Chasing the Crest

     As I write this, a wildlife disaster of biblical proportions is playing out in Southeast Arkansas.

     My wife’s brother and his family, JD and Sue Dunnahoe, live beside the Arkansas-Mississippi River Levee, at a location almost even with the confluence of the Arkansas River and the mighty Mississippi. Actually, they live on a low hill, which is the remains of the river levee that was washed out in 1927. Just across the levee, the flood waters now flow along the levee much higher that their rooftop. The sounds of that rushing water is not a comforting sound to hear as they doze off each night.

     The levee, at that point, is many miles from the river. Inside that levee, the dense forest abounds with wildlife. Normally. But this is not a normal year. The flood that is occurring now has happened only twice before in my memory banks, and never in mid-winter.

     Near the river itself, higher land occurs, many low hilltops. As the water comes up, first flooding occurs along the levee. Slowly, as the water rises, areas nearer the river are flooded.

     Thousands of wild animals must make a choice. They must go outside the levee, without much cover to protect them. Many have already made that choice. JD tells of 25 deer in his yard when he came home yesterday. Others have reported herds of 75 deer in their fields. Many dead deer already litter the roadside. While the deer are the larger, more visible victims, rabbits, snakes and other small animals are also faced with this life or death decision.

     The other animals have made the other, the seemingly more attractive choice, in the last few days.  Move toward the river. Higher land, with plenty of cover and food. Farther and farther away from the levee, and survival.

     The deadly choice.

     During a previous flood many years ago, JD put his boat into the floodwaters and traveled to the riverbank. He saw hundreds of deer, rabbits, snakes and other wild animals, all crowded together on the few dry hilltops near the river.

     Yesterday, JD walked up to the levee top. He knew the river had crested, because the government man who follows the crest of the Mississippi river was there. He was a nice enough guy, and he told JD all about his job. He will chase the crest of the Mississippi river all the way to New Orleans.

     Flood stage of the river at that point is around 37 feet. At some point soon after flood stage is reached, the river begins to flood the top of those few high points along the river. The river is now at 43 feet. Those thousands upon thousands of animals are now dying, or already dead. The 10 mile swim to the levee is impossible for them.

     Now, it is up to the relatively few wild animals who made the right choice, who went outside the levee, to repopulate those beautiful, dense forests surrounding the confluence to those two mighty rivers. It will take many years. But they always succeed, during the time leading up to the next great flood.

     Hopefully, many years down the line.