Wetlands Research Program Bulletin. Volume 5. Number 1

Technical Report · Wed Mar 01 04:00:00 EST 1995

OSTI ID:160858

Gilbert, M C; Stutheit, R G; Davis, M

The city of Lincoln, Neb., was founded in the mid-18OOs along Salt Creek. During the last century, the saline marshes suffered extensive degradation through commercial and residential development, road construction, and agriculture. Today, Nebraska`s eastern saline wetlands are considered to be among the most restricted and imperiled ecosystems. Eastern Nebraska saline wetlands are regionally unique, located in floodplain swales and depressions within the Salt Creek and Rock Creek watersheds in Lancaster and southern Saunders counties. Water sources are a combination of discharge from the Dakota sandstone formation aquifer, precipitation, and overbank flooding. Salts are concentrated in the soil during dry periods. Vegetation in these wetlands is characterized by halophytes including spearscale (Atriplex subspicata), inland saltgrass (Distichlis spicata var. stricta), saltwort (Sa1icornia rubra), prairie bulrush (Scirpus mantimus var. paludosus), sea blite (Suaeda depressa), and narrow-leaved cattail (Typha angustifolia). Four plant species considered rare in Nebraska are saltmarsh aster (Aster subulatus var. ligulatus), seaside heliotrope (Heliotropium curassavicurn), saltwort, and Texas dropseed (Sporobolus texanus) can be found in the marshes along Salt Creek.

• Research Organization: Army Engineer Waterways Experiment Station, Vicksburg, MS (United States)
• OSTI ID: 160858
• Report Number(s): AD-A--296979/8/XAB
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
HYDROLOGY
SITE CHARACTERIZATION
WETLANDS