Shawnee Springs Preserve

This site is most productive in spring and fall migration as this small park surrounded by development serves as a migrant trap.  A wide variety of warblers and other migrants have been found here including Blue-winged Warbler, Nashville Warbler, Hooded Warbler, and Wilson's Warbler.  Other notable migrants include Black-billed Cuckoo, Least Flycatcher and Grasshopper Sparrow.  The best spots are typically the area around the bridge over the creek at the south end of the park, and the northern part of the loop near the railroad tracks.

Accessibility: Open dawn to dusk, no entrance fee. Park at the small parking lot off Opequon Ave at the south end of the preserve.

Owner/Manager: City of Winchester

eBird Hotspot: Shawnee Springs Preserve

—James Fox

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Abrams Creek Wetlands Preserve

This site is worth a visit at any time of the year but tends to be the most productive during migration and winter.  In the late winter and early spring this is a great place to go to see American Woodcock, they display around dawn and dusk near the short boardwalk.  In the winter you will often see locally uncommon species such as Rusty Blackbird, Fox Sparrow, Winter Wren, and Swamp Sparrow. During migration warblers can often be found, less common ones sighted at this park include Golden-winged Warbler, Prothonotary Warbler, Orange-crowned Warbler and Northern Waterthrush.  Clay-colored Sparrow has also been found on one occasion.  The marsh south of the railroad tracks has hosted species such as Snipe, Virginia Rail, Sora, and Sandhill Crane and the pond formed by a small dam on Abrams Creek near the west end of the park known as White's Lake is an excellent location to look for waterfowl in these locations as it does not freeze.  Keep in mind that the area south of the railroad tracks is all Frederick County, so these marsh birds and waterfowl only rarely venture into the City of Winchester.

Accessibility: Open dawn to dusk, no entrance fee.  Park at the Abrams Crossing Commercial Center or along the west side of Meadow Branch Ave just north of the park entrance.

Owner/Manager: City of Winchester

eBird Hotspot: Winchester Green Circle--Abrams Creek Wetlands Preserve

—James Fox

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