Get Your Goose On! - In the Wetlands! : 無料・フリー素材/写真
Get Your Goose On! - In the Wetlands! / USFWS Mountain Prairie
| ライセンス | クリエイティブ・コモンズ 表示 2.1 |
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| 説明 | Prairie Wetlands CountryIt must have been an awe inspiring, perhaps frightening, experience for settlers to venture out from the shelter and protection of eastern woodlands into a land dominated by grass, sky and sun. No trees, just vast open prairie lands stretching forth as far as the eye could see. The open, treeless character of these lands was well described by Laura Ingalls Wilder in her book, "By the Shores of Silver Lake", when she wrote of the lone cottonwood that stood between Lakes Henry and Thompson, said to be the only tree between the Big Sioux and the James Rivers. The grasslands of eastern South Dakota were continuous and colorful. Only in wet places, or wetlands, was the flow of prairie grasses and wildflowers broken. This marriage of prairie grasses and marshlands created ideal conditions for millions of wild ducks and other wildlife. Prairie OasisIndians, as well as settlers, were attracted to large marshlands for water and wild game. An occasional remaining teepee ring near a marsh or an old farm house overlooking a large, deep wetland are reminders of the importance of wetlands to these hardy Americans. Going, Going ...Today, only fragments of the original prairie remain. As increasing acreages of native prairie and wetlands vanished, people became concerned about these losses. What would become of the ducks, geese, and other wildlife as marsh drainage continued? Would downstream flooding become more severe once the vast water-holding capacity of wetlands was further diminished? The answers to these questions became apparent as marsh wildlife declined and downstream flooding worsened as drainage of wetlands increased. Madison Wetland Management DistrictEnter the U.S. Congress, the year: 1962. At that time, Congress appropriated funding for the protection of wetlands, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service swung into action. Shortly thereafter, the Madison Wetland Management District, a field station of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, was established. Its mission: to preserve wetlands and manage habitat for waterfowl and other wildlife. Headquartered in Madison, South Dakota, the District manages 38,500 acres of purchased wetland areas, called Waterfowl Production Areas. The District also administers two easement programs with private landowners. A wetland easement program comprised of 52,200 acres of wetlands protected from drainage and a grassland easement program protecting 39,000 of grassland from ever being plowed. Lands are acquired, in part, by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service with monies from the sale of Duck Stamps. Photo Credit: Wade Briggs |
| 撮影日 | 2012-06-15 14:04:53 |
| 撮影者 | USFWS Mountain Prairie |
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