This summer, the Wells Reserve is an active participant in the Maine Road-Stream Crossing Survey: a joint project of the Maine Forest Service and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Gulf of Maine Coastal Program. Four teams comprising of summer interns and Reserve employees are surveying the culverts of the Kennebunk River Watershed to see if they pose barriers to fish and wildlife passage.

Over 70 different sites will be visited within the watershed, where measurements of type, length, and width?of the culvert, the water depth around the site and condition of the area around the crossings are recorded along with potential sources of sedimentation and erosion.

This data will be added to a state-wide database which will grant road managers and wildlife managers a wide picture of the state of Maine's streams. The data will provide guidance on which crossings are in need of repair and how much fish and animal habitat could be affected by replacing failed culverts with newer more appropriate ones. All of this will result in improved habitat connectivity.

For more information visit this link to the Maine Forest Service website: http://www.maine.gov/doc/mfs/fpm/water/stream_crossing.html.