Recently, York Land Trust purchased a 15.6-acre parcel of land along the eastern shore of Bell Marsh Reservoir that fills an important conservation gap in an area that had been slated for residential development. The purchase will help keep York, Kittery and Eliot drinking water clean and sensitive wetlands full of life.
The property sits on Garey Mill Road and abuts York Land Trust’s 50-acre Bell Marsh Wetlands Preserve. It is within a large block of 6,300 acres of unfragmented forest. Preserving this expansive area of undeveloped land benefits numerous plant and animal species.
Derek Yorks, a wildlife biologist with Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, emphasizes the biological significance of this site, attributing a high occurrence of aquatic animals to the presence of different types of wetlands and the unfragmented nature of the land.
“These animals are utilizing multiple wetlands for their life cycle,” says Yorks, noting that they have access not only to the marsh but also surrounding vernal pools and shrub swamps. “In this landscape, they are able to always be close to multiple wetlands. And with this species, fragmentation of habitat with roads and development are the biggest threats, so the fact that there is a lot of unfragmented habitat is also really important.”
In addition to providing excellent aquatic animal habitat, the site also contains high value areas for inland waterfowl and wading birds, according to a survey conducted by the Maine Natural Areas Program. It also adds to our joint efforts with the Mt. Agamenticus to the Sea Conservation Initiative (MtA2C) to conserve 19,000 connected acres from the Tatnic Hlls of Wells to the coast of Kittery by 2032.
We were able to make sure that this rich habitat remains part of a larger mosaic of protected land thanks to a generous grant of $140,500 from the Maine Natural Resource Conservation Program.
