Willistown Conservation Trust

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Willistown Conservation Trust Saving, studying, and sharing land, water, and habitat

Yesterday, the Inveraray HOA was awarded the Eco-Friendly Yard Award by Radnor Township for the work it has done with Wi...
10/16/2026

Yesterday, the Inveraray HOA was awarded the Eco-Friendly Yard Award by Radnor Township for the work it has done with Willistown Conservation Trust. This collaboration has taken place over the past four years and has converted roughly 10 acres of non-native turf grass into native wildflower and grassland meadows.

The project also included planting more than 400 native trees and shrubs along Abrahams Run to slow erosion and help filter groundwater contaminants. Funding came from two Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources Community Conservation Partnership Program (PADCNR) grants: one for the lawn-to-meadow conversion and the other for riparian buffer plantings along Abrahams Run.

At a time when most land is privately owned, homeowners and HOAs have the opportunity to help build a greener future through native plants. WCT is grateful to have worked with Inverary and the granting agencies that made this project possible.

Friends Meadow will stay a meadow. Pennsylvania DCNR has awarded Willistown Conservation Trust $1.5 million to permanent...
10/15/2026

Friends Meadow will stay a meadow.

Pennsylvania DCNR has awarded Willistown Conservation Trust $1.5 million to permanently protect these 20 acres of fields, forest, and stream beside Rushton Woods Preserve.

Friends Meadow also extends public trails from Rushton Woods toward Kestrel Hill and Kirkwood, bringing our preserves closer to one connected landscape on behalf of our community.

The grant comes through the Keystone Recreation, Park and Conservation Fund, which has supported conservation and outdoor recreation across Pennsylvania since 1993. Thank you to Governor Shapiro, Sen. Carolyn Comitta, and Rep. Melissa Shusterman for standing behind it.

Read more: https://wctrust.org/1-5-million-state-grant-to-protect-friends-meadow/

Help plant a greener future! We have two great volunteer opportunities next week to get involved in planting native spec...
10/15/2026

Help plant a greener future! We have two great volunteer opportunities next week to get involved in planting native species on our preserves. Join us Wednesday at the Rushton Conservation Center, where we will be planting native grasses, or get your hands dirty at Rushton on Thursday, where we will be planting native tree species.

We hope to see you there!

Sign up here: https://secure.qgiv.com/for/202ste/event/stewardshipvolunteerthursdays2026/

The great emptying of the north woods continued last week as our maples began blushing. Our nets were full of blithe yel...
10/13/2026

The great emptying of the north woods continued last week as our maples began blushing. Our nets were full of blithe yellow birds like the golden leaves shedding from the trees: Magnolia Warblers, Northern Parulas, Nashville Warblers, Palm Warblers, Tennessee Warblers, Connecticut Warblers, Blackpoll Warblers, and even Cape May Warblers. The latter was arguably the most stunning with his saffron auricular markings and black streaks down his breast. How rueful the northern hemisphere will be in the imminent absence of these spirited creatures.

Cape May Warblers as well as Tennessee and Bay-breasted Warblers are all spruce budworm specialists, meaning they rely heavily on this particular food item for “baby food” in the summer. Research in eastern Quebec and other spruce-fir forests shows Bay-breasted Warblers as having the strongest budworm linkage; the presence of the species can therefore be used by foresters as an early warning indicator. Outbreaks of this native moth are a natural part of the north woods ecology, but they last about 10 years and can span millions of hectares of forest. A forester’s bane is a warbler’s windfall, which is why Rushton Woods Preserve is enjoying so many of these beautiful birds during migration.

Other birds boosting our species count last week included our first-of-the-season Hermit Thrush as well as a rare Bicknell’s Thrush. We also recaptured a White-throated Sparrow returning to Rushton for another cozy winter. Yellow-rumped warblers have arrived as well as the tinkling kinglets and a reclusive Brown Creeper. A host of Black-throated Blue Warblers continued to lurk in the shadows of the woodland edge, and a Yellow-billed Cuckoo clumsily foraged about the mid-canopy for berries and insects.

There’s a lot going on in the woods,

Blake

*All birds safely handled, banded, and released under state and federal permits for research purposes.

Kirkwood Preserve will be closed for invasive species management.Invasive plants can crowd out native species and disrup...
10/09/2026

Kirkwood Preserve will be closed for invasive species management.

Invasive plants can crowd out native species and disrupt the natural habitat that supports local wildlife. This work helps protect and restore native plants and the preserve’s long-term ecological health for the benefit of all.

Thank you for helping us care for Kirkwood Preserve.

If you have any questions, please reach out to Stewardship Manager Nicole DeLizzio at [email protected]

Riding on the heels of last weekend’s gloomy nor’easter came an awe-inspiring number of southbound birds this week in an...
10/02/2026

Riding on the heels of last weekend’s gloomy nor’easter came an awe-inspiring number of southbound birds this week in an unprecedented flurry of glitz, glamor, and gold. We banded 59 birds of almost 30 species on Wednesday! Though not technically a fallout, we believe our “birdfall” was due to the lucky timing of the peak of warbler migration combined with widespread rain across the northeast over the course of many days, creating a bottleneck for these antsy sojourners; once the airways finally cleared Tuesday night, the pent-up wanderlust exploded in a mass exodus of nocturnally beating wings along the Atlantic flyway. Our sleepy little Rushton Woods Preserve became Grand Central Station Wednesday morning, abuzz with bleary-eyed avian travelers from all points north.

There were the skulking Connecticut Warblers, striking Magnolia Warblers and America Redstarts, tree-crawling Black-and-white Warblers, canopy-dwelling Northern Parulas and Black-throated Green Warblers, and even a Bay-breasted Warbler from Canada’s spruce forests. There were the delicate-billed Nashville and Tennessee Warblers. There were the olympian Blackpoll Warblers that can traverse 1,864 miles over open ocean in a 3.5 day nonstop flight.

There were myriad other birds besides warblers, like the charismatic Blue-headed Vireo that makes its nest in the shadowy northern hemlock woods. There was the Gray-cheeked Thrush that breeds near the austere tree edge of the Arctic Tundra. There were myriad sparrows showing off nature’s uncanny ability to create unlimited possibilities of beauty with just one brown color palette: Field, Swamp, Song, White-throated, Chipping, and Lincoln’s.

The floodgates remained open through Thursday with the grand finale of our first Golden-winged Warbler. With his dramatically black-and-white streaked face and a shock of gold across his crown and shoulders, he was devastatingly handsome. This is an uncommon species whose conservation status is near threatened due to habitat loss, particularly the early-successional shrublands in the Great Lakes region and along the Appalachian Mountains.

There’s a lot going on in the woods,

Blake

10/01/2026

We're only two days away from Run-a-Muck! This year our trail includes parts of Kirkwood Preserve. By running-a-muck, you not only get to enjoy beautiful scenery but you also get to play an important role in supporting future conservation efforts like Kirkwood Preserve in the area.

Don't miss your chance to Run-A-Muck:
https://wctrust.org/run-a-muck/

09/28/2026

We're only 5 days away from Run-a-Muck. Sign up by midnight for priority pricing. Don't miss this annual celebration of community, conservation, and the great outdoors!

After the race, stay and enjoy an evening filled with live music, delicious food, b**r, w**e, a bonfire, face painting, and fun.

Sign Up Here:
https://runsignup.com/Race/PA/NewtownSquare/RunaMuck

A big thank you to all of our sponsors including Graham Media Partners Nolan Painting Inc PECO California Closets Cullen Construction, Inc. Bartlett Tree Experts Austin Hepburn Windows Quadratec

Today marks the official start of fall here in the northern hemisphere, but to the birds (and bird banders), it’s been f...
09/22/2026

Today marks the official start of fall here in the northern hemisphere, but to the birds (and bird banders), it’s been fall for the past several weeks. Our summer avian friends have been steadily traveling south since the end of August, many of which were molting and preparing for migration since they finished breeding in July.

As the light drains from our coming post-equinox days, so too will the chlorophyl from the leaves, the monarchs from the goldenrod fields, and the warblers from the trees. Soon enough we’ll be left with nothing but barren trees, umber meadows, and silent skies save for the hardy overwintering birds. The colorful migrants will have left us, following the light like butterflies. But there is beauty in wintering and awaiting the return of the sun, especially when we hold in our hearts the knowing of the vernal return of the things with feathers—and the hope they carry.

The winged light chasers we’ve banded so far this season have included myriad warblers: Magnolia, Black-and-white, Black-throated Blue, Ovenbird, Common Yellowthroat, Canada, American Redstart, Blue-winged, Tennessee, Northern Waterthrush, and Nashville. Flycatchers have been numerous including Acadian, Trail’s, and even a mother Eastern Wood-Peewee with her young! Thrushes and catbirds have abounded as well as resident wrens and goldfinches. A Warbling Vireo was the first-ever for the station, distinct from other vireos in its irrefutable elegance and petiteness.

We are beginning to recapture migratory birds who’ve fattened up from Rushton’s bug and berry pantry. In just four days, a Black-and-white Warbler gained 1.3 grams, an incredible increase in body mass of 13 percent. If you weigh 140 pounds, you’d need to gain 18 pounds in 4 days to match this rate of weight gain—a biological feat that is virtually impossible for a human.

There’s a lot going on in the woods,

Blake

*All birds safely handled, banded, and released under federal and state permits for research purposes.
Blake Goll

Run the course. Walk with friends. Let the kids play. Grab a drink. Listen to live music. Stay for the bonfire.Run-A-Muc...
09/19/2026

Run the course. Walk with friends. Let the kids play. Grab a drink. Listen to live music. Stay for the bonfire.

Run-A-Muck is a fall tradition for the whole family.

Learn more and register here:
https://wctrust.org/run-a-muck/

Address

925 Providence Road, Newtown Square
Newtown Square, PA
19073

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