Blackbird State Forest

Blackbird State Forest is a 6,000-acre (24 km²) state forest of Delaware located in New Castle County and Kent County, north of Smyrna. The ten tracts of Blackbird State Forest feature 40 mi (64 km) of trails and are open to the public year-round for walking, hiking, running, cycling, and horseback riding. The Tybout Tract features a 2,200-foot (670 m), wheelchair-accessible wildlife and nature interpretation trail. Other permitted activities include hunting, fishing, picnicking, and primitive camping.^[1] Long-range management plans for Blackbird State Forest outline goals for timber production, wildlife habitat, recreation, soil and water protection, wetland and endangered species protection, and public education.^[2][3]

Educational programs are available at the Blackbird State Forest Education Center on the Meadows Tract.^[4] Complementing a center at Redden State Forest, the facility has two meeting spaces and interactive displays: The Life Cycle of a Forest, Tree Identification, Invasive Species, Urban/Community Forestry, and Wildland Firefighting. Visitors can see a diorama of a beaver pond, a working beehive, and exotic and native insects. Work has also begun on a new nature trail, demonstration saw mill, and arboretum.^{[citation needed]}