Woodcock Nature Center
Encyclopedia
The Woodcock Nature Center is a non-profit nature center
located at 56 Deer Run Road in Wilton, Connecticut
. The center is situated on 179 acre (0.72438794 km²) of state-protected land with 3 miles (4.8 km) of trails traversing a mixture of habitats, including woods with stands of maple
, beech
, oak
and hickory
trees, a pond and wetlands.
The center's building houses of local and exotic snakes, frogs and lizards, as well as a few rehabilitated birds of prey that were too injured to be released back into the wild.
The center offers summer camp, after school and other programs for children and school groups.
Valley, the state of Connecticut bought up and safety-dammed several feeder streams in order to control floods. About 1969, Ridgefield First Selectman J. Mortimer Woodcock arranged to lease 140 acre (0.5665604 km²) of the property along Spectacle Creek in Wilton and Ridgefield
(130 acres in Wilton) for a nature center, and in 1972 the Woodcock Nature Center was opened.
Nature center
A nature center is an organization with a visitor center or interpretive center designed to educate people about nature and the environment. Usually located within a protected open space, nature centers often have trails through their property. Some are located within a state or city park, and...
located at 56 Deer Run Road in Wilton, Connecticut
Wilton, Connecticut
Wilton is a town nestled in the Norwalk River Valley in southwestern Connecticut in the United States. It is located in Fairfield County. As of the 2010 census, the town population was 18,062. In 2007, it was voted as one of CNN Money's "Best Places to Live" in the United States.Located along...
. The center is situated on 179 acre (0.72438794 km²) of state-protected land with 3 miles (4.8 km) of trails traversing a mixture of habitats, including woods with stands of maple
Maple
Acer is a genus of trees or shrubs commonly known as maple.Maples are variously classified in a family of their own, the Aceraceae, or together with the Hippocastanaceae included in the family Sapindaceae. Modern classifications, including the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group system, favour inclusion in...
, beech
Beech
Beech is a genus of ten species of deciduous trees in the family Fagaceae, native to temperate Europe, Asia and North America.-Habit:...
, oak
Oak
An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus Quercus , of which about 600 species exist. "Oak" may also appear in the names of species in related genera, notably Lithocarpus...
and hickory
Hickory
Trees in the genus Carya are commonly known as hickory, derived from the Powhatan language of Virginia. The genus includes 17–19 species of deciduous trees with pinnately compound leaves and big nuts...
trees, a pond and wetlands.
The center's building houses of local and exotic snakes, frogs and lizards, as well as a few rehabilitated birds of prey that were too injured to be released back into the wild.
The center offers summer camp, after school and other programs for children and school groups.
History
After a 1955 flood devastated the Norwalk RiverNorwalk River
The Norwalk River is a river in southwestern Connecticut, approximately long. The word "Norwalk" comes from the Algonquian word "noyank" meaning "point of land".-Description:...
Valley, the state of Connecticut bought up and safety-dammed several feeder streams in order to control floods. About 1969, Ridgefield First Selectman J. Mortimer Woodcock arranged to lease 140 acre (0.5665604 km²) of the property along Spectacle Creek in Wilton and Ridgefield
Ridgefield
-Places:United States*Ridgefield, Connecticut**Ridgefield Playhouse, a theater located in Ridgefield*Ridgefield, New Jersey*Ridgefield Park, New Jersey*Ridgefield Township, New Jersey*Ridgefield, Washington*Ridgefield Township, Huron County, Ohio...
(130 acres in Wilton) for a nature center, and in 1972 the Woodcock Nature Center was opened.