May, 1912.] .4 Study of Buckeye Lake and Vicinity. 525 



The outline is very irregular due to many indentations and small 

 fringing islands, and changes from year to year. This is due to 

 the frequent and extreme changes in water level in the lake. For 

 four years within my knowledge, the water was lowered every 

 summer, over 6 feet in 1909, so that repairs might be made. The 

 storm winds of winter every year detach fragments of the island 

 and sweep them away. 



The vegetation is of peculiar interest ; for it consists of typical 

 bog plants characteristic today of high temperate latitudes and 

 generally accepted to be relicts of early post-glacial times, stranded 

 and persisting and now surrounded by the nomial vegetation of 

 the present climatic conditions. 



The typical bog plants are several species of Sphagnimi, the 

 Cranberry (Oxycoccus macrocarpus) , the Sundew (Drosera rotun- 

 difolia), several species of bog sedges as Carex limosa and C. 

 filifomiis, the Buckbean (Menyanthes triloba) and Scheuchzeria 

 palustris fomiing a bog-meadow bordered by a zone of bog-shrubs 

 of which the Poison Simiac (Rhus vemix) the Black Alder (Ilex 

 verticillata) and the Choke Berry (Aronia arbutifolia and A nigra) 

 are the most characteristic 



Soundings in the bog revealed the presence of a sandy shell 

 marl, a lake deposit, at a depth of 28 feet. The marl was still 

 foun in soine places at the IS foot level giving a depth of 10 feet 

 of shell marl. The presence of marl may be taken as an indication 

 of Characeae or Cyanophyceae. Immediately above the marl 

 was a dark brown or black plastic deposit with fragments of 

 Potamogeton and Scirpus lacustris. These are pond plants 

 growing in water not deeper than 53^ to 6 feet. In another 

 sounding the core from the 22 foot level showed a fine gradation 

 between the marl and the pond deposit. At 15 feet the core 

 showed a preponderance of sedge material, which indicates water 

 at less than 5 feet. At 7 feet the core contained Sphagnum 

 mixed with the sedge remains. At 5 feet the peat was loosely 

 matted, coarsely fibrous but little modified Sphagnum fragments 

 with roots and stems of cranberry and other plants. Large water 

 pockets were encountered near the surface and even at a depth 

 of 17 feet. At the bottom of this series containing evidence of 

 lake and pond deposits is a fine grained blue clay. The blue clay 

 varied from the 28 to the 40 foot level. Soundings deeper than 

 40 feet could not be taken as that was the maximum length of the 

 sounding rod. This fine grained blue clay belongs I believe to the 

 Illinoian drift. 



The records of these soundings sketch the history of the island. 

 At the northern margin of the ancient lake species of Potamogeton 

 and other aquatics formed a more or less dense mat. The water 

 gradually became more shallow through the accumulation of silt 

 and plant remains; and the aquatics were succeeded by semi- 



