Birding Moosehead

   Moosehead Lake is the largest lake in the US that is wholly contained within the borders of one state. In spite of its size and cool, clear water, much of the lake shore is undeveloped. Many of the nearby lakes and ponds are equally remote and pristine. The area is famous for its large moose population and Greenville is home to the Moosemania Festival every spring.

   The region boasts scenic mountains and rushing rivers. It is heavily glaciated and waterlogged, with rich, forest soils and barren, gravel eskers existing side by side. As a result, there is a great variety of wildlife habitats over a relatively small area. Beech and birch predominate. Spruce, balsam fir and pines take over in the cooler, damper areas. The latter areas are home to Maine’s boreal bird specialties: Spruce Grouse, Black-backed Woodpecker, Gray Jay, and Boreal Chickadee. White-winged Crossbills can often be found year-round. At least twenty species of warbler breed here. Bicknell’s Thrush occurs on area peaks above 3,000 feet.

   Most of the surrounding land is part of Maine’s privately owned working forest and the area is crisscrossed by logging roads. North of Moosehead Lake and east of Greenville, lands managed by the North Maine Woods Association offer deeper penetration into Maine’s working forest. Moose are widespread throughout Maine but there are few places where they are seen more often than in the Moosehead area. Maine also has the largest population of Black Bears east of the Mississippi and encounters with Eastern Coyotes are an even more regular occurrence. Beavers can be seen in every small and slow-moving body of water and they generally become active and visible in the late afternoon. Otters are common in shallow, slow moving waters, particularly Shirley Bog. The road from Newport to Dover-Foxcroft to Greenville is known locally as “The Moosehead Trail.” It begins at the Interstate 95 exit in Newport, continuing along Route 7 through Dexter to Dover-Foxcroft, and then west along Route 15 to Greenville. The Moosehead region of the Maine Birding Trail - begins in Dover-Foxcroft and continues through the towns of Guilford, Abbot and Monson, each with its own opportunities. Maine Audubon’s Borestone Mountain in Elliotsville is noteworthy.

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