Wauconda Bog Nature Preserve

Wauconda Bog contains tamarack bog and marsh communities characteristic of the Morainal Section of the Northeastern Morainal Natural Division. It is a mature bog that contains no open water. It serves as a refuge for over 100 different plants, including rare and relict species such as tamarack, orchids, yellow birch, winterberry holly and poison sumac. On areas where drier peat occurs, tamarack forest with sphagnum tussocks are found. Wetter areas support a rich marsh community dominated by cattail or common reed. The preserve has long attracted birdwatchers and educators, but the bog is especially valuable to botanists because it is a source of relict pollen, preserved in layers of peat, which provides information on plant migration after the retreat of the glaciers. These unique features resulted in the bog's designation as a National Natural Landmark in 1974.