 Health officials also feared that the flats were a prime breeding ground for malaria- and yellow fever-carrying mosquitoes.By 1876, a large mudflat had formed immediately south of Benning Bridge and another flat some wide had developed south of that.By 1883, a stream named "Succabel's Gut" traversed the upper flat and another dubbed "Turtle Gut" the lower, and almost all flats on the river hosted substantial populations of American lotus, lily pads, and wild rice.