Ebenezer Swamp is home to a wide variety of creatures
As expected from a rural Alabama town, Montevallo is crawling with wildlife, and Ebenezer Swamp is one of the most inhabited areas.
Ebenezer Swamp, located about six miles from the University of Montevallo campus, is an ecological preserve consisting of 60 wooded acres. The wetlands are home to a myriad of life, including numerous species of fungi, plants, and animals.
“The purpose to preserve ecological habitats is to preserve their function,” Dr. Mike Hardig, a professor of biology at the University of Montevallo. “There are places where nutrients are recycled. There are places where the plants and animals we desire or hunt or fish spend their lives.”
With plenty of water and trees around, Ebenezer Swamp serves as an ideal habitat for beavers, which are often building dams along the waterways.
These wood-chucking mammals make a profound impact on the area’s ecosystem by reshaping the physical landscape of their habitats like few other animals are capable, by devouring the bark of trees and using the excess to build dams.
Another prominent player in the ecosystem is the water moccasin. The shallow streams and muddy puddles make for easy travel, allowing snakes to move through the woods undetected.
Rattlesnakes and copperheads also frequent the area, constantly hunting for prey throughout the spring and summer seasons.
Often causing ruckus above is the American woodcock, pecking at the trunks of sycamore and Tupelo gum trees in search of a wormy meal. These small birds use their dark feathers as camouflage to blend in with the forest around them.
Another lively bird in the area is the great blue heron. This tall, long-legged bird can be found where the fish are, standing attentively in the wetlands, hunting for fish. Its white, gray, and blue feathers reflect the colors of the water and the sky above.
Of course, there are hundreds of more species of life in Ebenezer Swamp other than the few mentioned. For more information on Ebenezer Swamp and its inhabitants, visit the university’s webpage dedicated to the topic.
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