Trip Date: October 14th, 2023
Trip Leader: Ian Stewart
The weather forecast for Saturday October 14th looked ominous all week, but six hardy birders still showed up for the first ever DOS walk at this hidden gem near downtown Kennett Square. This park has two large ponds surrounded by woodlands and grassy meadows, and the well-maintained trails make it an easy place to explore. It was damp and overcast, but we still ended up with a creditable 32 species before the rain started. This park is good for woodpeckers as it has many gnarly old trees and we saw several species. The hot spot along the walk was the parking lot which had both species of kinglets as well as multiple Yellow-rumped Warblers feeding on poison ivy berries. There is a creek running through the woods which had Wood Ducks and the bridge over the creek made a good vantage point to observe a low-feeding Blue-headed Vireo.
I returned on a drier day and observed several Cedar Waxwings feeding on poison ivy as well as at least seven Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers and dozens of sparrows. Most of the sparrows were in the brushy area along the entrance road which was left behind after multiple ash trees sadly had to be felled. The park has received substantial grants for habitat restoration and has several stands of fairly large native trees and a pollinator garden. There is also a well-maintained trail of new nest boxes which are popular with Eastern Bluebirds.
I really recommend this park to anyone who happens to find themselves near Kennett Square, there are some discoveries to be made here!
See eBird checklist here: https://ebird.org/checklist/S152162430