Island in Trustom Pond with ospreys perched on a foggy morning
Trustom Pond is a closed lagoon in South Kingstown, Washington County, Rhode Island, United States.[3] It is one of nine coastal lagoons (referred to as "salt ponds" by locals) in southern Rhode Island.[4][5] It has a surface area of 800 acres (320 ha), and is the only undeveloped salt pond in the state.[6] The pond averages 1.3 feet (0.40 m) deep, and has a salinity level of 5 parts per thousand. It is non-tidal, except when breached by storms.[1] The water directly receives about 219,844,022 US gallons (832,200 m3) of precipitation per year, with an estimated 796,215 US gallons (3,014 m3) in daily groundwater flow.[7] No streams flow into the pond, though a nearby stream "captures water that otherwise would have flowed to Trustom Pond".[8]
Trustom Pond National Wildlife Refuge is a National Wildlife Refuge, inhabited by an estimated 300 species of birds, as well as some 40 species of mammals and 20 species of reptiles and amphibians.[9] As such, it is a popular bird-watching destination.[10] The piping plover inhabits the site.[11] In 1974, 365 acres (148 ha) of land were donated to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; subsequent donations and purchases raised the protected area to 787 acres (318 ha).[9] In 2010, the wildlife refuge received approximately 70,000 visitors.[11] Trustom Pond NWR includes 3 miles (4.8 km) of nature trails.[11] Habitat areas within Trustom Pond NWR include fields, shrubland, woodland, freshwater pond, saltwater ponds, beaches, and sand dunes.[9] Wildlife managers create breachways to the Block Island Sound, lowering water levels and creating mudflats which become feeding areas for waders.[12]
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