Cottonwood Pond: February 2019

And So It Flows

January 18, 2019

As I approached the Cottonwood Pond area on this cool, wet day, sounds of birds resounded through the woods, mostly from the edges - all sorts of different calls, songs, rustlings, chattering, and pounding on trees. The call of a Pileated Woodpecker traveled from another part of the woods and was answered by another Pileated farther away.

There was some evidence of other animal activity that had happened the night before, or maybe very early that morning.

Raccoon tracks

Crawdad chimneys

There had been snow a few days previous, followed by rain, which brought out brightness and liveliness in mosses, lichens, and leafy liverworts.

Moss on a tree - on the slope just above Cottonwood Pond

Moss on the base of the Young White Ash at the edge of Cottonwood Pond shows how far moisture has been wicked up the bark during floods

Moss on a log near Cottonwood Pond

Smooth-Footed Powderhorn Lichen on the slope above Cottonwood Pond

Blue-green circles of lichen - log near Cottonwood Pond

A type of Leafy Liverwort (not moss) on a tree base - slope above Cottonwood Pond

The Creek was still running steadily, but it was clear, as the original sediment-laden water had run its course.

The Creek winding through the woodland bottom, upstream from Cottonwood Pond

Very near Cottonwood Pond - looking upstream where the Creek reaches the Barkless Log, then takes a turn before flowing out the other side

A little downstream, where the Creek seems to disappear …

… and then reappear.

Snow melt and rain had caused the Seep to become more of a Rush from the pond to the Creek. Exposed mud with water patterns and flattened, silty leaves told the story of how it had widened its usual trail.

The north corner of Cottonwood Pond, where the Seep begins (and flows to the left)

Where the Seep begins (closer)

Patches of exposed mud show where water overflowed Cottonwood Pond and spread across adjacent land, making a wider Seep than usual, all headed toward the Creek

Looking down the Seep to where it enters the Creek

Where the Seep (above) enters the Creek (below) over and under the Bark Ledge

Looking up the Seep, from the Creek to Cottonwood Pond

What had caused so much water in the pond that it overflowed so much into the Seep? It was water pouring into the Inlet at the other end of the pond. There had been so much that it had been creating a new flow path under the Barkless Log (near the original Inlet) and an area of exposed mud fanned out above the edge of the pond, from the Inlet to the Young White Ash, and beyond, ultimately creating another path toward the Seep.

The Inlet at the southeast end of Cottonwood Pond, where water flows in - the exposed mud to the right shows where water had rushed beyond the normal banks of the pond, and had flowed through a new route under the Barkless Log

The other side of the Inlet/Barkless Log, where water had been taking more than one path into the pond (some had even been flowing away from this spot, downwards, toward the Creek)

But, where did the water come from that was rushing into the pond through the Inlet? It had collected from slopes, creating a smaller, second Creek (Temporary Creek #1), which flowed into and rested in the Swampy Spot, before overflowing from there toward the Inlet.

The Swampy Spot (with the ball that had been pushed, over time, down Temporary Creek #1 and beyond the Swampy Spot) - above is Temporary Creek #1

Sometimes so much water ends up in the Swampy Spot that it pours over in another direction and flows under the fallen Cottonwood Trunk and into "little pond". And, sometimes so much water flows into "little pond" that it overflows from there and travels, via Temporary Creek #2, away from the area, forming a rivulet that turns west and eventually pours into the Creek further upstream.

Looking over the Cottonwood Trunk, to the northwest - a gray area shows where water had flowed away from "little pond" into Temporary Creek #2 (and ultimately into the Creek)

But, getting back to the Inlet, where water had pushed through and fanned out over the pond bank …

The action of the water had also pushed forward a great number of White Ash seeds, which came to rest near the Young White Ash at pond's edge.

These created their own sinuous designs, telling the story of the direction of water flow.
This is one of the ways that tree seeds travel from the canopy to other parts of the woods. Paddle-shaped Ash seeds have "wings" that allow them to gently whirl down from the trees, sometimes landing far from their "mother tree", depending on the strength of the wind. They may sprout and take root where they land, if conditions are right. They may be picked up by birds and other animals that take them away to eat, or to bury for later. They may get washed into rivulets, then creeks, then rivers, or ponds, and deposited even further away, maybe to sprout elsewhere.

I found Tuliptree seeds scattered around, also carried by water. They had been part of a collection of seeds in a cone-shaped structure that had fallen to the ground, eventually shattering into individual seeds. These, also, can be distributed by animals, or pushed around by water. Like Ash, Tuliptrees are very successful getting around to other places and taking root.

A seed from the native Tuliptree lodged against, unfortunately, seeds of the very invasive Oriental Bittersweet vine, surrounded by some of the orange fruit - the fruit had been mostly digested by a bird, who then dropped the seeds - this is a major way that some invasive plants spread.

Near the Inlet, just inside, rests the top of the Very Rotten Log - or, it used to be there. It is quickly disappearing these days. By the time I had gotten to know this log, some years ago, it was far enough along in decay that I had no idea what kind of tree it had been. Now it is barely recognizable as a log!