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Writer's pictureFriends of R. B. Winter State Park

On today's edition of #rbwinterwildlifewednesday we are featuring one of the many species of birds that can be found at R. B. Winter State Park, the Eastern Towhee!


Eastern Towhees may be found across Pennsylvania, where you'll frequently see them near clearings and thickets within open woodlands or in forests regenerating from forest fires or logging. Males have a distinctive coloration with a black head and black, reddish-brown sides and a white stomach. Females are similarly colored to males, only differing in that their head and upper body are more brownish colored.

Eastern Towhees are one of the most widespread and common birds found in Pennsylvania. Males are often seen perched high in trees, singing and protecting their territory from interloping males. If you've spent much time in the woodlands of Pennsylvania, you've undoubtedly heard these birds as they scour the forest floor for food. When searching for food, they often turn over leaves by hopping backward and dragging both feet across the forest floor in search of beetles, bugs, spiders, moths, seeds, and berries in a display whose volume drastically outweighs their small size.


The next time you're hiking the Rapid Run Nature Trail or other trails around the park, keep your eyes open for the Eastern Towhee!


Photo by Friends of R. B. Winter State Park Board Member Kyle Fawcett.

Writer's pictureFriends of R. B. Winter State Park



Good Morning Everyone!


Today, we are thrilled to kick off our new weekly series of posts, #rbwinterwildlifewednesday! Get ready because every Wednesday we'll feature a new species of wildlife that calls R. B. Winter State Park home.


To get us started, today, we're featuring one of the park's most well-known wild animals: a Red Eft! These little salamanders are the land-dwelling juvenile stage of an Eastern Red-spotted Newt. Adult Eastern Red-spotted Newts lay their eggs in Halfway Lake and the many woodland pools in the park and surrounding Bald Eagle State Forest. There, they'll spend three to five months in their larval stage after hatching. In the late summer and early fall, the larvae metamorphize into the familiar bright orangish-red salamanders and begin emerging from the waters where they were born. They'll spend the next two or three years wandering around the forest floor and can often be seen traveling or hunting worms, snails, and insects on rainy days.


Their bright coloring isn't just for looks; it warns potential predators that they'll not make a good meal as they produce a neurotoxin that saturates their bodies and can cause vomiting and other effects in anything that tries to eat them. After several years of wandering through the forest, they'll transition to their adult stage and turn yellowish to olive green. Their tail flattens out to allow them to swim easier, and they'll find a pond, lake, swamp, or slow-moving stream where they'll live for the remainder of their lives.


Photo by Friends of R. B. Winter Board Member Kyle Fawcett.


Be sure to join us next Wednesday to see what species of wildlife we feature next!


Writer's pictureFriends of R. B. Winter State Park



Join the Friends of R. B. Winter State Park at our next Board Meeting on Saturday, March 16th. The meeting will occur at 9:00 a.m. at the Environmental Learning Center (ELC). Following our meeting, we will head over to the campground from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. to help prepare for the upcoming start of the camping season!


We'll likely be helping to move branches and other debris from the campground, so work gloves and old clothes are highly recommended.


At Noon, the Friends will also be leading a Women's Meet-up Hike.​ This hike will be an approximately 5-mile loop with several moderate inclines. You do not need to be an experienced hiker to attend, but you should be comfortable walking/running at a steady pace for 2-3 hrs.


For full details about the hike and to let us know you plan on attending, join us on Facebook.

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