Cornwall, New York

American Tree Sparrows, from “A year with the birds” (1916), Cornell University Library

NOTE FROM THE HUDSON HIGHLANDS NATURE MUSEUM (JUNE 26)

Beginning Monday, July 6, and lasting through Friday August 28, the hiking trails and property will be closed at the Outdoor Discovery Center Monday–Friday and closed at the Wildlife Education Center Wednesday–Friday from 8 am to 4 pm to anyone who is NOT a HHNM summer camper, due to COVID-19-related safety concerns. The trails and property will continue be open to everyone from now through Sunday, July 5, and on Saturdays and Sundays throughout the summer from dawn to dusk.

The entrance to the Hudson Highlands Nature Museum Outdoor Discovery Center (formerly Kenridge Farm) is on Angola Road, approximately a mile south of the traffic circle in Cornwall. This site, which abuts Black Rock Forest, features 6 miles of trails on 177 acres of woods, open brush, fields, and wetlands (trail map).

Depending on the season, nearly 150 species of birds can be observed here, including warblers (Canada and Magnolia), sparrows (Lincoln’s Sparrows, American Tree Sparrows, and Fox Sparrows), vireos (White-Eyed), Cedar Waxwings, Eastern Bluebirds, owls, and Baltimore and Orchard orioles. Hooded Warblers and Blue-winged Warblers nest on the property, along with Wood Ducks and Canada Geese. In the summer, a Green Heron can almost always be found skulking in the marshy area near the road just below the farmhouse.

Canada Warbler. Photo by Dave Baker.

Wood Thrush. Photo by Bill Fiero.

Hooded Warbler. Photo by Alan Wells. “The Hooded Warbler is…a very attractive species, both on account of its brilliant plumage and its delicious song.” —E.A Mearns

Sharp-shinned Hawk. Photo by Carlotta Shearson.

Green Heron. Photo by Bill Fiero.

Wood Duck. Photo by Alan Wells.

Lincoln’s Sparrow. Photo by Karen Miller.

Barn Swallow. Photo by Alan Wells.

Cedar Waxwing. Photo by Alan Wells. “During rainy days they do not seek any protection from the wet, but sit quietly…with top-knots flattened, looking just a trifle depressed in spirits, as well as literally crest-fallen.” —EA Mearns

Swainson’s Thrush. Photo by Kathleen Ashman. “In spring, they are very abundant in the woods and orchards, uttering a note that sounds like the bursting of an air bubble on rising to the surface of a fluid.” —EA Mearns

Eastern Bluebird. Photo by Alan Wells.

Fox Sparrows. Photo by Carlotta Shearson. “Its notes are full and rich; and when singing, it is apt to be perched on a tree-top, although it frequently sings in a brush-heap.” —EA Mearns