Piney Orchard Nature Preserve facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Piney Orchard Nature Preserve |
|
|---|---|
|
IUCN Category IV (Habitat/Species Management Area)
|
|
Piney Orchard Nature Preserve
8702 Nature's Trail Court Odenton, MD 21113 |
|
 Piney Orchard Nature Preserve
Location in the United States
|
|
| Location | Anne Arundel County, Maryland, United States |
| Nearest city | Odenton, Maryland |
| Area | 45 acres (0.18 km2) |
| Established | 1987 |
| Governing body | Piney Orchard Community Association |
| Website | Piney Orchard [1] |
The Piney Orchard Nature Preserve is a special place in Odenton, Maryland. It's a protected forest with wetlands, covering about 45 acres. You can explore its many miles of trails! This preserve is surrounded by a large area of woodland, about 1,500 acres. It sits near towns like Piney Orchard and Two Rivers. The preserve is also next to the Patuxent Research Refuge, the Little Patuxent River, and the Washington, Baltimore and Annapolis Trail.
Contents
How the Preserve Was Created
The Piney Orchard Nature Preserve wasn't always a beautiful natural area. Back in the 1940s and 1950s, the land along the Little Patuxent River was used for mining sand and gravel. After the mining stopped, the area was left empty and damaged.
Bringing Nature Back
In 1987, a company called Constellation Real Estate started a big project. They wanted to fix the damaged wetlands. This type of fix is called a "mitigation project." It means they worked to replace wetlands that were filled in when the 4,000-home Piney Orchard community was built.
The restoration project happened in five stages. Workers created and improved five large ponds. They also planted many native trees, shrubs, and grasses. These plants are natural to the area and help the environment.
Official Opening
The Army Corps of Engineers watched over the project. They made sure the wetlands were being restored correctly. By 1995, they decided the project was a success!
In 1996, the Piney Orchard Nature Preserve officially opened. It became a place for all residents of Anne Arundel County to enjoy. Since 2005, the Piney Orchard Community Association has helped manage and care for the preserve.
Amazing Plants and Animals
The Piney Orchard Nature Preserve is home to a huge variety of life. More than 575 different kinds of plants and animals have been found here! It has many different habitats, including:
- Wetlands: Areas where the land is covered by water, like swamps or marshes.
- Woodlands: Areas with many trees, like forests.
- Grasslands: Open areas covered in grasses.
Bird Watching Paradise
About 165 different kinds of birds live or visit the preserve. This includes 26 species that are threatened or endangered. Some of the amazing birds you might see include:
- Bald eagles
- Bitterns (a type of heron)
- Cormorants (birds that dive for fish)
- Grebes (diving water birds)
- Harriers (birds of prey, like eagles)
- Hawks (also birds of prey)
- Herons (tall wading birds)
- Juncos (sometimes called 'snowbirds')
- Mergansers (ducks that dive for fish)
- Merlins (small falcons)
- Teals (small ducks)
The preserve is very close to the Patuxent Research Refuge. Only about 1,000 feet separate them, with train tracks in between. Because they are so close, the preserve acts like a smaller part of the larger refuge. The refuge itself supports even more species, around 3,300 in total!
Trails for Adventure
The Piney Orchard Nature Preserve has 5 miles of trails. You can use these trails for biking and hiking. These trails connect to a bigger regional trail called the Washington, Baltimore and Annapolis Trail. This trail is 10 miles long.
Even bigger, the Washington, Baltimore and Annapolis Trail connects to the national American Discovery Trail. This huge trail is 6,800 miles long! It stretches all the way across the United States, from California to Delaware. So, you can start a really long adventure right from the preserve!
