Ecology

Due to the complexity of life in and around Witch Hole Pond this discussion of the ecology of Witch Hole Pond is not meant to be a comprehensive guide to the flora and fauna of the area. Acadia National Park is home to 1,101 species of flowering plants, 40 species of mammals, 11 species of amphibians, 7 species of reptiles, 338 species of birds, and 31 species of fish (National "Guide's" n.d. p. 11). Some of these species will be discussed in the photo-guided tour below. Those organisms that I observed during my site visits will be marked with an asterisk. (Above: an infrared panorama of Witch Hole Pond looking southwest, emphasizing the plant growth in bright cyan. Below-left: a male and female mallard seen in the marshy pond extension to the northeast of the carriage road crossing. During each visit around twenty mallards could be seen in this area. Below-right: eastern white pine.)

Aquatic Life

In 1999, of the 24 ponds in Acadia National Park at the time, all but three (which were less than 10 acres large) had been stocked with fish. There are eight known species of fish in Witch Hole Pond, five of which are native to the pond. The first fish survey was conducted by the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife in 1962 (the state oversees Witch Hole as a "great pond"). The MDIFW found eel, golden shiner, redbelly dace, ninespine stickleback, and banded killifish likely native to the pond. Pumpkinseed sunfish and brook trout also can be found in Witch Hole Pond. The initial MDIFW report recommended stocking of brook trout due to favorable oxygen levels and temperatures, but because the natural environment would be unsuitable for their reproduction, annual stocking would be necessary. The MDIFW has stocked brook trout in Witch Hole Pond nearly every year since 1964, reduced from 2,700 a year to 850 annually since 1984 (Maine 1983; Bowles 1999).

Many semi-aquatic species also heavily influence the local ecology. Beavers were hunted to the point of elimination on Mount Desert Island until George Dorr reportedly reintroduced them in 1920 (National "Guide's" n.d.). Beavers have built at least three lodges on the southern edge of Witch Hole Pond (and 2 or more along the beaver ponds feeding Witch Hole from the southwest, bottom-left dam and beaver were on the southern pond nearest Witch Hole), and their activity has greatly impacted the northeast section of the pond, making it shallow and slow-moving. Beavers have constructed at least three dams around Witch Hole Pond, one on northeast side of the carriage road (plainly viewable), and two more, which are quite remarkable, on each of the smaller beaver ponds that flow into Witch Hole from the southwest.

Frogs are also an important species in the local ecology, and one that perfectly highlights the dynamic earth-water interactions that make up Witch Hole Pond and Acadia National Park. I saw many frogs during my visits, but was unable to make any identifications. Seven species of frog (and one species of toad) are found in Acadia, and many frogs can be found at or around Witch Hole Pond due to its size and diversity of habitat (National "Guide's" n.d., pg. 107). Of these, the American toad, spring peeper, gray tree frog, green frog, northern leopard frog, and wood frog have been observed around the pond by local naturalist Rich MacDonald (personal communication, Dec. 2, 2015).

Terrestrial Life

A great range of land-based wild organisms occupy the shores of Witch Hole Pond and the land immediately adjacent to its waters. Trees of pine, maple, birch, and tamarac, which grows mainly on the south side of the pond, and where it is particularly boggy, are all species that grow near the water. Fast-growing species like maple and birch are common after the area was cleared in the fire of 1947. Spruce and oak varieties can be generally found more inland, but the area still remains a picture of a post-fire landscape, with many relatively young primary successional tree species constituting the majority of the canopy. This is unlike some of the area near Eagle Lake, for example, where much more mature trees, mainly spruce and fir dominate the forest. On the north to northeast edge of Witch Hole Pond the land is more steep, and the soil is quite thin, with bare exposed rock in places. In this area there is a lot of white-pine (which is early successional and a shallow soil grower) and blueberry. In the late summer I was fortunate enough to catch a glimpse of wildflowers like the aster varieties below, which grow near the carriage roads with plants like sweet fern. (Pictured below-left: purple-stemmed aster. Below-right: changing maple. Down further, in the quadrant arrangement of photos, top-right is sweet fern, which grows near the carriage roads).

Along with the beaver discussed earlier (which do have a large impact on terrestrial ecology, chopping down trees around Witch Hole Pond, and flooding meadows and forests) one can also commonly observe red squirrels (below), and sometimes if you are lucky, possibly other mammals. Accounts of moose, when on the island (which is an infrequent occurrence), show they prefer the Witch Hole Pond area, and even bobcats or other reclusive species might be found around Witch Hole. Bats like the little brown bat have been positively identified near Witch Hole Pond, which could potentially make the area crucial in bat conservation measures that the park is taking seriously in light of White Nose Syndrome (Hazam, 1992).

Although hard to precisely identify without more expert knowledge or fine-tuned natural ability, there seem to many different mosses and lichen that occupy the rocks, crevasses, and trees around Witch Hole Pond (second below-right). In addition, boggy areas lend themselves to different categories of plant, like sphagnum moss (pictured and discussed in aquatics above).

Birds

Witch Hole Pond's conjunction of habitats makes it a great place to find many species of bird. eBird's official count for the Witch Hole Pond carriage road has sightings of 106 different species of bird. This includes many waterfowl such as mallards (below-left), wood ducks, ring-necked ducks*, Canada geese, common loon*, hooded and common mergansers* (below-right), pie-billed grebes, and buffleheads* (Cornell, 2015).

More common backyard species like black-capped chickadees*, golden-crowned kinglets*, American goldfinches*, dark-eyed juncos*, American robins*, and red-breasted nuthatches* can also usually be seen or heard in the trees and bushes near Witch Hole Pond. The wetland habitat also provides a lot of insects for species like cedar waxwings, eastern phoebes, olive-sided flycatchers, and eastern wood-pewees* that like to catch bugs in the air (Cornell, 2015).

A keen-eyed visitor might also see species like the yellow-rumped warbler*, American redstart, palm warbler, black-throated green warbler, and common yellowthroat around the pond in the spring and summer. Keeping eyes and ears alert would benefit one in seeing woodpeckers like the northern flicker, pileated woodpecker, downy woodpecker, hairy woodpecker, and yellow-bellied sapsucker, that have been known to enjoy the area's many trees (Cornell, 2015).

The underbrush is also home to many different kinds of bird, such as the song sparrow* (above-right), chipping sparrow*, Lincoln's sparrow* (above-left), white-throated sparrow, swamp sparrow or even a wood thrush* or ruffled grouse. A lucky observer might even spot a higher-order bird, such as a bald eagle, great blue heron, turkey vulture, belted kingfisher or even a great-horned or barred owl during their visit to Witch Hole Pond (complete list of sightings from eBird, Cornell, 2015).

Other Organisms

Other organisms also enjoy the amenities that Witch Hole Pond has to offer. Accounts of blackflies in the spring sound unpleasant, and my personal experience (wisely rolling around on the ground to snap pictures of the lichen below) shows that ticks also live around the pond. Many dragonflies, and other insects can be seen and heard buzzing around the pond, and likely, a host of many other life forms that have not been included in these sections. (Pictured below, left to right, are supermacro images of British soldiers, reindeer lichen, and rock tripe).