Management Plan - National Estuarine Research Reserve System

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III. Wells NERR SettingPhysical Setting—OverviewGeographyThe Wells National Estuarine Research Reserveis located in the Town of Wells in southern YorkCounty, Maine. It encompasses 1,854 acres, plus386 acres of submerged lands. It is in the geographicheart of the Gulf of Maine watershed, an area thatextends from Cape Cod, Massachusetts to CapeSable, Nova Scotia, Canada. The watershed landbase is 69,115 square miles; its water surface is33,054 square miles. The Gulf of Maine comprisesa diversity of interconnected coastal habitats, allplaying an important role in the function of thisecosystem.The Reserve incorporates estuaries found at themouths of the Webhannet River, Little River(Figure III.3) and Ogunquit River. These riversystems arise in the sandy glacial outwash plainof southern Maine and empty into the Wellsembayment, a sandy basin extending about 10miles along the coast from the Ogunquit River tothe Kennebunk River. Wells embayment mixesfreely with the Gulf of Maine, a semi-enclosed seabounded to the south and east by underwater banksand to the north and west by Massachusetts, NewHampshire, Maine, New Brunswick and NovaScotia (Figure III.2). The Gulf is one of the world’smost biologically productive environments.With its low relief and extensive marshes, theWells Reserve typifies the southern portion ofthe Acadian biogeographic region. This regionextends along the northeast Atlantic coast from thesouthern tip of Newfoundland to Cape Cod and ischaracterized by a well developed algal flora andboreal biota. The shoreline is heavily indented andfrequently rocky. The sea has a large tidal rangeand is strongly influenced by the Labrador Current.(Cowardin et al., 1979)The Reserve is located in the Gulf of Maine CoastalLowland Subsection—one of 19 eco-regions inMaine. Called Bailey’s Ecoregions, and developedby the U.S. Forest Service, The Nature Conservancyand the Maine Natural Areas Program, theseecoregions are grouped according to physiography,climate, geology, soils and vegetation. The Gulf ofMaine Coastal Lowland Subsection is a 20-plusmile-wide band that extends from the PiscataquaRiver (which divides Maine and New Hampshire)to Casco Bay. The Atlantic coastal plain, whichis broad and clearly defined in states to the south,reaches its eastern extent near Portland. As a result,this eco-region is characterized by a relativelysmooth coastline of large headlands, broad baysFigure III.1. A panoramic view of the Little River Estuary, the Wells Reserve campus, the WebhannetRiver Estuary, Wells embayment and in the distance Mount Agamenticus.18 Wells National Estuarine Research Reserve
and Tidal Marsh is the most common deposit typeat the Reserve.Soil formations in the Reserve tend to have gentleslopes, rapid permeability and slow surface runoff.Water tables are at or near the surface throughoutmost of the Reserve. Along the immediate coast,soils are generally deep sands (where beaches occur)or shallow sandy loams that are well to excessivelydrained, according the “Biophysical Regions ofMaine” report.Figure III.2. The Gulf of Maine stretches betweenCape Cod and southwestern Nova Scotia. Mapcourtesy of Gulf of Maine Council on the MarineEnvironment.and sandy beaches . The terrain is relatively flat,with elevations rarely rising above 100 feet—MountAgamenticus (which reaches an elevation of 691feet and is the highest point in the region) beingone of the exceptions.GeologyThe southern Maine landscape has been shaped primarilyby glaciation. During the last Ice Age, theLaurentide ice sheet covered the region, pressing onthe earth’s crust and causing land to subside. As glaciersmelted about 14,000 years ago, the land beganto rebound and the sea level rose. Coastal basins,embayments and watercourses have been formedover geologic time through interactions between sealevel and glacial movement. Meteorologic, hydrologicand oceanographic processes have contributedby scouring, eroding and transporting substratesinto today’s coastal configuration.Surficial geologic deposits at the Wells Reserveare strongly influenced by this geologic history.The Reserve has four deposit types: Swamp andTidal Marsh, composed of peat, silt, clay and sand;Glacial-Marine, composed of sand underlain bysilt and clay; Beach and Dune, composed of sand,gravel, and fine sediment, such as silt and clay; andGlacial Till, composed of sand and stones. SwampHydrologyThe Webhannet River watershed has a drainage areaof 8,964 acres (14 square miles), entirely within theTown of Wells. The Webhannet’s major tributariesare Depot Brook, Eldridge River and BlacksmithBrook (Figure III.3). Extensive wetlands and saltmarshes near the Webhannet River mouth emptyinto Wells Harbor, which flows to Wells Bay via adredged channel between two jetties.The Little River is formed by the confluence of theMerriland River and Branch Brook. Together, thethree waterways have a drainage area of 20,057acres (31 square miles). The Merriland River hasits headwaters in the City of Sanford and crossesthe Town of Wells. Branch Brook originatesfrom several springs near the Sanford municipalairport and serves as the border between thetowns of Kennebunk and Wells. The Kennebunk-Kennebunkport-Wells Water District draws publicwater from Branch Brook, reducing its flow to theLittle River. The Little River estuary flows to WellsBay via a salt marsh protected by an unarmoreddouble-spit barrier beach.The Ogunquit River watershed covers an area ofapproximately 13,300 acres (or 24 square miles) andis located in the towns of Wells, York, Ogunquitand South Berwick. Green Brook is a major tributary,with Tatnic Brook and several smaller tributariesconverging with the main stem of the river.The expansive salt marshes of the Moody Divisionof Rachel Carson National Wildlife Refuge arelocated behind a two-mile-long barrier beach andManagement Plan: Setting19
Page 3 and 4: Wells National Estuarine Research R
Page 5 and 6: Table of ContentsAcknowledgments..
Page 7 and 8: Representation on the Reserve Manag
Page 9 and 10: Objectives and Strategies.. . . . .
Page 11 and 12: XIII. Volunteer Plan.. . . . . . .
Page 14 and 15: xiiWells National Estuarine Researc
Page 16 and 17: I. OverviewIntroduction to the Rese
Page 18 and 19: Exhibits and Interpretive Trails; P
Page 20 and 21: The Wells Reserve requires specific
Page 22 and 23: II. IntroductionThe Value of Estuar
Page 24 and 25: Figure II.3. Biogeographic regions
Page 26 and 27: 1.2.3.Address coastal management is
Page 28 and 29: Department of of CommerceNational O
Page 30 and 31: 16 Wells National Estuarine Researc
Page 34 and 35: Figure III.3. The two principal wat
Page 36 and 37: Wells Reserve campus and adjacent s
Page 38 and 39: 230 bird species and at least 32 ma
Page 40 and 41: landscapes are assuming a suburban
Page 43 and 44: IV. Strategic Plan29
Page 45 and 46: Objective 2: Optimize educational u
Page 47 and 48: V. Accomplishments33
Page 49 and 50: Figure V.2. Chris Feurt, the CTP Co
Page 51 and 52: Figure V.4. The barn complex was co
Page 53 and 54: ◊With partners (U.S. Fish and Wil
Page 55 and 56: VI. Administration41
Page 57 and 58: RMAManagerEducationResearch & Stewa
Page 59 and 60: ◊The York County Audubon Society,
Page 61 and 62: The Reserve Manager serves as the c
Page 63 and 64: Figure VI.4. An October sunrise gra
Page 65 and 66: VII. Facilities andConstruction51
Page 67 and 68: ◊Make facilities available to par
Page 69 and 70: Figure VII.2. The Reserved Life Est
Page 71 and 72: Killing House (early 1900’s)This
Page 73 and 74: Estate and are currently privately
Page 75 and 76: VIII. Public Access61
Page 77 and 78: Figure VIII.2. An artist at work by
Page 79 and 80: Figure VIII.4. A family enjoys a wa
Page 81 and 82: IX. Education and Outreach67
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Strategies◊ Work with partners to
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K-12 EducationThe Wells Reserve edu
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signs of wildlife, water quality mo
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irds, beach exploration, seasonal m
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X. Research and Monitoring77
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Figure X.1. Jeremy Miller (right) a
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System-wide Monitoring ProgramThe N
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tions concerning the sustainability
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permit, the Research Department als
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XI. Stewardship87
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◊◊◊◊◊Protect pristine hab
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Reserve cooperates with the followi
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will monitor this site (and others
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Figure XI.6. The Wells Reserve Stew
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XII. Reserve Boundary andAcquisitio
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Proposed Changes to the Reserve and
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Figure XII.2 (top): The main stems
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By expanding its boundary the Wells
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forests, and wetlands. It has habit
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Conservation EasementThe Wells Rese
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XIII. Volunteers109
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Figure XIII.1. Beach Profiling volu
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XIV. Communications113
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images, and cultivates interest in
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AppendicesAppendix A: Memoranda of
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Appendix A: Memoranda ofUnderstandi
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Appendix A-1Management Plan: Append
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Management Plan: Appendix A127
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Management Plan: Appendix A131
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Appendix B: ConservationEasementsMa
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Appendix B-1Management Plan: Append
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Management Plan: Appendix B153
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Appendix C: State of MaineLegislati
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Appendix C-1Management Plan: Append
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Management Plan: Appendix C171
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Appendix D: Rules forPublic UseMana
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Appendix Das part of the Reserve. T
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Appendix D(a) No person shall remov
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Appendix D(a) Third through fifth g
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Appendix E: NaturalResource LawsMan
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Appendix Ecomponents of the Program
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Appendix Eability of these areas to
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Appendix ETowns experiencing less g
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Appendix Emust be in place before a
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Appendix F: FederalRegulations—NE
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Appendix Ffor resource management p
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Appendix F(b) The biogeographic cla
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Appendix Fzone. Key land and water
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Appendix Fminor construction projec
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Appendix Finterests therein, for an
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Appendix Fagencies and/or private o
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Appendix Fand the additional compon
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Appendix FResearch Reserve System.(
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Appendix FDC 20235. The following m
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Appendix FThis typology system refl
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Appendix Fthe boring clam Playdon,
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Appendix FC. Inlet type. Inlets in
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Appendix FB. pH Regime: This is ind
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Appendix G:CZMA—Section 315Manage
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Appendix GIn developing the guideli
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Appendix H:Wells National Estuarine
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Appendix HWells National Estuarine
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