On this cloudy, warm, humid morning in Northeast Ohio, my wife and I visited the J. Arthur Herrick Fen Nature Preserve. Owned by Kent State University and The Nature Conservancy since 1969, this restored post-glacial wetland preserve is northwest of Kent, Ohio.
Accessed by a trail and boardwalk, the refuge is a mosaic of sedge meadows, fens and forested kames (ridges of glacial debris left behind as the Wisconsin Glacier retreated northward, 12-15,000 years ago). Bayberry Creek, a secondary tributary of the Cuyahoga River, drains the preserve which is known for its glacial-relic tamarack fen and rare plants (including a carnivorous sundew). We were serenaded by cardinals and catbirds while red-tails and a lone Cooper's hawk patrolled the wetlands from above.
Despite the interesting geology, flora and fauna, we were the only human visitors this morning, perhaps due to the threatening skies. Social distancing was not an issue!
Accessed by a trail and boardwalk, the refuge is a mosaic of sedge meadows, fens and forested kames (ridges of glacial debris left behind as the Wisconsin Glacier retreated northward, 12-15,000 years ago). Bayberry Creek, a secondary tributary of the Cuyahoga River, drains the preserve which is known for its glacial-relic tamarack fen and rare plants (including a carnivorous sundew). We were serenaded by cardinals and catbirds while red-tails and a lone Cooper's hawk patrolled the wetlands from above.
Despite the interesting geology, flora and fauna, we were the only human visitors this morning, perhaps due to the threatening skies. Social distancing was not an issue!
