"Times Beach Nature Preserve - Buffalo, NY" Waymark

Long Description:
Times Beach is a former confined disposal facility that was operated by the US Army Corps of Engineers from 1972-1976. It is 50 acres in size and was constructed to accommodate sediments dredged from Lake Erie. Since disposal operations ceased, significant varieties of wildlife, vegetation and aquatic habitats have occupied the site. In 1991, the City of Buffalo formally designated the site as a nature preserve.

Times Beach is a strategic location for migrating birds because of its proximity to the Niagara River, Lake Erie, and Canadian/American shorelines. More than 220 species of birds have been observed on the site. There are four distinct habitat zones here: a silt flat, marsh, woodlands, and uplands. Some of the many bird species regularly seen at Times Beach are great blue heron, great egret, Baltimore oriole, wild turkey, song sparrow, common goldeneye, lesser yellowlegs, downy woodpecker, goldfinch, Carolina wren, belted kingfisher, red tail hawk, and herring gull.

There are three birdwatching locations at Times Beach. The posted coordinates are for the trailhead. Proceeding immediately straight ahead to N42° 52.374 W078° 52.949 is an open wooden platform that looks out onto the marsh zone. A trail to the left leads to a bird blind at N42° 52.329 W078° 53.021 that looks out over the silt flat zone. Back at the main trail, a trail to the right goes through the woodland and upland zones to a long boardwalk along the north side of the silt flat. A second bird blind is found at the end of the boardwalk at N42° 52.540 W078° 53.230.

Park Name: Times Beach Nature Preserve Sponsoring Organization: National Parks Service and New York Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation Handicap Accessible?: Yes List any Hides, Birding Towers, or other structures to assist in Birdwatching found at the location: See long description. Parking Coordinates: N 42° 52.369 W 78° 52.888 Website: Not listed Entrance Fee: Not Listed

Visit Instructions:
A clear, original image is required to log a visit to a waymark in this category. The image must contain a bird at the site, a nest, or other evidence that visitors partook in the delight of birdwatching at this site. Please tell us about your experience with an identification of a bird or two that you've seen!

Recent Visits/Logs:

Date Logged Log User Rating   3/28/2009 Dory The Explorer visited it

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