Assessing the Reliability of the Water Supply to a Closed Basin Wetlands

by John C. Tracy, Kansas State Univ, Manhattan, United States,
James K. Koelliker, Kansas State Univ, Manhattan, United States,



Document Type: Proceeding Paper

Part of: Water Resources Planning and Management: Saving a Threatened Resource?In Search of Solutions

Abstract:

In many reports, it has been predicted that the loss of the Cheyenne Bottoms as a wetlands area would have an adverse effect on a great deal of the North American migratory shore bird population. The Cheyenne Bottoms Wildlife Area is located in central Kansas, near Great Bend. The wetlands contained within the wild life are unique in that they are formed within a closed basin. The only natural flow of water into the basin comes from a 210 mi² (544 km²) watershed that surrounds the Bottoms, a precipitation that falls directly on the wetlands themselves. The average yearly precipitation near the Cheyenne Bottoms area is approximately 24 inches (61 cm), and precipitation amounts vary significantly from year to year.

Subject Headings: Wetlands (coastal) | Basins | Wildlife | Water supply | Precipitation | Birds | Water conservation | Kansas | United States

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