Ohio History Journal

THE SOCIETY'S STATE MEMORIALS WAHKEENA: NATURAL HISTORY PRESERVE by DAVID H. STANSBERY

OVER 200,000,000 years ago coarse sand and gravel from a slowly eroding moun- tain range were washed into a shallow sea that covered what is now south-central Ohio. During the millions of years that followed, the huge beds of sand that formed along the edge of this ocean were first compressed into solid rock, then were slowly lifted above the sea level. This rock formation, the Blackhand Sandstone, forms the bedrock foundation beneath the Wah- keena nature preserve in Fairfield County. Exposed to the erosive forces of wind and water, this sandstone was gradually carved into hills and valleys. While this sculpturing was going on, plants and ani- mals from adjacent land areas moved into the newly exposed area. Aquatic species made their way into the streams that drained the new-made land. Only those plants and animals that could get to the area entered it, and of those, only the few able to live in this new environment es- tablished populations there. In the eons following, some of the early species died out as the environment slowly changed. Others were able to move into the region as conditions became suitable for their survival. Some of the descen- dants of the early organisms changed in such a way that succeeding generations were able to survive under the new con- ditions, but as somewhat different forms. This process of change still continues in both environment and organisms. Man, a very recent invader, is having an ever-in- creasing effect upon the nature and direc- tion of the change. During the last million years (only yesterday, geologically speaking) Ohio and its neighboring states were invaded by at least three continental glaciers. These enormous ice sheets pushed as far south as Cincinnati in western Ohio, but the high hills of eastern Ohio held back the ice. A few glacial lobes projected into the lower valleys along the edge of the hill country, and one such icy "finger" apparently ex- tended down the Hocking River valley to

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what is now the town of Sugar Grove, only a mile east of Wahkeena. On the north the glacier came to a halt less than half a mile from the present nature pre- serve. No one knows exactly for how many centuries these icy conditions existed, or precisely how they affected the plant and animal populations of the Wahkeena re- gion. As one might expect, northern plant species such as Hemlock and Black Spruce, and northern animal species like the now- extinct Mammoth, Mastodon, and Giant Beaver, were present. Many scientists be- lieve that temperate species also remained quite close to the glacier's edge during the "ice age." Evidence from Wahkeena may yet supply the answer. It is the only nature preserve in the entire state of Ohio that occupied such a key position just a stone's throw from the glacier's edge. Remnants of the ancient northern flora are present at Wahkeena today. Northern faunal elements may yet be discovered there. Eight to ten thousand years after the last glacier melted back across Ohio, and long after the arrival of the American In- dians, the first white settlers arrived. They cut trees for their log cabins and cleared the land for farming, thus beginning the destruction of Ohio's virgin forests. Fewer than half a dozen stands of virgin timber now remain to show Ohioans how their state looked to the pioneers. The hills of Wahkeena were not spared. Even today they have only partially recovered from the stripping given them by our fore- fathers in the name of "progress."

Perhaps, given enough time and pro- tection, preserves like Wahkeena may re- turn to a condition very similar to that seen by the first white men in these hills. Scientists are carefully observing the changes in plant and animal populations in order to learn as much as possible about the natural processes of recovery. Wah- keena, along with other nature preserves, serves as an outdoor observation labora- tory in which botanists, zoologists, geolo- gists, and ecologists will be learning about the complex relationships of the living and non-living components of our natural en- vironment. Principles learned from these studies of protected areas like Wahkeena may well be used by man in the years to come as he devises ways to save what is left of his nation's basic wealth--the land upon which his life depends. Man must learn how to become a successful and perman- ent resident of the land if his species is to survive.   WAHKEENA STATE MEMORIAL was bequeathed to the Ohio Historical Society by Mrs. Carmen Warner in 1957. Students and nature groups requesting admission to the 150-acre preserve should apply to the Division of Properties, Ohio Historical Society, Columbus, Ohio 43210. The Society also administers Cedar Swamp State Memorial in Champaign County and the Edwin H. Davis State Memorial in Adams County as nature preserves.       THE AUTHOR: David H. Stansbery is the curator of natural history of the Ohio Historical Society.

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