Wetlands

A wetland is an area that is part land and part water and in which water is the controlling environmental factor. Not all wetlands hold water throughout the year. The wetlands of Illinois Beach State Park are home to a diversity of plants and animals, including 4 federally protected species. Wetlands have their own succession of plant communities, with rushes, sedges, and marsh grasses as their pioneers, eventually being replaced by prairie plants. Because most of the wetlands do not hold water year round, fish are unable to survive, which allows dragonflies and amphibians to thrive.

The loss of wetlands around the Great Lakes has removed the natural filter, resulting in more pollutants, such as pesticides and nitrates from agriculture and oil and grease from roads, reaching the lakes. Storm events allow untreated sewage to enter the Great Lakes. Habitat preservation and restorations help to reduce the pollutants entering the lakes through runoff. Improvements can be made to storm-water infrastructure to reduce contamination with sewage during storms.

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Wetlands are areas that have water on or near the surface during at least part of the year. With the help of their water-loving plants, wetlands are able to filter out and stop pollutants from entering Lake Michigan.

Sadly, most lakeshore wetlands have been destroyed, resulting in more pollutants—pesticides, fertilizers, and oil and grease from roads—reaching the lakes. Protecting and restoring surviving wetlands will be vital to the area’s future environmental health.

wetland
Wetland at Illinois Beach State Park

Wetland plants

Wetlands have their own succession of plant communities, with rushes, sedges, and marsh grasses as their pioneers, eventually being replaced by prairie plants.

Wetland creatures

Walk around a wetland and you will see a lot of dragonflies and amphibians, but very few, if any fish. “Why,” you ask? Most wetlands do not hold water year-round, so fish cannot survive. Without fish, the eggs and larvae of dragonflies and amphibians escape becoming fish food.

Bird watching

Breeding and migratory birds depend on wetlands for food and shelter. The bird species you see will vary by season and by the types of food and shelter available.