Sensitive Species

Protected Lands

County Boundaries

Ecology Slides

Welcome!

Welcome to my biodiversity examination of Cecil County, Maryland.






A personal definition of Biodiversity: It is the variety of living organisms within a certain region or location. To go off this explanation and define the entire course title of Biodiversity Stewardship, would mean: the entrusted role of caretaker over the varying organisms of a region or location.

I chose to study the biodiversity of Cecil because it is the place where I reside, and I would like to investigate more into the county I have called home for nearly 24 years. The county has a very rich history, being at the head of the Chesapeake Bay where the great Susquehanna River flows out of New York, Pennsylvania, and Maryland there near the end. Captain John Smith made his way up the Bay into the Susquehanna near what is now Cecil County. He came in contact with many natives of the area who sustained themselves off the rich aquatic and land resources. In later years as settlements moved in and lines were drawn on maps, the area became named after Cecil Calvert the first Governor. Cecil was a center for trade and being so, saw a fair amount of revolutionary war activity though no battles were fought here. 1812 brought some fighting up into the inlets of Cecil where the Principio Iron furnaces were destroyed along with the neighboring Havre de grace and other towns along the shores. The civil war certainly brought a divide in the county as so many other places in Maryland were at the time, a major union stationing as well as training area was near Cecil's Perry point, home to a park and veterans hospital now. The onset Word War I brought a testing facility in a neighboring county and the Bainbridge naval facility came in during World War II closing in the late 1970's. Manufacturer jobs, military bases, large construction projects (bridges, Conowingo dam, etc.), quarrying, and relatively cheaper farm land brought people in from all over, many being from the Appalachians and southern states. The county still remains largely rural farmland with some extensive development in locations but also boasts some unique natural areas including Fair hill Natural Resource Area spanning over 5,600 acres, once owned by William DuPont, Jr., an enthusiast of equestrian riding and fox chasing. It is home to several top notch horse facilities and race track, it hosts the county fair, and other major events including many in regards to equestrian riding like steeple chase and the tradition of fox chasing. Many people come to bike, hike, and bird watch, ride their horses, and hunt. Elk Neck state forest over 3,500 acres and state park over 2,000 acres with a historic light house, is in the county’s largest peninsula providing trails and hunting opportunities for recreation. The county is split around I-95 where the piedmont plateau extends north up into the serpentine barrens and to the south is coastal plain which extends as an ancient sand bar making up the majority of Delaware and Maryland's eastern shore. I work for the Soil Conservation District here in the county as a conservation planner helping farmers and landowners acquire cost share for projects the help their operation as well as benefit conservation of soil and water.

http://dnr2.maryland.gov/publiclands/Pages/central/fairhill.aspx
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cecil_County,_Maryland
http://dnr2.maryland.gov/publiclands/Pages/central/elkneck.aspx
http://dnr2.maryland.gov/forests/Pages/publiclands/central_elkneckforest.aspx