck ( Aix ponsa ), the Barred Owl ( Strix varia ), the Pileated Woodpecker ( Dryocubus pileatus ) and the prothonotary warbler ( Protonotaria citrea ).
The mammals are represented by white-tailed deer , otters , bats , raccoons , mink , gray fox and gray squirrels . Black bears and bobcats were seen less frequently .
There are 21 species of snake in the marshland, including three poisonous species, namely the North American copperhead ( Agkistrodon contotrix ), the lesser-known water moccasin otter ( Agkistrodon piscivorus ) and the forest rattlesnake ( Crotalus horridus ). In addition, 56 species to have been here a total of lizards , salamanders , frogs , toads and turtles counted, including the yellow-bellied slider ( Trachemys scripta scripta ) and the spotted turtle ( Clemmis guttata ).
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c d e f g h Great Dismal Swamp ( Memento of the original from May 13, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Great Dismal Swamp Canal
Web links
literature
- Harriet Beecher Stowe : Dred, A Tale of the Great Dismal Swamp , 1856.
Coordinates: 36 ° 35 ′ 49.2 " N , 76 ° 27 ′ 28.8" W.