On December 18, the Western PA Conservancy announced the permanent protection of 460 forested acres in Keating Township, McKean County.

The Conservancy acquired the land from the Collins Pine Company, a sustainable forestry and wood products operator in the PA Wilds.

The Conservancy will own this property, now named the Babcock Family Nature Reserve, and manage it as a natural area open to the public for outdoor recreation that includes hiking, birding, hunting, fishing and wildlife watching.

The preserve will also be used for research and nature study by local schools and universities.

The preserve honors the legacy of the Babcock family and their longstanding connection with the Conservancy and commitment to conservation.

Family patriarch, Edward Vose Babcock, was one of the 10 founding members of the Conservancy under its former name, Greater Pittsburgh Parks Association, in 1932. He was also a lumber industrialist who served as Pittsburgh’s mayor from 1918 to 1922.

Long after his passing in 1948, the Babcocks continued their support of the Conservancy with their first financial gift in 1976 assisting land protection efforts.

Through a generous gift in 2020 from the Babcock Charitable Trust, the family has financially supported 17 land acquisitions totaling 2,842 acres in nine Western Pennsylvania counties.

This forested property has significant conservation value and is located within the Ormsby Swamp Natural Heritage Area, which hosts a variety of habitat types and a wealth of rare species.

Those important species, including two plant, four butterfly and six dragonfly species of conservation concern in Pennsylvania.

The site is also a large wetland complex comprised of upland forest, shrub thickets, open bog areas and several small ponds that form the headwaters of Little Black Brook, a tributary to Kinzua Creek.

The Pennsylvania Natural Heritage Program’s McKean County Natural Heritage Inventory lists the Ormsby Swamp Natural Heritage Area as “Exceptional Significance” due to the variety of important habitats and rare species that exist.

“This is such an interesting and beautiful property and we are so glad we can permanently protect it. We are grateful to the Babcock family for their support of our land protection work and so glad this property can be a tribute to that generosity.”

Although this area is open to the public, it has no trail access and visitors should use caution when navigating this uninhabited forested wetland.

The Conservancy will make improvements in the near future to enhance parking availability and trail access.

Visitors should also be aware that Collins Pine is permitted to continue conducting sustainable forestry operations and stewardship on some sections of the preserve.

In addition to funding from the Babcock Charitable Trust, this acquisition was made possible thanks to grants from the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources Bureau of Recreation and Conservation’s Keystone Recreation, Park and Conservation Fund, Hamer Foundation and Hillman Foundation.

Funding was also provided by the estates of Helen B. Katz and Charles Romesburg through their bequests.

More information is available on programs, initiatives and special events at the Western PA Conservancy website.  Click Here to sign up for regular updates from the Conservancy, Like them on Facebook, Follow them on Twitter, join them on Instagram, visit the Conservancy’s YouTube Channel or add them to your network on Linkedin.  Click Here to support their work.

The Conservancy has helped to establish 11 state parks, conserved more than 250,000 acres of natural lands and protected or restored more than 3,000 miles of rivers and streams, maintains 132 community gardens and other green spaces that are planted with the help of more than 11,000 volunteers and the support of more than 9,000 members.

(Reprinted from the WeConservePA website.)

Related Articles:

-- Dept. Of Agriculture Protects Another 2,553 Acres Of Farmland; 13,663 Acres Protected In 2023  [PaEN] 

-- Western PA Conservancy Protects 460 Acres In McKean County To Create New Nature Reserve [PaEN]

-- ClearWater Conservancy Protects 35 Acre Ecological Gem In Little Sugar Valley Centre County  [PaEN]

-- PA’s Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program Closes Year With More Than 82,000 Acres Of Land Enrolled For Conservation Improvements  [PaEN]

[Posted: December 21, 2023]

12/25/2023