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WETLAND EVOLUTION
IN MIDWESTERN RESERVOIRS
Robert B. Reed and Daniel E. Willard
School of Public and Environmental Affairs
Indiana University
Bloomington, Indiana
ABSTRACT
Hundreds of reservoirs dot the midwestern      landscape.   Although
most are less than fifty years old, many have extensive wetland
systems.  Builders, however, frequently plan to develop the shorelines
of these impoundments for homesites and often include wetlands areas in
their plans.    When development activities affect wetlands,       public
interest might profit from carefully conceived plans which include
mitigation and preservation.
To develop such plans, we must first understand what kinds of
wetlands are best suited and, therefore, best to create for the
reservoir systems with which we work. To that end, we have studied the
natural establishment of wetlands in recently impounded reservoirs,
their changes over time and the rate at which those changes have
occurred.   Observations suggest that wetlands establish quickly and
spread continually in these systems.
Our research focuses on four central and southern Indiana reser-
voirs: Geist Reservoir, Morse Reservoir, Monroe Reservoir, and Patoka
Reservoir, with varying ages: 44 years, 31 years, 22 years, and 9
years, respectively. The wetland vegetation at each location currently
ranges between predominately herbaceous, both persistent and nonper-
sistent, deciduous shrub, and deciduous forest.     Most of the informa-
tion used to track the evolution of these wetlands came from historical
records, principally aerial photographs, supplemented by site inspec-
tions to verify boundaries and check present conditions.
INTRODUCTION
Indiana has lost 80% of its historic wetlands, and most of those
remaining are degraded (personal communication, Indiana Department of
Natural  Resources).   The state's many reservoirs, however,      provide
areas where wetlands are expanding and serving as increasingly valuable
fish and wildlife habitat.    Yet, despite their apparent worth, reser-
voir wetlands face pressure from real estate developers who attempt to
take advantage of high land values caused by the limited availability
of lakeside property in Indiana.
*By noting our observations on reservoir wetlands, we hope to
assist regulators in understanding the potential value of these areas
and help land developers in preparing mitigation proposals that involve
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