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Saint Croix National Scenic Riverway The yellows of a setting sun are reflected on the water divided by a a dark shoreline
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Saint Croix National Scenic Riverway
Environmental Factors
trees with leaves, with bottom of trunks underwater from flooding

NPS

Spring Flooding

The St. Croix and Namekagon Rivers are always flowing and they are in a constantly shifting, dynamic state. Changing water levels and moving sand drive the change. The land that adjoins the rivers is also dynamic. Weather and climate change, geologic processes, fire, and human-caused factors such as air and water pollution are only a few of the agents of change that have helped to create the Riverway that we know today. The park provides a "living laboratory" that helps us better understand how these environmental factors have shaped park landscapes and ecosystems. Park staff are monitoring changes in environmental factors to alert managers to threats to the resources, hopefully, in time to prevent log term damage to the resources.

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What looks like a striped fish with several tails is actually the opening of the mussel shell which is hard to see.

Did You Know?
Mussels rely on fish to carry their young around until they are old enough to drop to the river bottom. To attract the fish and attach their young, mussels put on displays that make fish think they are fish or other food. The mussel shell, which is all we normally see, is now barely visible.
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Last Updated: December 11, 2006 at 18:05 MST