Oregon Ridge and Ag Center

The forests and brushy fields at Oregon Ridge Park are great for late fall migrants, like sapsuckers, phoebes, kinglets, creepers, thrushes, and towhees. Purple Finches and Red-breasted Nuthatches are always possible in late October--particularly since a nuthatch irruption is underway this fall. The Center for Maryland Agriculture, just across Shawan Road, has a variety of open grassland and cropland habitats (including a bird-magnet sunflower field), which attract a nice variety of sparrows (Chipping, Field, Savannah, Swamp, and, less frequently, Lincoln's, Vesper, or White-crowned) as well as good numbers of Palm Warblers and, at times, even Horned Larks and/or American Pipits. Wilson's Snipe have been known to make an early winter appearance here, and Eastern Meadowlarks sometimes linger into late fall. The property can be good for raptors, as well; harriers and both of our smaller falcons are occasionally found this time of year. 

Paths at both sites are mostly unpaved…