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The woodlands of Bloomingdale Park provide a peaceful sanctuary for wildlife is easily enjoyed by people as well.

(Clay Wollney)

The 138-acre Bloomingdale Park in the Prince's Bay area of the South Shore opened in 2004. The section of the park to the east of Maguire Avenue now includes sports fields and a children's playground that are interspersed with natural woodlands with an extensive network of jogging trails and walkways.

From Maguire Avenue west, the park is natural woodlands with streams and marked trails. Though it has been cleaned up a bit since the development of the park, this section has largely been left to follow its natural course and now provides a habitat for wildlife as well as a great place for jogging or enjoying a walk.

A much different area 50 years ago

My first explorations of the woodlands on the western side of Maguire Avenue began in 1966 before the Richmond Parkway -- now known as the Korean War Veterans Parkway -- was constructed. Its predecessor, Drumgoole Boulevard, was much narrower with far less traffic. As a 12-year-old, reptiles and amphibians were my primary interest, so these woodlands held a particular attraction due to the varied habitats it offered.

In those days, there was an abandoned house with a decent sized goldfish pond in front of it on Bloomingdale Road near the Drumgoole Boulevard intersection. Besides goldfish, the pond was large enough for respectable populations of painted turtles, snappers and water snakes. A short distance down the road was a large field also with abandoned houses where Fowler's toads, box turtles, garter snakes and black racer snakes were easily found.

Whereas Bloomingdale Road was an active road, Maguire Avenue was pothole ridden, dilapidated, garbage strewn and only partially paved. Fires, often the aftermath of stolen cars being vandalized, occurred fairly regularly and prevented the area from developing into a mature forest. Nonetheless, the pine-oak ecosystem that was maintained under those conditions was a great place for northern fence lizards and black racers.

In the valley between Bloomingdale and Maguire, two streams meander their way across the land. These waterways are part of the watershed that feeds into salt marshes of Lemon Creek. At this point in their flow the streams are entirely freshwater and are home to green frogs and muskrats along with stream-side insects.

Natural succession has changed the ecosystem

Things have changed in the half century that has passed by since then. Maguire Avenue was blocked from traffic, which pretty much put an end to the illegal dumping, vehicular vandalism, and fires. The construction of the parkway obliterated the oversized goldfish pond - Drumgoole Road West now runs through the spot it used to be. And without human intervention, the grassy fields along Bloomingdale Road were soon overgrown by taller brush and eventually trees.

The natural processes that cause an ecosystem to change over time is known as natural succession. Each stage changes the environment in ways that make it more suitable for new plants and the associated animals. Changes in the soil as more and more organic matter is added by the decay of plants is one of the major forces that drive natural succession. Topographical changes wrought by the erosion of streams is another major factor in succession. Both play a role in the woodlands of Bloomingdale Park.

Not only did the fields along Bloomingdale change to woodlands, the scrublands along Maguire Avenue have become a more mature forest as well. A few of the sassafras and birch from earlier times still survive in naturally disturbed areas, however, much of the area is now populated by red oaks, pin oaks, black birch, and even a few beech trees.

Along with changes in the plant life, the animal populations have changed as well. The fence lizards, black racers, pheasants and other field inhabitants have lost their habitats and are now rare or locally extirpated.

Join me for a hike on March 12

On Sunday March 12, I will be leading a walk through the woodlands to the west of Maguire Avenue from 1 to 3 p.m. All are invited and I would enjoy sharing this wonderful piece of the natural environment with everyone interested in nature or the history of the area. The walk is free and reservations are not required. The meeting point for the hike will be at the corner of Maguire and Ramona Avenues. This walk is sponsored by Protectors of Pine-Oak Woods.