Celery Bog water lowest since 1920s

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. (WLFI) - Drought conditions continue to take a toll on water levels at the Celery Bog in West Lafayette.

The year 1920. That was the last time water levels at the Celery Bog in West Lafayette were as low as they are now.

"The water level here at the Celery Bog has gone down quite a bit," Dan Dunten of West Lafayette Parks and Recreation said.

Gone down quite a bit all because of Mother Nature.

"The winds and the low humidity and some of those type of things have caused a lot of evaporation but the water levels have just gone down like it has all across the state because of the lack of rain," Dunten said.

And with that lack of rain, Dunten said with barely any water left, it's a different sight to see.

"You see a lot of green growth out here in the wetland, it's very fertile soil here. A lot of the weeds will grow," Dunten said.

And although there's now more green growth than water, Dunten said it's not all bad for the nature center.

"The hunting that these birds have done for fish has been very productive for them because of the fish have been concentrated more in a smaller area, so the birds have been able to eat more of the fish," Dunten said.

But while water levels at the Celery Bog are the lowest they've been in nearly a century, Dunten said it's not permanent. It's now all back up to Mother Nature to make it rain and get the levels back up to normal.

"It's just part of nature. These things happen throughout history," Dunten said. "There's times that you have excess moisture and times when you have a drought and we happen to be going through one of those times right now."

Dan Dunten said it will take a while and several significant rainfalls for water levels at the bog to be back to normal.