Peabody Pond, located in the towns of Sebago, Naples and Bridgton, was named for Captain John Peabody, one of the first settlers in the South Bridgton area. Peabody is shaped like a wide “V” pointed toward the northwest. Paddle the complete shoreline, and you’d cover about six miles. The pond is encircled by low ridges and mountains.
Peabody Pond is well suited for both warmwater and coldwater fish. Its rocky shorelines and protected coves provide good habitat for bass, yellow perch and chain pickerel. The deep chasm that runs through the center of the pond stays cool during the summer months, giving landlocked salmon, brook trout and lake trout refuge from the warmer waters above. Dissolved oxygen depletion does limit some of this habitat in late summer. The Northwest River, which is the outlet for Peabody Pond, also is a good spawning ground for wild landlocked salmon. Other fish in the pond include hornpout, rainbow smelt, white sucker, fallfish, common shiner, pearl dace, banded killifish and pumpkinseed sunfish.
The average Secchi disk reading for 2022 was 8.0 meters, which falls into the high clarity range. The average total phosphorus reading of 4.6 ppb falls in the low range. The average deep water phosphorus value was less than 10 ppb above average surface water phosphorus values, which suggests phosphorus recycling is not problematic. The chlorophyll-a average of 1.9 ppb falls into the low range. Long-term trend analysis indicates chlorophyll-a concentrations in Peabody Pond are stable, total phosphorus concentrations are stable, and clarity readings are increasing. The average color reading for 2022 was 26.6 SPU, indicating that water in Peabody Pond is highly colored. Gloeotrichia echenulata density ranged from 0 through 1, with the highest densities occurring in July and September.
Peabody Pond’s surface water chlorophyll (ppb), phosphorus (ppb), and Secchi depth (meters) data comparison. Colored areas represent the long-term range of values, from minimum to maximum. Area thickness indicates frequency of measurements at that value. Area thickness increases as more measurements are reported at that value. The vertical black line represents the long-term average value. The large red dot represents 2022’s average value. The small red dots represent individual readings taken in 2022.
28 percent of soils in the watershed are type A soils. Type A soils tend to be well drained sands, loams, and gravels. When vegetation is removed and the soil is exposed they can be susceptible to erosion. Because they are often coarse with ample pore space, there is low runoff potential and water will not usually pool on them. These soils can be good places to site leach fields or infiltrate stormwater from a home or residence.
3 percent of soils in the watershed are type B soils. B soils have moderate infiltration rates and fine to moderate texture and soil size. They are usually made up silts and loams. Although not as well drained as A soils, they can also be good places to site leach fields and infiltrate stormwater.
34 percent of soils in the watershed are type C soils. C soils have low infiltration rates and typically have a layer that impedes the movement of water. These soils are made of sands, clays, and loams and are one of the most common soil types in western Maine.
6 percent of soils in the watershed are type D soils. D soils have a high runoff potential and very low infiltration rates. Soils with a high water table, clay or other impervious layer near the surface are typically D soils. These soils are often associated with wetlands.
7 percent of soils in the watershed are type C/D soils. C/D soils are a mix of these two soil types. They have fairly high runoff potential and low infiltration rates and often pool water.
The remaining 23 percent of the watershed is taken up by the pond.
