Murphy's Pond (sometimes referred to as Murphy Pond) is a

wetlands A wetland is a distinct ecosystem that is flooded or saturated by water, either permanently (for years or decades) or seasonally (for weeks or months). Flooding results in oxygen-free (anoxic) processes prevailing, especially in the soils. The ...

complex located in Hickman County,

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

. While only about in size, the pond is notable for being one of the largest

bald cypress ''Taxodium distichum'' (bald cypress, swamp cypress; french: cyprès chauve; ''cipre'' in Louisiana) is a deciduous conifer in the family Cupressaceae. It is native to the southeastern United States. Hardy and tough, this tree adapts to a wide r ...

swamps A swamp is a forested wetland.Keddy, P.A. 2010. Wetland Ecology: Principles and Conservation (2nd edition). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 497 p. Swamps are considered to be transition zones because both land and water play a role in ...

remaining in Kentucky and for its high

cottonmouth snake ''Agkistrodon piscivorus'' is a species of pit viper in the subfamily Crotalinae of the family Viperidae. It is one of the world's few semiaquatic vipers (along with the Florida cottonmouth), and is native to the southeastern United States. As ...

(''Agkistrodon piscivorus'') population density. To protect the pond from the effects of surrounding commercial development, the pond and its immediate surroundings were added to the Obion Creek Wildlife Management Area by the

Office of Kentucky Nature Preserves The Office of Kentucky Nature Preserves is an agency of the Commonwealth of Kentucky in the United States dedicated to the protection of Kentucky's natural heritage. The agency's primary focus is protecting rare and endangered species habitat. It o ...

in 2005, forming the Obion Creek and Murphy's Pond State Nature Preserve, which further grew to in 2007. The pond itself is owned and managed by

Murray State University Murray State University (MSU) is a public university in Murray, Kentucky. In addition to the main campus in Calloway County in southwestern Kentucky, Murray State operates extended campuses offering upper level and graduate courses in Paducah, H ...

, located 30 miles east in

Murray, Kentucky Murray is a home rule-class city in Calloway County, Kentucky, United States. It is the seat of Calloway County and the 19th-largest city in Kentucky. The city's population was 17,741 during the 2010 U.S. census, and its micropolitan area's po ...

. Murray State acquired the property in 1975 with a grant from

The Nature Conservancy The Nature Conservancy (TNC) is a global environmental organization headquartered in Arlington, Virginia. it works via affiliates or branches in 79 countries and territories, as well as across every state in the US. Founded in 1951, The Natu ...

. Access to the pond is restricted for scientific research purposes only and requires written permission from the university. Students seeking a degree in fisheries or aquatic biology at Murray State use the pond for field investigations. Murphy's Pond is mostly swampland, with only small sections of open water. The pond and the surrounding lowlands, formed by Obion Creek and its tributaries, support one of the highest concentrations of cottonmouths in the United States. The pond is near the northernmost point of the snake's range.

References

{{coord, 36.741, -88.856, type:landmark_region:US-KY, display=title Swamps of Kentucky Bodies of water of Hickman County, Kentucky Murray State University