Bishop Woods - Centennial Walk - November 26, 2006

On Sunday, November 26th, about 20 people participated in the latest Centennial Walk at Bishop Woods Park on the New Haven/East Haven town line. The day was bright with partly cloudy skies and little wind. Entering the park from Foxon Hill Rd. we encountered some of the usual birds of fall/winter. Mourning doves, Blue Jays and White-breasted Nuthatches were seen and heard. In the middle of the park, things were quiet. It was here, however, that we saw the best birds of the day - Red-tailed Hawk, Carolina Wren, and Winter Wren. We saw the most activity as we exited the park the way we came in. This time a number of other species showed up in better numbers including American Robins flipping leaves over on the forest floor, American Goldfinches and House Finches feeding on birch catkins, and a Downy Woodpecker feeding on a nearby tree for close views.

Totals for the day: 19 species - Red-tailed Hawk, Herring Gull (flyover), Mourning Dove, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Downy Woodpecker, Blue Jay, Black-capped Chickadee, Tufted Titmouse, White-breasted Nuthatch, Carolina Wren, Winter Wren, American Robin, European Starling, Northern Cardinal, White-throated Sparrow, Dark-eyed Junco, House Finch, American Goldfinch, House Sparrow.

The reason we chose this location for one of our Centennial Walks was because this land was donated as a bird sanctuary to New Haven by one of our Charter Members - Dr. Louis B. Bishop. Dr. Bishop was from the "old school" of ornithology which relied more on collection than observation. His collection was in the tens of thousands by the time he attended the first NHBC meeting on April 3, 1907. Although a successful medical doctor, specializing in pediatrics, he gave up medicine in 1908 to focus solely on ornithology. In the early days of the Club, Dr. Bishop was very generous with his knowledge and specimens. Many of the early meetings took place in his "bird house", a building specifically erected behind his house on Orange St. to hold his growing collection. There members were allowed to peruse skins covering a certain genre like "birds of Mexico" or "wood warblers". Louis and his wife, Leona, would remain members of the NHBC even after they moved to California in the early 1920's. At the time of his death in April 1950, Louis' collection numbered over 53,000 specimens. Almost all the skins went to, and are currently part of, the Field Museum of Chicago. A few skins and all of his nests and eggs came back to New Haven and are at the Peabody Museum of Natural History.

In October 1928, Dr. Bishop donated 3 parcels he owned, along with one owned by the estate of his sister, to the City of New Haven. In the transaction he stipulated that "The City will keep this land always as a forest park and bird refuge." While the park still exists, it is overrun with illegal uses, especially dirt bikes and ATV's. Even the City cut some of the park away to build Bishop Woods School in the late 1960's. Today, the City was looking to expand the schools footprint and needed to encroach farther into the park's boundaries. Along with the Friends of Bishop Woods, the NHBC presented a case to the Parks Commission and the Board of Aldermen, that an abutting city-owned parcel of 7 acres should be added to the park to compensate for what was (and is) taken for the school. Both boards agreed. Today the park has grown, Dr. Bishop's intent was honored, and the school will expand to benefit of its students and faculty.