An Alvar in Ohio? EarthCache
-
Difficulty:
-
-
Terrain:
-
Size: 
(not chosen)
Please note Use of geocaching.com services is subject to the terms and conditions
in our disclaimer.
Come take a Lake Erie island adventure and claim a smiley
on an EarthCache showing some unique Ohio glacial
geomorphology.
An Alvar in Ohio?
Kelleys Island Alvar
Alvar is a Swedish term for an unusual landform which occurs when
soils are scraped away from bare limestone or dolomite bedrock by
ice, wind, and water. Globally, alvars are rare, but in the North
American Great Lakes region they are only 1/5 of 1 percent of the
Great Lakes area. The limestone or dolomite ledges, tiny, islands,
and boulder on the northern coast of Kelleys Island are a prime
example. Along with the ones located on the Marblehead Peninsula,
the Lake Erie Islands' alvars are the southern most in North
America. North American Alvars are found only in Michigan, New
York, and Ontario, Canada.
The alvar on Kelleys Island is a band of grayish-white rock that
is located between Lake Erie and the forested portion of the
island. This includes the low water side cliffs and shelves that
are in parts almost 80 feet wide. In the summer they get baked by
the hot sun and in the winter get pelted with Lake Erie ice and
snow, not to mention the continued wave and lake spray on a daily
basis.
This harsh environment is home to specially adapted plants. Most
woody plants are unable to take root and survive, those that do
often have a bonsai-like or a stunted-growth appearance. The plants
that do adapt to the harsh conditions are uncommon varieties of
wildflowers, mosses, grasses, sedges, and lichens. One such plant
is a state-endangered violet that in Ohio only grows on the Lake
Erie islands (you'll have to email its name). Other unusual plants
include orange lichen, Balsam squaw weed, Lakeside daisy, Kalm's
lobelia, Pringle's astor, Juniper sedge, Ram's-head Lady's-slipper,
and Dwarf Lake Iris.
To claim a find, please email me the answers to the questions
below as well as upload a picture of yourself displaying your GPSr
with the Alvar in the background.
Question 1: Given the proximity to other geological features on
the island, what was the primary agent that formed this alvar?
Question 2: Approximately how long ago did this take place?
Question 3: What do you think are the maintaining agents?
Question 4: What is the name of the state-endangered violet that
in Ohio only grows on the Lake Erie islands?
Click To Rate This Cache
Additional Hints
(No hints available.)