Marsh Takes Shape in Lake Victoria

The UTRCA is working with the Avon River Environment Association (AREA), the Rotary Club of Stratford, and other funding partners to complete a marsh restoration project in Stratford's Lake Victoria.

The Avon River Enhancement Project is well underway. Lake Victoria is a seasonal reservoir, located on the Avon River, created by the Thomas Orr Dam. The lake is lowered during the fall and winter (photo at left), and raised during the spring and summer.

In March, heavy equipment was used to build two shoals or shallow-water areas in the lake’s upper end (photo at right). The shoals were made from clean mineral soil, dressed with clay loam topsoil and supported with large stone. In the summer, the water will range in depth from 200-300 mm (8-12 inches).

In June, local students and other volunteers are expected to help plant the 10,000 plant plugs that will be used to establish native aquatic vegetation, such as cattails, on the shoals. The north shore of the lake will also be naturalized with native shrubs and trees as part of the UTRCA’s Communities for Nature program.

This project is designed to create greater diversity in the lake’s aquatic community, which presently has very little naturalized shoreline or wetland areas. This quiet area adjacent to the Meadowrue Gardens will provide shelter and food for young fish, turtles, frogs, and crayfish, and opportunities for a more diverse benthic (aquatic insect) community. Red-winged blackbirds and great blue herons will be among the birds attracted to the area.

In addition to the enhanced wildlife and fish habitat and natural views that the project creates, there will be water quality benefits. Wetland plants remove nutrients from the water and increase dissolved oxygen levels.

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