A walk on the Bog

With a beautiful day upon us at NMU, MSED decided to take a field trip to the Presque Isle Bog Walk. We learned many things about the bog as we went on the loop and we were also just able to enjoy some good time outdoors in nature.

 But what is a bog? A Bog is very soggy land composed mostly of  mud water and moss, with an acidic composition. It is formed by sedimentation. A lake runoff will slowly fill with plant debris. Sphagnum moss and other plants (cranberries, tamarack, small shrubs, etc.) grow off the edge. Eventually they cover the entire surface. This process can take hundreds to thousands of years. Because of all the plant decay and the slow oxygen flow, bogs become oxygen and nutrient poor. This makes it so they foster a unique and small variety  plants.

One of the most interesting plants we fond on the walk around the bog was a pitcher plant. This is a carnivorous plant that eats insects that fall into its trap. The plant produces a liquid that attacks insects that then can not escape the slippery walls of the plant.  

We also saw a lot of other plants and animals on our walk. We saw cranberry bushes, tamarack trees, willow trees, spiders, birds, frogs and toads, cat tails, fungus, maple trees, and deer bedding areas. It seemed like the more time we spent in the the the more neat and interesting things we saw. I really enjoyed the sand dune on the far side of the bog. The sand was nice and warm. It was a fun day of class with great hands on learning.