Moraine State Park (Lake Arthur)
| Butler |
| DESCRIPTION: This 16,725-acre park is located in western Butler County 9 miles northwest of the city of Butler. It is west of PA Route 8, north of U.S. 422, east of I-79 and south of West Liberty Borough. The centerpiece of Moraine State Park is the 3,225-acre Lake Arthur, a human-made reservoir formed by the damming of Muddy Creek. Each year over 1 million people visit the park. The 300-acre Jennings Environmental Education Center adjoins Moraine State Park in the northeastern part of the site. One of the center's primary features, the 20-acre prairie ecosystem, is home to distinctive prairie plants, like the Blazing Star, and the endangered Massasauga Rattlesnake. In fact, Jennings was the first reserve established in Pennsylvania to protect an individual plant species. It remains the only public and protected prairie in the Commonwealth and was declared a certified Bartramian Audubon Society Wildlife Sanctuary in 1999. Jennings is 12 miles north of Butler at the junction of PA 8 and PA 528 and is administered separately. Both Moraine State Park and Jennings are Bureau of State Parks properties. Hazards in the combined site are few, especially if you stay on the designated trails. Deer ticks and poison ivy are present off the trails. Stay alert when walking the mowed prairie trails at Jennings to reduce the chances of an encounter with the Massasauga Rattlesnake. The combined site has a cross-section of bird habitats that can be placed on a continuum from open water to beautiful creeks, marshes, swamps, open fields, relict prairie, thickets, hedgerows, abandoned bushy fields, deciduous, coniferous and mixed forests, to abandoned cemeteries, farms and orchards. Some specific spots are relatively undisturbed by human activities (e.g., Propagation Area 108, off limits) to heavily impacted by human visitors elsewhere (e.g., the shores and open waters of Lake Arthur). Rare spring and autumn migrants are the occasional Yellow-bellied Flycatcher or Olive-sided Flycatcher that are particularly attracted to the prairie edge of Jennings in the spring and late summer. Jennings is also known for its aerial performing male American Woodcock in late March through April and for the high density of breeding Cerulean Warbler in the oak-hickory-wild black cherry forest surrounding the prairie. However, Lake Arthur is the single most important habitat for birds in the site. It is a key migratory stopover for water birds in interior western Pennsylvania. Its size ensures that the lake freezes later and thaws earlier than most surrounding lakes and ponds. Further, it is situated on the primary migration route of the Tundra Swan as evident by tens of thousands flying directly over the site every March-April and October-November. If inclement weather occurs while the swans are migrating, thousands use the lake for rest and food for a few hours to a day or two. A few Osprey nest on the lakeshore with another 4-5 pairs nesting on microwave communication towers surrounding the park. A pair of Bald Eagles has been producing an average of 2 fledglings annually for the past several years. The wetlands located in the many coves of the lake have supported many breeding species, including Wood Duck, Hooded Merganser, Great Blue Heron, Green Heron, Pied-billed Grebe, Virginia Rail, Sora, American Coot, and Sedge Wren. When Lake Arthur is drawn down some summers, the South Shore cove mudflats attract up to 21 species of shorebirds. The combined site's various forests and edges support 21 breeding species of warblers, including Lawrence's Warbler returning to Jennings' prairie edge for 3 consecutive years. Recent Cornell Lab of Ornithology field surveys revealed as many as 25 singing male Cerulean Warbler in Jennings and another 20 singing males in nearby Moraine State Park. Northern Waterthrush and Yellow-breasted Chat are common breeders in Moraine. Both Moraine State Park and Jennings Environmental Education Center have excellent systems of hiking trails too numerous to list here. Highly recommended are the short (0.25-mile each) and easy (flat) Prairie Loop and Blazing Star Trails in Jennings. Watch here for Broad-winged Hawk, American Woodcock (April evenings), nesting Eastern Bluebird, Tree Swallow, Yellow, Chestnut-sided, Lawrence's, and Blue-winged warblers, and Common Yellowthroat. Glacier Ridge Trail (0.31 mile) cuts through some of the most scenic forest of Jennings and harbors Cerulean, Black-throated Green and Kentucky warblers. This trail links Jennings to Moraine State Park over a 14-mile course of varied habitats and avifauna. |
DIRECTIONS: To reach Moraine State Park from Pittsburgh, take 1-79 north to Route 422. Take Route 422 east to the first exit which is clearly marked for the park. At the bottom of the ramp turn left into the main park entrance. |
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| Posted: 2009-10-24 00:00:00 Updated: |
