(C) Daily Kos This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . The Daily Bucket -- Exploring a Black Spruce Kettle Bog [1] ['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.', 'Backgroundurl Avatar_Large', 'Nickname', 'Joined', 'Created_At', 'Story Count', 'N_Stories', 'Comment Count', 'N_Comments', 'Popular Tags'] Date: 2023-02-20 X marks the spot. Waterloo State Recreation Area is about half way between Ann Arbor and Jackson, just north of I-94. The kettle pond is in Waterloo State Recreation Area, near Chelsea, Michigan. At 21,000 acres, it’s the third largest park in Michigan and the largest in the lower peninsula. It’s also sandwiched between the Pinkney Recreation Area (11,000) acres) to the east and the Phyllis Haehnle Memorial Audubon Sanctuary (950 acres) to the west. The land preserved by the park is not all contiguous and numerous private landholdings and roads run through the park area. The area is characterized by moraines, kettle lakes, swamps and bogs left by retreating glaciers after the last ice age. The park was created by the federal government during the Great Depression and is long-term leased to the state. Wikipedia The bog trail starts on higher ground, gradually sloping down to wetlands, and ends at the bog. I did my best to identify plants, and welcome any corrections and additional information. Park sign (after a recent rain shower) of the hiking trails. The Bog Trail is to the lower right. Bigger. The trail starts in a Beech-Maple forest. I’m pretty sure this photo captures beech trees, with their smooth bark, but please correct me if I’m wrong. Closer look. . Park sign on Beech-Maple forests. Read here. Flycatchers were singing non-stop. I recognized the song of the Eastern Wood-Pewee, but couldn’t catch even a glimpse in the dense leafy canopy. An Acadian Flycatcher was much more cooperative, not only singing often enough to check on Merlin audio, but then posing in the open right over the trail. Acadian Flycatcher. A lifer for me. . Along the trail. On a side trail that went up to a higher and drier ridge. There were lots of interesting plants and critters. Being a wetland, ferns were abundant. Park sign about Cinnamon Ferns. . Cinnamon Ferns . Royal fern. Read here. American squaw-root (Conopholis americana), unfortunately named, but still a fascinating plant. It’s a parasite, feeding off tree roots, and produces no chlorophyll of its own. . Millipede. . I think this is Wild Iris (Iris shrevei). . As the trail descends from the ridge, wetlands soon surround the boardwalk. The brown color of the water is from tannins leaching from vegetation. Park sign at the entry to the bog. Read here. Here’s where it gets fun and I learned something new putting together this Bucket. If water in a kettle becomes acidic due to decomposing organic plant matter, it becomes a kettle bog or, if underlying soils are lime-based and neutralize the acidic conditions somewhat, it becomes a kettle peatland. Kettle bogs are closed ecosystems because they have no water source other than precipitation. Acidic kettle bogs and fresh water kettles are important ecological niches for some symbiotic species of flora and fauna. Wikipedia I also learned that the Waterloo kettle bog is even more unusual. It’s a rare-for-this-area Black Spruce kettle bog, with National Natural Landmark designation. Black spruce (Picea mariana), also called bog spruce, swamp spruce, and shortleaf black spruce is a wide-ranging, abundant conifer that bounds the northern limit of trees in North America. Its wood is yellow-white in color, relatively light in weight, and strong. Treehugger.com The Black Spruce Bog at Waterloo Contains the southerly third of a large black spruce and tamarack bog (resulting from a large ice-block depression), adjoining poorly drained land with a red maple swamp. Ecologically, black spruce bogs are at the extreme southern limit of their natural range in this portion of Michigan. Michigan DNR Boardwalk into the Black Spruce kettle bog. Entering the bog, we went from deep shade to bright light within a few feet. It was hard to capture the surrounding ridge that forms the kettle, but it’s visible in the darker line of trees in the middle background. Look closer. . Tamarack (Larix laricina). Unfortunately, not knowing the importance of Black Spruce during my visit, I didn’t take any photos of that tree. This page from the American Conifer Society gives the basics and has a map showing how rare they are in the southern Lower Peninsula of Michigan. . Picher plants (Sarracenia purpurea), a carnivorous plant, and (I believe) sphagnum moss. . A Harvestman perched in the sun on a flower of the Picher plant. Say hello to the Harvestman. . I think this is a Dragon’s Mouth Orchid (Arethusa bulbosa). On the walk out, there were more of nature’s wonders to appreciate. Pearl Crescent Butterfly . Another look at the handsome Green Frog from the title photo. That’s not an overbite or a grin, but markings on the frog’s lip. He was not in the bog, but in the hardwood swamp. Snapping Turtle being safely herded off the park road by someone used to herding uncooperative subjects (i.e. high school students). . Not the least bit appreciative. . Great Crested Flycatcher says goodbye at the parking lot. We also saw Chipping Sparrows, Eastern Bluebirds, Warbling Vireos, Cedar Waxwings and a Blue-winged Warbler (another lifer). Merlin audio also verified that we heard Common Yellowthroat, Rose-breasted Grosbeak, Gray Catbird, Northern Waterthrush and Veery. And because of the wetlands, there were lots of dragonflies and damselflies. THE DAILY BUCKET IS A NATURE REFUGE. WE AMICABLY DISCUSS ANIMALS, WEATHER, CLIMATE, SOIL, PLANTS, WATERS AND NOTE LIFE’S PATTERNS. WE INVITE YOU TO NOTE WHAT YOU ARE SEEING AROUND YOU IN YOUR OWN PART OF THE WORLD, AND TO SHARE YOUR OBSERVATIONS IN THE COMMENTS BELOW. FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE PURPOSE AND HISTORY OF THE DAILY BUCKET FEATURE, CHECK OUT THIS DIARY: DAILY BUCKET PHENOLOGY: 11 YEARS OF RECORDING EARTH'S VITAL SIGNS IN OUR NEIGHBORHOODS Now it’s your turn. What’s going on in nature in your area? 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