1871 map. Dark green band (added later) highlights saltmarsh vegetation, indicating likelihood of tidal exchange. Click to enlarge.
What We Know Now
Now, more than a century after the first efforts to drain Swan Lake and other places like it, fisheries biologists understand we need coastal estuaries because they provide critical nearshore habitat for juvenile salmon and other marine fish. Such habitat helped sustain the large salmon runs that once supported a thriving commercial fishing industry as well as recreational fishing. Estuaries provide places for salmon to adjust their metabolism to the marine environment while feeding on insects and taking refuge from larger predators. Wetlands provide precious habitat for many species of birds, plants and other wildlife, and help recharge our aquifer.
Reclaiming the Wetland
In 1999, Island County purchased Swan Lake and surrounding property with Conservation Futures funds for wetland and wildlife habitat, storm water and flood control, low-impact and minimally developed parkland, and low-impact recreation. It is now designated a Habitat of Local Importance. It is a refuge for more than 100 species of birds – one seventh of all birds found in the entire nation, according to Whidbey Audubon Society. Otters frolic while eagles and herons soar overhead. Sunset Beach is only footsteps away. The nearby Joseph Whidbey State Park to the north and wooded lands to the south combine to create a refuge and habitat for many rare plants and animals. Swan Lake Watershed Preservation Group and the Skagit Fisheries Enhancement Group are looking into the feasibility of restoring an enhanced tidal connection to the Strait of Juan de Fuca.
Swan Lake, 2008