Hay Swamp (Hay Swamp Management Area) is a provincially significant

wetland A wetland is a distinct ecosystem that is flooded or saturated by water, either permanently (for years or decades) or seasonally (for weeks or months). Flooding results in oxygen-free (anoxic) processes prevailing, especially in the soils. The ...

complex, 1839 hectares (4544 acres) in size, located in parts of the central land areas of the municipalities of Bluewater and

South Huron South Huron is a municipality in the Canadian province of Ontario, located in the southern part of Huron County. It was formed by amalgamation of the townships of Stephen and Usborne with the Town of Exeter in 2001, in an Ontario-wide municipal ...

, in

southwestern Ontario Southwestern Ontario is a secondary region of Southern Ontario in the Canadian province of Ontario. It occupies most of the Ontario Peninsula bounded by Lake Huron, including Georgian Bay, to the north and northwest; the St. Clair River, Lake St. ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

. Approximately in length and in width, at its widest point; it consists of 15 extensively forested individual wetlands, situated on either side, of sections of both the upper drainage of the

Ausable River Au Sable or Ausable may refer to various places: Michigan *Au Sable Township, Iosco County, Michigan **Au Sable, Michigan, an unincorporated community in the above township *Au Sable Township, Roscommon County, Michigan New York *Au Sable, New Y ...

and its tributary, Black Creek. Hay Swamp is situated at the northern limit of the Carolinian Biotic Province and is categorized as consisting of 98%

swamp A swamp is a forested wetland.Keddy, P.A. 2010. Wetland Ecology: Principles and Conservation (2nd edition). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 497 p. Swamps are considered to be transition zones because both land and water play a role in ...

and 2%

marsh A marsh is a wetland that is dominated by herbaceous rather than woody plant species.Keddy, P.A. 2010. Wetland Ecology: Principles and Conservation (2nd edition). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 497 p Marshes can often be found at ...

land. Apart from the Ausable and the Black, its primary source of water is considered to be the local Wyoming Moraine

aquifer An aquifer is an underground layer of water-bearing, permeable rock, rock fractures, or unconsolidated materials (gravel, sand, or silt). Groundwater from aquifers can be extracted using a water well. Aquifers vary greatly in their characterist ...

. Hay Swamp is an important regional habitat for wildlife populations including

white-tailed deer The white-tailed deer (''Odocoileus virginianus''), also known as the whitetail or Virginia deer, is a medium-sized deer native to North America, Central America, and South America as far south as Peru and Bolivia. It has also been introduced t ...

great blue heron The great blue heron (''Ardea herodias'') is a large wading bird in the heron family Ardeidae, common near the shores of open water and in wetlands over most of North America and Central America, as well as the Caribbean and the Galápagos ...

, ducks, geese, as well as a significant

beaver Beavers are large, semiaquatic rodents in the genus ''Castor'' native to the temperate Northern Hemisphere. There are two extant species: the North American beaver (''Castor canadensis'') and the Eurasian beaver (''C. fiber''). Beavers ar ...

presence. The swamp is also home to several plant

species at risk The List of Wildlife Species at Risk currently has more than 800 entries for Canadian wild life species considered vulnerable; including 363 classified as endangered species, —190 threatened species, —235 special concern, and 22 extirpated ( ...

, including green dragon and Riddell's goldenrod. Endangered fish and mussel species present in Hay Swamp include, eastern sand darter, greenside darter,

northern riffleshell The northern riffleshell (''Epioblasma torulosa rangiana''), is a subspecies of freshwater mussel, an aquatic bivalve mollusk in the family Unionidae, the river mussels. This subspecies is endangered. This species was formerly found widely in ...

, snuffbox, wavy-rayed lampmussel, rainbow mussel and kidneyshell. Historic logging operations, as well as continuing intensive drainage practices to obtain access to the rich underlying organic

soil Soil, also commonly referred to as earth or dirt, is a mixture of organic matter, minerals, gases, liquids, and organisms that together support life. Some scientific definitions distinguish ''dirt'' from ''soil'' by restricting the former te ...

s of the swamp, have affected its overall size and health as a natural habitat. Since the Ausable River only partially drains the swamp on an ongoing basis, Hay Swamp acts as a natural water 'storage basin', guarding against large-scale

flood A flood is an overflow of water ( or rarely other fluids) that submerges land that is usually dry. In the sense of "flowing water", the word may also be applied to the inflow of the tide. Floods are an area of study of the discipline hydrol ...

ing in other areas downstream and helping to maintain and moderate baseflow conditions during the summer months. By doing so it improves both the overall

water quality Water quality refers to the chemical, physical, and biological characteristics of water based on the standards of its usage. It is most frequently used by reference to a set of standards against which compliance, generally achieved through tr ...

in the Ausable system and aids local fish, bird and wildlife populations during the times of the year when water sources that are available for local wildlife are at a premium. The swamp contains several sites of abandoned 19th and early 20th century farms, including the location of the former community of

Sodom Sodom may refer to: Places Historic * Sodom and Gomorrah, cities mentioned in the Book of Genesis United States * Sodom, Kentucky, a ghost town * Sodom, New York, a hamlet * Sodom, Ohio, an unincorporated community * Sodom, West Virginia, an ...

. Hay Swamp (Hay Swamp Management Area) is administered by the

Ausable Bayfield Conservation Authority Ausable Bayfield Conservation Authority (ABCA) is a local conservation agency named in the Ontario Conservation Authorities Act. Located in Southern Ontario, the agency focuses on the conservation of the drainage basins of the Ausable River, Bayf ...

External links

Ausable Bayfield Conservation AuthorityOntario Ministry of Natural Resources Description PageOntario Ministry of Natural Resources page for Hay Swamp Earth Sciences ANSIBiotic Health "Report Card" for Hay Swamp and Vicinity (pdf doc.)
Protected areas of Huron County, Ontario Wetlands of Ontario Aquatic ecology {{WesternOntario-geo-stub