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South Bay Wildlife Management Area
Location: Coventry and Newport, Orleans County
Bird Conservation Region: BCR 14
Size: 1641 Acres
Latitude: 44:55
Longitude: 72:12
IBA Criteria:
- Vermont Endangered and Threatened Species (Criteria 1)
- Vermont High Conservation Priority Species (Criteria 2)
- Rare, Unique or Representative Habitat (Criteria 3)
- Long-term Monitoring and/or Research(Criteria 5)
Land Ownership:State
Habitats:Floodplain forest, marsh, swamp, field
Land Use: Wildlife conservation, hunting, fishing, recreation
Threats: Invasive species, pollution, human disturbance
Location:
Bird conservation Region: BCR 14
Size: 1641 Acres
Latitude: 44:55
Longitude; 72:12
Site Description
South Bay WMA is located at the southern end of Lake Memphremagog where both the Black and Barton rivers empty into the lake. The two rivers meander slowly through lowland forest creating numerous oxbows and sloughs and an extensive and diverse wetland complex. This IBA also contains agricultural fields and early successional forest. Vermont Natural Community types include Silver Maple-Ostrich Fern Riverine Floodplain Forest, Red Maple-Northern White Cedar, Alluvial Shrub, Sweet Gale Shoreline and Buttonbush swamp and Cattail, Deep Broadleaf, Wild Rice and Deep Bulrush marsh.
Birds
The juxtaposition of this diverse wetland ecosystem next to Lake Memphemagog make this an ideal location for breeding and migrating waterfowl. Black Duck, Mallard, Blue and Green-winged teal, Northern Pintail, Northern Shoveler and Gadwall have all been documented here in numbers. The marshes support a number of priority species including the only site outside of the Champlain Valley for the state threatened Black Tern. Other marsh species include Pied-billed Grebe (S2), Least Bittern (S2), Sora (S2), Common Moorhen (S2) and American Bittern (S3). Within the floodplain forest Blue-gray Gnatcatchers (S3) and Willow Flycatcher can be regularly found and on occasion Yellow-throated Vireo.
Conservation
South Bay WMA is owned and managed by the state of Vermont. Both Black Terns and many of the marshbirds are monitored here through the Vermont Marshbird Monitoring Program. Threats include human disturbance primarily by fishermen, pollution from the railroad, the city of Newport and agricultural run-off, and invasive species such as Purple Loosestrife, Japanese Knotweed and Fragmites.
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