Tobico Marsh - June 9

This marsh is located in the Bay City Recreation Area. In the Chippewa language Todico means "a little lake by a big lake". To explain this further, sand deposits in the Saginaw Bay built up over time and formed a body of water which was eventually cut off from the bay. This became Todico Marsh,a 1,700 acre refuge for more than 100 species of birds and migratory fowl. The tall grasses of the marsh hid a lot of the waterfowl from us, but we did see two Mute Swans with their babies in the water. We heard the songs of many birds, but could only see/identify a few. At the Visitors Center I learned the sounds of different frogs, consequently I could hear the green and the bull frog in the marsh. There were also several different species of turtle in the marsh, but the only kind we saw was the painted turtle. We espied one such turtle by the path, and as she seems to be in a hole which apparently she dug, John thought that maybe she was laying eggs. She was willing to pose for a picture so I have posted it here. It was a peaceful walk in the marsh,and I constantly am amazed by the wonders of nature. Every species has its own identifying colors and markings,and some can be identified by particular behavior. I thought there was one kind of gull, but here in Michigan I have identified the ring billed gull. It actually has a black ring around its bill! I can not help but think that God had fun when he created the world. Before I close,I want to explain another name- the origin of the word Saginaw. The Sauk(first Indians here before the Chippewa chased them out)called the area, that later became Saginaw, "O-Sag-E-Non"- or land of the Sauk. I have been to Saginaw many time over the years,but never knew the origin of its name.