Driftwood

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For other uses, see Driftwood (disambiguation).

Mass of driftwood near Poirua, New Zealand

Pine branches washed up on the shore at Cape Henlopen State Park

Driftwood is wood that has been washed onto a shore or beach of a sea or river by the action of winds, tides, waves or man.

In some waterfront areas, driftwood is a major nuisance. However, the driftwood provides shelter and food for birds, fish and other aquatic species as it floats in the ocean. Gribbles, shipworms and bacteria decompose the wood and gradually turn it into nutrients that are reintroduced to the food web. Sometimes, the partially decomposed wood washes ashore, where it also shelters birds, plants, and other species. Driftwood can become the foundation for sand dunes.

Driftwood can be formed from:

a tree or tree branch washed into the ocean (or another large body of water), usually because of strong winds, as in a storm, or due to flooding.
buildings and their contents washed into the sea by floods, storms and tsunamis.
wooden objects discarded into the water from shore.
remains of wrecked wooden ships and boats.
jettisoned dunnage or lost cargo.

1 In history
2 Driftwood sculpture
3 Gallery
4 References

[edit] In history

According to Norse mythology, the first humans, Ask and Embla, were formed out of two pieces of driftwood, an ash and an elm, by the god Odin and his brothers, Ve and Vili.

Driftwood carried by Arctic rivers was the main, or sometimes only, source of wood for some Inuit and other Arctic populations living north of the tree-line until they came into regular contact with European traders.

One famous piece of driftwood is the "Old Man of the Lake" in Crater Lake, Oregon. This is a full-size tree that has been bobbing vertically in the lake for more than a century.^[1] Due to the cold water of the lake, the tree has been well preserved.

Many people use driftwood as parts of decorative furniture or other art forms, and it is a popular element in the scenery of fish tanks.

[edit] Driftwood sculpture

Sculpture made of driftwood has been constructed on beaches or mudflats. One location has been at Kullaberg, Sweden, where Lars Vilke created a controversial driftwood artwork in the year 1980. Sculptures were created on the Emeryville, California mudflat and marsh area of San Francisco Bay in the late 1960s.