Maryland Bird Conservation Partnership is pleased to announce that the City of Westminster has been recognized as Carroll County’s first Bird City Maryland community. Westminster values high-quality greenspace for both birds and people, something highlighted by their status as a Tree City for 35 years. Their improvements to Wakefield Valley, a golf course-turned-park, showcase this. Westminster has planted 6,000 trees, created pollinator meadows, and maintains a paved-walking path for better accessibility with plans to enhance this even further.
Westminster is recognized by Bee City USA as a Bee City affiliate. The Bee City sign is posted at Wakefield Valley Park. Photo by City Arborist Eric Schlitzer.
Maggie Kunz and other members of the Carroll County Bird Club were a critical help to Westminster’s Senior Planner, Andrea Gerhard, in completing the Bird City application. The club offers several bird outings each spring and fall, including trips at Wakefield Valley. Club members are also working with The Boys and Girls Club of Carroll County to create a bluebird box trail at the grounds of Westminster’s former city hall—a fitting choice, considering Westminster has selected the Eastern Bluebird as their Signature Bird. A complete list of Westminster’s contributions can be found on our webpage: birdcity.org/maryland/westminster
Communities interested in becoming a Bird City are required to pass a resolution committing to becoming a Bird City and show conservation actions they have taken for habitat, threats to birds, education, and sustainability. These actions also always include an annual celebration of World Migratory Bird Day, which has a different theme each year. This year’s theme is “Shared Spaces: Creating Bird Friendly Communities”. If you want to celebrate World Migratory Bird Day with MBCP, join our webinar on Oct 9.
Bird City Maryland is a program of Maryland Bird Conservation Partnership. It was started in 2019 as a way to encourage communities in Maryland to enhance the environment for birds and educate the public about the contributions birds make to a healthy community. There are currently 13 recognized communities, and 4 more are in the application or renewal process. A community can be an incorporated town, a campus, or a county. Each recognized community receives a Bird City Maryland sign, a webpage, and resource support for celebrating World Migratory Bird Day.
In 2023, Bird City Maryland joined the National Bird City Network, a joint venture of American Bird Conservancy and Environment for the Americas. The Network unites and connects independent Bird City programs throughout the hemisphere who work directly with local communities to envision and complete bird-friendly actions. Together we form a powerful collaborative force – connecting people and helping birds across the hemisphere.