This wetland park was engineered to handle millions of gallons of stormwater that have flooded the streets and homes of residents of Southbridge during heavy rainstorms. By taking cues from natural systems, this “green stormwater infrastructure” creates a fully functioning ecosystem that goes beyond handling stormwater to reduce flooding. This guide will help you learn more about how this nature-based solution to flooding provides other benefits, from reducing mosquito populations to enhancing human physical and mental health.

Where you are standing is the site of a planned transition from a “brownfield” - land that had been a dumping ground for industrial waste to a parcel of land that has been created to manage stormwater and decrease flooding in the nearby community. The park opened on October 19, 2022. Now, nature will complete the transformation as plants and animals move in and thrive in this reclaimed habitat.

Now that a functioning marsh has been created that can handle surface water and reduce flooding, the next phase of the construction of this project is underway. The City of Wilmington will separate the storm drains from the sewage lines, bringing stormwater to the marsh to manage flooding. The sewage lines will not be inundated with water during rains, which means they can work as intended. This portion of the work will be completed in 2025.

Since the park was completed, more land has been acquired to expand the capacity of the marsh, and this addition to the marsh will be ready in 2026.

When the water is moving, a tide gate at the end of this channel where it connects to the Christina River is open, and the tidewater is going out (getting lower). If the water is still, the tide gate is closed.

This park was built to move and store rainwater to decrease flooding in the Southbridge area of Wilmington. The tide gate prevents water coming from the river into the marsh during high tide, so there is room to collect water from the neighborhood.

Image: Map of waterway through the park showing floodgate/connection to river

An important part of wetlands are insects, though we don’t always think of them as good. They can live in the water and are food for turtles and fish. Some hatch from eggs in water and then later emerge from the water as adults. These insects then become food for beautiful birds, bats, and even other insects! Really, other insects? Yes! Dragonflies in the water eat other aquatic insects, including mosquitoes. As adults Dragonflies are stunning flyers and snatch other insects out of the air during flight and then land to eat them!

Dragonfly larva, which lives in the water. "Dragonfly nymph" by Judy Gallagher is licensed under CC BY 2.0

Adult dragonfly which can eat up to 80 mosquitos or mosquito-sized insects each day. "Dragonfly on Physostegia Virginiana" by Paulhaberstroh is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0

“I live in the city, and there are lots of mosquitoes - why would we want to have a wetland restoration next door? Won’t there be even more mosquitoes?”

Restoring this existing marsh to a functioning wetland provides natural control of mosquitoes by the other wildlife that live here eating them - fish, turtles, spiders, birds, bats, and even dragonfly larvae (babies).

Image: "Inland Floodwater Mosquito" by Katja Schulz is licensed under CC BY 2.0

Mosquitoes can breed in small amounts of water where there aren’t other animals, like fish, to keep them in check by eating them: in discarded trash like plastic bottles or bags with water in them, old tires, buckets, rain gutters on houses that don’t drain properly. You can help keep mosquitoes in control in your local area by bagging and disposing of trash and regularly dumping containers or areas that collect water.

The City of Wilmington connected this marsh to the Christina River. This connection brings fish in from the river to spawn, and the marsh provides protection for the baby fish, which readily eat mosquitoes.

Marsh plants do a lot of work here, especially during and after rain. Together, all of the plants and their roots act like a sponge by holding water. Their roots act like a filter by removing pollutants from the water.

One marsh plant that does this is the cattail. You can recognize this plant by its large brown flower that resembles a hot dog on a stick or, as the name suggests, a cat’s tail. Birds and mammals (animals with hair) use the “fluff” that makes up the flower to soften and insulate their nests and burrows. Indigenous people and colonists used the cattail fluff for cushions and pillows, and the reeds for baskets and mats.

Areas with plants and soil work better for managing rainwater than areas covered by hard surfaces such as concrete or asphalt, because plant roots and soil can soak up water.

Image: "Narrow-leaved Cattail (Typha angustifolia)" by Ryan Hodnett is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0

Look at the water - is it cloudy or clear? Water that is moving tends to be cloudier because moving water stirs up the sediment (soil from the bottom). Even when the water slows or stops, it can take a while for small sediment particles to settle to the bottom.

So, water that is brown has a lot of stirred-up sediment. A greenish color means algae is growing. Algae are extremely tiny plants that use the sun’s light to grow. Sometimes algae can be other colors, such as orange or red. 

Algae grows when it has nutrients it needs (just like people!), which can be naturally occurring. It becomes a problem when water runoff from land washes excess nutrients including fertilizer into the water. The algae uses all that extra nutrients to grow  prolifically. Water where excess algae grows has lower dissolved oxygen. Aquatic animals including fish breathe that oxygen. Too much algae absorbs the oxygen, creating “dead zones” where aquatic animals can’t live.

A functioning ecosystem like what was created here with nutrient absorbing plants allows water movement between this wetland and the Christina River keeps nutrients at proper levels so fish and other animals can live in balance.

Image: "Algae-covered pond" by Dwight Burdette is licensed under CC BY 3.0

Have a seat! The marsh is a buffer for flood water, and also for sounds. The City of Wilmington is all around you, but its sounds are somewhat muffled by the plants and water. Can you hear these instead?

• Bird calls,
• Rustle of marsh plants in the breeze,
• Splash of water birds or turtles,
• Sound of your own breath.

City green spaces, like this park, are shown to help improve the mental and physical health of people who regularly visit. So, enjoy this space and a moment in your day. And come back soon and often!

Photo credit J. Harrod

This is the sound of the male Red-winged Blackbird:

“Conk a leeeeee”

The male red-winged blackbird resembles its name, a black bird with red patches on its wings. He spends a lot of time defending his territory with this call.

The female red-winged blackbird looks nothing like its name - her feathers are brown and mottled and help to camouflage her and her nest.

Both the male and the female spend most of their time foraging for food - a combination of seeds of marsh plants and insects that they feed their babies.

Image: "Gray lady and the birds" by Biodiversity Heritage Library. is licensed under CC BY 2.0

Animals who come to the wetland may be more active after the sun goes down, so you might not see them. If you look carefully at the mud around the water’s edge or even on the path, you may be able to tell who was here.

Why are they here? Because the wetland is their home. Lots of humans use this path to make their way to food at local stores and restaurants. Animals also use this path to find food, to meet up with others, and to find shelter away from the city.

Whitetail Deer - shows 2 hoof prints "White-tailed Deer track" by QS Wiki Account is in the Public Domain, CC0

Racoon tracks - note 5 toes on each foot "Raccoon tracks" by Chris Light is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0

Some mammals build lodges where they can be warm, have a supply of food and shelter. Here in Wilmington, these lodges are likely to be muskrat lodges, like the one pictured here. Beavers also live in the area and build much larger lodges, which they sometimes share with muskrats during the winter.

In spring Canada Geese might decide to nest atop the lodges, which are usually surrounded by water and tall enough for a good view of predators who might want their eggs.

Any animal that makes its home here is a great sign - it means that the animal has found food, space, and materials for building a shelter or nest - it sees the space as a good place to live.

Photo credit: John Harrod

These two aquatic turtles are found side by side in waterways in Delaware. The eastern painted turtle is native (found here naturally) to Delaware, and its “painted” marks on the upper and lower parts of the shell are mostly red, but with yellowish “painted” marks on the sides of its head behind its eyes.

The red-eared slider was “introduced” to Delaware and is not native here and competes for the Painted Turtle’s food. It has red “ear” spots instead of yellow.

You may see one of these turtles basking on the sides of the marsh or on logs.

Painted turtles help the wetland because they eat plants and aquatic invertebrates (insects) and that helps cycle nutrients. They are also an indicator of the health of the wetland. More of them mean a healthier ecosystem.

Eastern Painted Turtle "Eastern Painted Turtle (Chrysemys picta picta)" by Greg Schechter is licensed under CC BY 2.0

Red Eared Slider "Trachemys scripta elegans" by S.G.S. is in the Public Domain, CC0

Among the many marsh grasses some woody plants are beginning to grow. One is easy to spot because of its fuzzy branches. It is staghorn sumac and is named that because its stems resemble deer's fuzzy horns that grow in the spring. In summer it has long compound leaves with many leaflets, and spikes with clusters of tiny, bright red fuzzy fruit. Its flowers and fruit support and attract many different birds and butterflies.

Image: "Staghorn Sumac (Rhus typhina)" by Ryan Hodnett is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0

Image: "Staghorn Sumac (Rhus typhina)" by Ryan Hodnett is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0

Image:"Rhus typhina" by Bibliothèque de l'Université Laval is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0

To find the different arrows in this case, look at the water - there are four different marsh plants with arrow-shaped leaves. Each plant has a different flower, and, if you’re lucky, during the spring, summer and fall, you might see all four here.

Each of these species provides habitat and cover for fishes, especially fry (baby fish), and also provides food for many different marsh animals:

The leaves of spatterdock are eaten by deer, while beavers and muskrats eat the rhizome (a special kind of root), and ducks eat the seeds.

The seeds of arrow arum and arrowhead are eaten by ducks, with the root of arrowhead also being called a “duck potato” that is eaten by ducks, snapping turtles, and muskrats.

The flowers of pickerel weed are a good nectar source for bees and butterflies.

Litter, especially plastic, will remain in your area for a very long time. Because the river is tidal, some litter makes its way to the river mouth and into the ocean. Litter in the environment is harmful to wildlife, provides a breeding ground for mosquitoes, and is costly to the city to remove when treating drinking water

Most importantly, plastics specifically degrade into microplastics (tiny plastic particles) that are found in ecosystems and increasingly in every part of human life. Single-use plastics like this bottle can have a lasting impact on human health.

Thank you for taking your trash with you and putting it in its place!

Image: "Littered plastic bottle on a water body" by Kwameghana(Bright Kwame Ayisi) is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0

Did you find something that isn’t in the guide? There’s an app for that! If you’re curious about something you found, there are several apps that can help you identify what you’ve found AND share it with others!

iNaturalist allows you to take a photo and identify what you’ve seen to learn more about it. You can also upload the photo with a location, so others who are looking for that know that it’s been spotted here!

Download the iNaturalist app at: https://www.inaturalist.org/

The Merlin app can help you identify a bird you’ve sighted, using easy characteristics such as color and size and location. It’s much harder to take a picture of a bird for identification purposes, and this app will create a list of possible birds with photos and songs so you can identify a bird you’ve seen!

Download the Merlin Bird ID app at: https://merlin.allaboutbirds.org/