Running Full Tilt

Fort Necessity National Battlefield was surveyed for shrubland birds during the 2005 breeding season. While no significant grassland habitats existed in the park, it supported approximately 16.9 ha (41.7 ac) of mixed damp and dry successional habitats in the Great Meadow and 72 ha (177.9 ac) of upland shrubby successional habitats. The natural hydrology of the Great Meadow was altered by drainage and channelization, allowing upland plant communities to invade portions of this former wet meadow. Upland successional habitats were dominated by dense thickets of the invasive Morrow's honeysuckle (Lonicera morrowii) and native northern arrow- wood (Viburnum recognitum), that apparently inhibit establishment of older successional communities.