The Cache River is a waterway in southernmost Illinois, in a region sometimes called Little Egypt. The basin spans and six counties: Alexander, Johnson, Massac, Pope, Pulaski, and Union. Located at the convergence of four major physiographic regions, the river is part of the largest complex of wetlands in Illinois. The Cache River Wetlands is America's northernmost cypress/tupelo swamp and harbors 91 percent of the state's high quality swamp and wetland communities. It provides habitat for more than 100 threatened and endangered species in Illinois. In 1996, the Cache was designated a Wetland of International Importance by the Ramsar Convention. A significant portion of the Cache River Wetlands are protected by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Illinois Department of Natural Resources. Cypress Creek National Wildlife Refuge, established in 1990, covers of aquatic and riparian habitat, and is eventually planned to expand to . The Illinois Department of Natural Resources' Cache River State Natural Area protects another . Local landowners, through Wetlands Reserve Program easements with Natural Resources Conservation Service, protect an additional of restored wetlands. Also through NRCS, landowners are using a variety of conservation practices, such as conservation tillage, grassed waterways, and reforestation; many of these practices are through NRCS’ Environmental Quality Incentives and Wildlife Habitat Programs. In all, more than of private lands are using some sort of NRCS conservation program in the Cache River Watershed. The Lower Cache River, a habitat that encompasses much of these landholdings, has been listed as a U.S. National Natural Landmark. The Heron Pond – Little Black Slough Nature Preserve, another National Natural Landmark, is located within the upper stretch of the Cache, upstream from the Post Creek Cutoff. History The Cache River area was used as a trading crossroads by Native Americans, and has several sites of archeological interest within its boundaries, including the Cypress Citadel site just south of Cypress, Illinois. French voyageurs gave the river its modern name, calling it Cache, which means secret or hidden place. American settlers arrived in the region in 1803. They found the soil too wet for farming, and the swamps full of mosquitoes and venomous snakes; many early settlers died of malaria. According to legend, from about the 1790s to 1820, Colonel Plug, a river pirate, ran a gang of cutthroats and preyed on unsuspecting travelers near the mouth of the Ohio River, stealing their goods and sinking or selling