Headwaters Park Habitat
At the headwaters of the Cuyahoga River, East Branch Reservoir is the northernmost of the four reservoirs that supply water to the Akron metropolitan area. The City of Akron implements a variety of management practices to maintain a high-quality water supply. These include keeping watershed lands in natural states so that forests, meadows and wetlands can filter out sediment and pollutants before they reach waterways. The natural state of watershed lands also provides quality habitats and recreation opportunities.
A beech-maple forest, meadows and evergreen plantations surround these waters. The land is home to wild turkey, fox, mink, owls, hawks and a variety of songbirds. Abundant wildflowers carpet the forest floor each spring.
Headwaters Park is also a popular stopover for migratory waterfowl each spring and fall: loons, Tundra Swans and many types of ducks. Bald Eagles and Ospreys often soar over the reservoir; Cormorants sun themselves in the trees on the islands. Sandpipers and plovers visit the reservoir in late summer.