ArrayDecember 23, 2015 at 2:22 pm
By Regional Wildlife Biologist James Hall 
Bog Brook Wildlife Management Area (WMA) is a leased 924 acre impoundment in the Washington County towns of Deblois and Beddington. A log crib dam was built in 1968 by the Atlantic Salmon Commission as a storage facility to supplement low summer river flows in the Narraguagus River. A concrete roll dam was re-constructed in 1989 by MDIF&W with the labor and equipment contributions by adjoining landowners Champion International and C&D Corporation. An Alaskan Steep Pass fishway was also incorporated into the rebuild to allow for the anadromous fish passage of alewives. By means of a 35 year lease, the 
Department was given management authority on the flowage area as well as a riparian buffer on the east side owned by Champion International.
The project was a win-win for fisheries and wildlife, creating habitat for both without detriment to either. Both the presence of alewives and resident warm water species provide benefits not only to wildlife but recreational users as well. Bog Brook WMA is home to waterfowl, nesting eagles, ospreys, loons, great blue herons, and other associated wetlands birds and mammals. The resident heron rookery was, at one time, one of the largest inland sites in the State.
Prior to original flooding, some of the woodlands surrounding Bog Brook were harvested. For the stands of trees that were left, they became suitable structures on which herons and ospreys built their highly visible nests. Due to the number of submerged stumps, the best access around the area is by paddling. There is a wide main channel with many backwaters that are bracketed by floating peat islands with ericaceous-type plants. These provide numerous nesting and loafing sites for waterfowl as well as foraging opportunities for wading birds.
The location and additional information on this WMA can be found at: http://maine.gov/ifw/wildlife/land/department/region_c/bogbrookflowage.htm 
Bog Brook Wildlife Management Area (WMA) is a leased 924 acre impoundment in the Washington County towns of Deblois and Beddington. A log crib dam was built in 1968 by the Atlantic Salmon Commission as a storage facility to supplement low summer river flows in the Narraguagus River. A concrete roll dam was re-constructed in 1989 by MDIF&W with the labor and equipment contributions by adjoining landowners Champion International and C&D Corporation. An Alaskan Steep Pass fishway was also incorporated into the rebuild to allow for the anadromous fish passage of alewives. By means of a 35 year lease, the 
Department was given management authority on the flowage area as well as a riparian buffer on the east side owned by Champion International.
The project was a win-win for fisheries and wildlife, creating habitat for both without detriment to either. Both the presence of alewives and resident warm water species provide benefits not only to wildlife but recreational users as well. Bog Brook WMA is home to waterfowl, nesting eagles, ospreys, loons, great blue herons, and other associated wetlands birds and mammals. The resident heron rookery was, at one time, one of the largest inland sites in the State.
Prior to original flooding, some of the woodlands surrounding Bog Brook were harvested. For the stands of trees that were left, they became suitable structures on which herons and ospreys built their highly visible nests. Due to the number of submerged stumps, the best access around the area is by paddling. There is a wide main channel with many backwaters that are bracketed by floating peat islands with ericaceous-type plants. These provide numerous nesting and loafing sites for waterfowl as well as foraging opportunities for wading birds.
The location and additional information on this WMA can be found at: http://maine.gov/ifw/wildlife/land/department/region_c/bogbrookflowage.htm 
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