Heron Haven Wetland EarthCache
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Heron Haven Wetland Earth Cache.
This Earth Cache has been placed with permission from Ione Werthman, President, Heron Haven Wetland Sanctuary. Office: 402-493-0373
The area is open from dawn to dusk, admission is free, no pets please. Take pictures and only leave footprints!
Heron Haven Wetland is one of the last remaining oxbows of the Big Papillion creek. It is a natural, spring-fed wetland located within the Omaha city limits. Several natural springs feed the various ponds and marsh located in this 25 acre preserve. This constant fresh water creates a special habitat of a wetland.
Wetlands are known to purify surface water, control erosion and provide essential habitat for numerous species of plants, birds, and animals. Wetlands are often called the "kidneys of the landscape" because of their role in filtering water. The roots of the plants in the wetland absorb pollutants. The plants can change many of the pollutants to make them less harmful before releasing them, leaving clean water to fill our lakes and rivers. Bacteria and other microorganisms that live in the wet soil also have a tremendous ability to change harmful substances into less harmful substances before they enter the groundwater supply. Considered at one time to be worthless, wetlands are now known to harbor varied communities of many plants, birds, and animals whose survival depends on the specialized conditions of the wetland.
In the 1930's. Nebraska started a project of straightening the state's streams and creeks for farming irrigation purposes. This cause the cutting off of oxbows, which are U-shaped, bends in long bodies of water. When the Papio Creek was straightened, an oxbow area became the wetlands through its underground natural springs.
In 1992 the Papio-Missouri River Natural Resources District along with neighbors of this wetland sought to save the wetlands from urban development and to preserve the area and the natural ecosystem. They were successful and the preservation of this wetland led to the formation of the 501C3 Non-Profit Organization, Friends of Heron Haven, which is dedicated to the restoration and preservation of the natural attributes of this wetland.
The listed coordinates will take you to the Heron Haven Nature Center, where parking is available. There is a boardwalk trail that starts at the nature center and takes you out to the middle of the wetlands, this trail is wheelchair accessible. There is also an upland trail that is not wheelchair accessible that leads through the dense woods with hidden views of the marsh, ponds, and wetland.
Enjoy your visit and take note of the abundance of wild life in the area. If you are lucky you might see the King Fishers, Wood Ducks, or Herons that frequent the area. Feel free to post pictures of you or your group at the Earth Cache site, and make sure to stop by the Nature Center and sign the guest book!
In order to log this Earth Cache you must:
E-mail cache owner the answers to the following questions. Please include Heron Haven in subject of e-mail.
1) Describe what is located at pole #3 on the boardwalk trail
2) Describe what you see at these coordinates: N 41 17.551, W 096 05.651
3) At pole #9 on the boardwalk trail, drop a leaf in the water. What direction is the water flowing? Why do you think the water flows in this manner? What is your best guess at the speed of flow?(feet per minute)
4) Who takes care of Heron Haven Wetlands?
You can go a head and log your find after you have sent me the e-mail with your findings. Enjoy The area!
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