Brief-Form Post #69: Late Summer Stopover at Blackwell Swamp and Buckeye Impoundment on Wheeler NWR!
I am pleased to add the 69th of my GBH Brief-Form Posts (Less than five minutes to read!) to my website. I get wordy with my routine Posts. I don’t want my enthusiasm for thoroughness and detail to discourage readers. So, I will occasionally publish these brief Posts.
I am fortunate to live within 30 minutes of the 35,000-acre Wheeler National Wildlife Refuge. Occasionally, when the urge strikes… when I need a Nature fix, I’ll head to some feature of this world-class, complex, 55-square-mile Tennessee River ecoregion. I scratched my Nature itch on the morning of August 27, 2026. I’ll take you along virtually to Buckeye Impoundment and Blackwell Swamp. I intend to share the late-summer morning visual delights. I have no in-depth ecological mysteries, puzzles, or discoveries to examine. Don’t anticipate a quiz or challenge; sit back and enjoy!
Buckeye Impoundment
I published a Great Blue Heron photo essay on the Impoundment from my October 6, 2024 visit (https://stevejonesgbh.com/2024/12/05/buckeye-impoundment-in-early-october-on-the-wheeler-national-wildlife-refuge-part-one/). I excerpted the two photos and narrative below from that post.
Excerpt (No, not plagiarized; I authored both posts!): On an August 2023 aerial tour, the impoundment appears as a mosaic of agricultural fields, meadows, and marsh vegetation.
I photographed the winter-flooded impoundment on January 6, 2020, when the flooded wetlands attract waterfowl vacationing from frozen northlands.
The impoundment is a complex, diverse ecosystem that ebbs, flows, and fluxes with the Corps of Engineers’ controlled flooding. [End of Excerpt.]
The seasons don’t advance visibly from late August to early October. We won’t have a killing freeze. It’s unlikely even to see a frost by then. Sure, the vivid foliar greens will fade; yellows and browns will evidence desiccation and leaves wearing out from six months of intensive photosynthesis.
Although my iPhone lens can’t capture them, a handful of great egrets populate every naked-eye view.
I recorded this 61-second video on that fine late-August morning.
Stunning cerulean sky; cumulus and wispy cirrus clouds reflected in standing water; and wetland meadow vegetation!
On a cooler autumn day, I will return to Buckeye Impoundment with a lawn chair, my spotting scope, and some more time to linger and enjoy.
Delightful Herbaceous Vegetation
I am a tree guy, hoping to learn more about the lush herbs and forbs of our region. I’m grateful to iNaturalist, which guided me to Bigpod Sesbania on the right. I don’t even attempt to identify the wetland herbs and grasses on the left.
Common evening primrose earns its moniker, opening its flowers at dusk and closing them mid-morning. Hawkmoths pollinate the nighttime flowers.
Cardinal flower seems appropriate here in Crimson Tide country!
Elderberries clung in clusters on bushes roadside along HGH Road.
Blackwell Swamp
The Corps of Engineers maintains the Blackwell Swamp water level year-round. Great egrets, great blue herons, and seasonal ducks populate this heavily vegetated body.
I recorded this 52-second video at Blackwell Swamp.
I enjoy the sky view on every visit… the vista above and its water reflections.
Closing
I accept the challenge of distilling these Brief-Form Posts into a single distinct reflection. I am fortunate to live just a dozen miles due north of Alabama’s 35,000-acre Wheeler National Wildlife Refuge, where I wandered for several hours on June 9, 2026. A quick, low-investment visit to Nature pays high dividends in peace of mind, satisfaction, exercise, and learning and discovery.
On a cooler autumn day, I will return to Buckeye Impoundment with a lawn chair, my spotting scope, and some more time to linger and enjoy. (Steve Jones)
Nature’s special treats await our discovery, our understanding, and our interpretation!
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