Emiquon National Wildlife Refuge facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Emiquon National Wildlife Refuge |
|
|---|---|
|
IUCN Category IV (Habitat/Species Management Area)
|
|
Sunrise at the Emiquon National Wildlife Refuge in July, 2011.
|
|
 Emiquon National Wildlife Refuge
Location in the United States
|
|
| Location | Fulton County, Illinois, United States |
| Nearest city | Havana, Illinois |
| Area | 11,122 acres (45.01 km2) |
| Established | 1993 |
| Governing body | U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service |
| Website | Emiquon National Wildlife Refuge |
| Official name: The Emiquon Complex | |
| Designated: | 2 February 2012 |
| Reference #: | 2031 |
The Emiquon National Wildlife Refuge is a huge 11,122-acre (45.01 km2) wetland area in Fulton County, Illinois. It's located across the Illinois River from the town of Havana, Illinois. This special place is managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
Most of the refuge used to be farmland, but it's being restored to its natural wetland state. A big part of this effort, called the Emiquon Project, is run by The Nature Conservancy. In 2012, the Emiquon area was recognized internationally as a very important wetland under the Ramsar Convention.
Contents
Emiquon's Past
The Emiquon National Wildlife Refuge sits on what used to be two shallow lakes, Flag Lake and Thompson Lake. These lakes were formed naturally by the Illinois River after the last ice age. The river shifted its path over time, leaving behind these long, narrow lake beds.
Native American History
For thousands of years, the Emiquon wetlands were a favorite home for many Native American tribes. This area was rich in shellfish, fish, birds, and mammals. These hunter-gatherers lived and hunted around the wetlands and nearby river bluffs. There are 149 known archaeological sites in the area. Between 1000 CE and 1300 CE, many people were buried at a nearby blufftop, which is now the Dickson Mounds National Historic Site.
European Settlement and Changes
When European settlers arrived in the late 1600s, they brought diseases like malaria. Local Native American populations sadly declined. Settlers avoided living near wetlands, thinking they were unhealthy. The Emiquon riverbank was too wet for traditional farming.
However, the area still provided a living for fur trappers, hunters, and fishermen. Then, in 1919, a wealthy Chicago businessman named Joy Morton bought the Emiquon area. He built a levee and dug drainage ditches. The wetlands and lake beds were drained and turned into cornfields, becoming the Norris Farm. The Illinois River was also dammed and put into a narrow channel. This land needed constant pumping to stay dry enough for farming.
Bringing Emiquon Back to Life
Throughout the 1900s, changes to the Illinois River caused a lot of harm to its natural environment and fish populations.
The Restoration Project Begins
Starting in the 1960s, naturalists began pushing to restore parts of the river and former wetlands. After many talks, The Nature Conservancy bought the 7,100-acre (29 km2) property in 2000. In 2007, a large part of the land was included in the federal Wetlands Reserve Program.
Replanting and Refilling
By 2008, volunteers working with The Nature Conservancy had planted 300,000 wetland trees. These included black walnuts, swamp white oaks, and pecans. They also planted 8,000 pounds of grassland seed. The Emiquon Project was considered one of the biggest wetlands restoration projects in the United States.
As part of the restoration, the drainage pumps were turned off. Thompson Lake, one of the natural lake beds, began to refill. By 2008, Thompson Lake was a 2,000-acre (8.1 km2) lake. This was even bigger than its original size of 1,800-acre (7.3 km2)! The reborn lake and wetlands quickly attracted many waterbirds, including 17 different kinds of ducks.
Future Plans for the Refuge
As of 2009, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service planned to acquire all the Emiquon Project's land. Their goal is to make the refuge 11,122-acre (45.01 km2) in size and manage it as part of the Illinois River National Wildlife Refuge Complex.
What You Can See at Emiquon Today
The Nature Conservancy's plan for the Emiquon Project includes restoring the natural water flow. This means reconnecting the Illinois River with Thompson Lake.
Fish and Wildlife
As of 2008, the refilled lakes were stocked with more than 30 kinds of fish. These include popular fish like largemouth bass, bluegill, bullhead, channel catfish, crappie, and sunfish. Many fish-eating black-crowned night herons have also arrived.
Special fish, like the state-endangered redspotted sunfish and the state-threatened starhead topminnow, were also introduced to Flag Lake and Thompson Lake.
Visiting Emiquon
The Conservancy also plans to build welcome facilities for visitors. They want to encourage birdwatchers and others to enjoy the restored wetland. Emiquon is close to Peoria and next to the Dickson Mounds museum, which helps attract visitors.
In April 2008, the University of Illinois at Springfield opened a field station at Emiquon. Here, scientists do research and watch how the restoration is progressing.
Illinois Route 78 and Illinois Route 97 both run through the Emiquon Project area.
Images for kids
-
Sunrise at the Emiquon National Wildlife Refuge in July, 2011.
