A new management plan began in the summer of 2017. In order to control cattails, aerial spraying was conducted with herbicide approved for use over water, and dead cattail thatch was subsequently mowed down. This took place over ~300 acres in the eastern portion of the marsh-pool complex. Spraying and mowing will be done later this year for the western side of the marsh-pool area (see below).
2020 Status
The wet cycle of the previous year continued through the winter of 2019-20. Kansas received above average precipitation for the months December, January, February and March, but April was below average and May was just average. Perhaps this decrease in precipitation signals a change in the weather pattern. Nonetheless, TNC marshes and pools remained full of water for our visit in mid-June.
We conducted kite aerial photography from the nature trail site next to the observation tower. The impact of aquicide spraying in 2018 was still quite evident with extensive patches of dead cattail thatch in the water-filled pools. What surprised us, however, was the spread of duckweed throughout the thatch areas. As seen from above the duckweed creates a bright yellow-green surface. Common duckweed (Lemna minor) resembles split green peas. It is the smallest and simplest of all flowering plants and is also one of the most common plants worldwide. Duckweed is an important food resource for birds and other wetland wildlife.
June kite aerial photographs
| Overviews looking toward the northwest with Hoisington in the background (left) and northeast with Deception Creek (right). Clear water appears black; silty water is tan-brown in color.
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| Overviews of wet meadows looking toward the southeast with the state wildlife area in the distance (left) and south showing Blood Creek (right).
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| Closer views of marsh looking toward the north (left) and west (right). The bright yellow-green areas are duckweed covering the water surface in areas of cattail thatch.
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Ground views
| Left: live cattail in foreground and dead thatch in background with duckweed on water surface. Right: close-up view of duckweed covering water surface in thatch area.
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November KAP overviews
View to northwest
Looking northward
View to northeast
Looking to southeast | | | |
We visited again in early November, and acquired kite aerial photography on a warm and sunny day. The weather shift noted in June had continued with a relatively dry summer and autumn. Water level was down with extensive mudflats exposed in the marsh/pool complex. The dry weather had allowed the Nature Conservancy to reconstruct the access road, improvements were made on the adjacent county road, and some mudflat areas were disked to improve habitat. However, a budget cut prevented aerial spraying this year.
Areas of aerial spraying in 2017, 2018, and 2019 were quite evident especially for mudflats. Mudflats just above water level and still moist have a gray appearance; whereas, slightly higher and drier mudflats were covered with a lime crust and appear light gray to almost white.
Closer views
| Pool and mudflats next to access road (left). Ground shot of bulrush at margin of mudflat (right). The chalky gray color is a lime crust left by evaporating water.
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| Reconstructed access road and disked mudflat (*) at scene center (left), and ground shot of recently disked mudflat (right).
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