Haymeadow Creek State Natural Area

Haymeadow Creek features a large, wet meadow interspersed with elevated islands forested with jack pine, red pine, and white pine. Wet areas contain a thin sphagnum carpet with a ground layer of few-seeded sedge and northern blue-flag iris. The northeastern portion of the site contains a dry mossy opening that supports the uncommon Canada mountain rice-grass (Oryzopsis canadensis). Surrounding the meadow is northern wet forest with a mix of black spruce, tamarack, and northern white cedar. The understory includes species such as bracken fern, Labrador-tea, bunchberry, trailing arbutus, Canada mayflower, wintergreen, and blueberry. The entire complex is important habitat for a number of bird species including gray jay, boreal chickadee, Connecticut warbler, Lincoln's sparrow, and yellow-bellied flycatcher. Other species include yellow-rumped warbler, Nashville warbler, olive-sided flycatcher, Northern parula, white-throated sparrow, and winter wren. Osprey and bald eagle are also known to use the area. Haymeadow Creek is owned by the US Forest Service and was designated a State Natural Area in 2007.