Last week, Natural Resources Manager Kevin Fryberger had the opportunity to visit a property in Elverson subject to a Conservancy-held conservation easement. 

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The property had recently been logged and Kevin visited to assess the effects of the timber cut on the property's vegetation and bird populations.  While he found a lot of damage to the woodland from the logging operation, Kevin reported a nice variety of both plant and bird species present.  Pink lady's slipper, maidenhair fern, cinnamon fern and showy orchis were all present, as were a number of oak and hickory seedlings.  A diversity of bird species were also present and 42 species were tallied on the visit.

Using indicator species is a very reliable way to determine the health of an environmental system.  While he didn't find the Kentucky Warbler he was hoping for, Kevin did find quite a few Hooded Warblers.  Both of these species of birds rely exclusively on healthy woodland understory habitat.  Finding either or both of these species is a reliable indicator of a healthy woodland.