This projects seeks to document and focus attention on the biodiversity of the Cache River Watershed. The half million acre Cache River Watershed, with its wooded hills and cypress swamps,seems more like Louisiana than Illinois. Its diversity of landforms and biota result from the intersection of four major physiographic regions in southern Illinois. Making up only 1.5 percent of the land area in Illinois, the Cache basin harbors 11.5 percent of the State’s high quality floodplain forests, 23 percent of its remaining high-quality barrens habitat, and 91 percent of the State’s high-quality swamp/wetland communities. The area shelters 113 State threatened or endangered species and 7 federally threatened or endangered species. The Cache River Wetlands are home to some of the oldest living trees east of the Mississippi River, include 3 National Natural Landmarks, and have been designated a “Ramsar Wetland of International Importance.”
This project is sponsored by the Friends of the Cache River Watershed. Visit our website at http://www.friendsofthecache.org/ or visit us on Facebook. less ↑