The Eastern Plains are dotted with depressions in the land that fill with water, support wildlife, then drain as seasons change.
Some 2,500 playa lakes are cyclical homes to wildlife and replenish the Ogallala Aquifer.
“Playas … Gems of the Plains”, a traveling exhibit, explains the importance of these wetlands. Learn more at the Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge through Feb. 11. Viewing hours are 7:30 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays. The refuge closes at noon today.
The tiny lakes have clay-lined basins and periodically fill with water, mostly from rainfall and other precipitation. More than 200 species of birds spend time at these small depressions, which number 60,000 throughout the High Plains region.
But the playas are endangered, especially those found in croplands. Fertilizer runoff and other contaminants threaten the lakes. So does sediment runoff, which reduces the amount of water a basin can hold. In other instances, the lakes have been altered to hold more water for irrigation purposes.
The lakes recharge the Ogallala Aquifer, studies have found.
Most of the playas are on private land, and while many landowners feel the lakes have a positive effect on the land, others consider them an inconvenience because they reduce the amount of land that can be farmed.
The exhibit began its travels in 2003 and will visit the other playa states of Kansas, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas before ending in 2008.
The Playa Lakes Joint Venture, a nonprofit organization formed in 1989, is dedicated to the conservation of the lakes and provided much of the funding for the exhibit. For more information about the lakes, visit pljv.org. The organization also has a film, “The Playas: Reflections of Life on the Plains” available for $5.95.
PLAYA FACTS
More than 60,000 playa lakes are found in the High Plains.
Playas support 37 mammal species; more than 200 bird species, including the sandhill cranes and mountain plovers; 340 plant species; and 13 amphibian species.
More than 90 percent of the lakes are privately owned.
Playas are the primary source of recharge for the Ogallala Aquifer.
