Viewing wild plants and animals at the Sanctuary is a popular activity that varies with the seasons. In the spring migratory birds have returned to begin their nesting season and many native wildflowers such as starflower, bunchberry and trillium are in bloom. Look carefully during summer months for broods of baby wood ducks, mergansers and mallards swimming amongst the wide variety of aquatic flora in bloom on Somes Pond. Autumn brings the blooms of asters to the trails and wetlands of the Sanctuary and the Somes Pond landscape is decorated in the fall colors of maples, birches and huckleberry. Look for wetland birds such as goldeneyes, grebes, and herons which congregate in Somes Pond during the fall. Winter’s cold freezes the pond’s surface and bald eagles are a common sight feeding from the ice-fishermen leftovers. River otter “sledding” tracks can be seen in the snow surrounding Somes Pond and the native evergreens provide a sharp contrast to our white landscape.
Common Plants and Animals of the
Somes-Meynell Wildlife Sanctuary
Ferns
Bracken Fern Cinnamon Fern Interrupted Fern
Long Beech Fern Oak Fern Rock Polypody
Lady Fern Royal Fern
Wildflowers
Wild Sarsaparilla Bunchberry Starflower Rose Pogonia
Pink Lady’s Slipper White Violet Bluebead Lily Goldthread
Wood Sorrel Twinflower Partridgeberry Asters
Wintergreen Canada Mayflower Indian Cucumber Root
Shrubs
Huckleberry Sheep Laurel Rhodora Leatherleaf
Wild Raisin Sweet Gale Sweet Fern
Chokeberry Lowbush & Highbush Blueberry
Trees
Red Spruce Balsam Fir White Pine
Eastern Hemlock Red Maple White Birch Striped Maple Black Cherry
Red Oak Big-toothed Aspen Shadbush Northern White Cedar
Mammals
Red Squirrel Muskrat Porcupine Mink
White-tailed Deer Red Fox Deer Mouse
Snowshoe Hare Little Brown Bat River Otter
Reptiles and Amphibians
Snapping Turtle Painted Turtle Green Frog
Bull Frog Pickerel Frog Wood Frog
Spring Peeper Garter Snake Milk Snake
Redbacked Salamander
Birds
Bald Eagle Osprey Blue Jay
Common Raven American Crow Ovenbird
Pine Siskin Gray Catbird Wood Thrush
Hermit Thrush Cedar Waxwing Wood Duck
Common Loon Common Merganser
Great Blue Heron Belted Kingfisher American Black Duck
Mourning Dove Downy Woodpecker Hairy Woodpecker
Pileated Woodpecker Black-capped Chickadee
Red-breasted Nuthatch Northern Saw-whet Owl
Black-throated Green Warbler Barred Owl
Black-throated Blue Warbler Parula Warbler
A more complete listing of Sanctuary flora and fauna is available at our Sanctuary Headquarters