Howard County Bird Club
Western Regional Park
14800 Carrs Mill Road, Woodbine, MD 21797
Size: 160 acres
Habitat: Multiple highly diverse types: sediment ponds, mixed deciduous upland forest, brushy/weedy margins, a warm-season grass field, and short grass on soccer and baseball fields.
Best Months: Spring, late summer, and fall.
Coverage Time: From a few minutes to check the entrance pond to several hours to cover the entire park.
Trails/Paths: All pathways, including paved areas around fields, 2.75 miles; dirt trails through the woods 2.25 miles, mowed grass adjacent to playing fields, paved walkways in vicinity of some parking lots and athletic facilities.
Notable Birds: Cackling Goose, Greater White-fronted Goose, Northern Shoveler, Redhead, Merlin, Peregrine Falcon, American Golden-Plover, Western Sandpiper, White-rumped Sandpiper, Baird’s Sandpiper, Dunlin, Stilt Sandpiper, Buff-breasted Sandpiper, Short-billed Dowitcher, Red Phalarope, Laughing Gull, Black-billed Cuckoo, Red-headed Woodpecker, Olive-sided Flycatcher, Philadelphia Vireo, Common Raven, Sedge Wren, Marsh Wren, Gray-cheeked Thrush, Bay-breasted Warbler, Orange-crowned Warbler, Connecticut Warbler, Mourning Warbler, Summer Tanager, American Tree Sparrow, Clay-colored Sparrow, Vesper Sparrow, Nelson’s Sparrow, Lark Sparrow, Lincoln’s Sparrow, Dickcissel.
Amenities: Restrooms in three locations, April 1–November 30; portable toilets all year in several parking lots. Tot lot, soccer and baseball fields, a few picnic tables in central recreation area; five picnic pavilions for rent April 1–November 30, (remainder of year first-come, first-served).
Handicapped Access: Paved access to sports fields and buildings.
Operation and Hours: Howard County park, 7:00 a.m. to dusk except later when games are being played under lights.
Special Attractions: The storm water basin adjacent to entrance occasionally attracts interesting wetland/scrub species, but is no longer the shorebird magnet it once was; extensive short-grass habitat may produce Horned Larks; there are a few areas of sparrow habitat; small woodlots and edges attract warblers during migration. Extensive fields on south side of Carr’s Mill Road offer a variety of breeding and wintering species.
Howard County Recreation and Parks information
Nearby Sites: Warfields Pond Park, Poplar Springs Park, West Friendship Park.
Compiler: Bill Hill
