LaPlatte River and Marshes

eBird Hotspot

Chittenden County

LaPlatte River and Marshes
Coordinates: 44.3929279, -73.2312618
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Birding in Vermont

About LaPlatte River Marsh Natural Area
Every acre counts in this rivershore natural area in Shelburne—an oasis of nature in an otherwise fragmented landscape. An important habitat for migratory waterfowl, this marsh complex is located at the end of the LaPlatte, a river that extends 16 miles from Lake Iroquois to Lake Champlain and drains 34,137 acres of Champlain lowlands. Nearly 150 acres in size, the marshes and floodplain forests are regularly flooded when the lake level rises and are inhabited by plant species that can endure these wet conditions. This ecosystem is essential to helping filter and clean the water that empties into our Lake and is part of our nature based solutions for water quality progress in Lake Champlain.

This preserve is a haven to sixty species of birds; twenty mammals including otter, mink and muskrat, and fifty species of reptiles, amphibians and fish. On the trail you can expect to be surprised by ducks, kingfishers, or an occasional osprey and paddlers often spy blue herons.

TNC has been working with volunteers to control invasive species such as common buckthorn, which threaten the preserve’s floodplain forests.
From LaPlatte River Marsh Natural Area (The Nature Conservancy) webpage