Briar Bush Nature Center
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On-Site Facilities

 

Museum

Nature Shop

Butterfly House

Griscom Bird Observatory

Nature Playscape - Now Open!

Trails

Pond

 

Museum

There are 6 themed rooms within the Briar Bush Museum. Natural history murals, taxidermy, touch tables, live animals, artifacts, and changing interactive exhibits in each room enable visitors of all ages to make new discoveries.

    • The Habitats of Briar Bush Room contains animals that could be found right in our own backyard.
    • The Pennsylvania Room exhibits show how anyone can have a positive influence on their local environment.   
    • The World Room holds a variety of exotic animals and highlights topics of global interest.
    • The Observation Porch looks out onto bird feeders, an active beehive and the woodlands of Briar Bush. The Children’s Reading Hollow and Discovery Den offer a quiet, comfortable place for our youngest visitors and their parents to play, relax, and learn.
    • The T. Russell Frank Memorial Library houses our collection of field guides, reference materials, and important naturalist publications.
    • The Treetops is a large but cozy area which includes a tucked away crawl-through cave and observation beehive. Meetings and events can be held in this room during inclement weather.

Nature Shop

Tucked inside the Museum is a wonderful Nature Shop. Whether you are shopping for a baby, toddler, child or adult, the Nature Shop is the place to find unique and special gifts. Come in and see for yourself how we can make your shopping effortless! Members receive a 10% discount on all items in the Nature Shop!

What's in Stock

Made just for Briar Bush! Colorful, lightweight post and dangling earrings.

Briar Bush Mugs - These sleek clear glass mugs are just the right size (11oz) for your morning coffee, afternoon tea or any other hot or cold beverage.

Art Glass by Joan Baker - These lovely stained glass pieces glisten in the sunlight.

Honey, Beehives, and More – Try some rich, delicious honey harvested from our very own beehive by local beekeeper Joe Duffy. The Bee Bar® is a solid bar of moisturizing lotion containing a unique blend of natural oils and emollients that are sure to soothe your dry skin. We also have pure beeswax clean-burning candles.

Feed the Birds - Our selection of squirrel-proof feeders make a delightful and practical gift for any nature lover's special occasion.

And so much more!

Butterfly House (Seasonal: April-September)

Thanks to generous funding from the Alsplundh Foundation, Abington Township, Friends of Briar Bush and Think Green LLC, the Briar Bush Butterfly House opened in June 2009. Step inside to view the complete life cycle of Painted Lady and Monarch butterflies and learn about their fascinating body structure. Docents inside the House happily answer your questions and point out hidden surprises.

Do you have Painted Lady or Monarch caterpillars, chrysalides or butterflies? Do you want to release them into the Briar Bush Butterfly House? Call or stop by to arrange your release!

Griscom Bird Observatory

Originally the home of Florence and Everett Griscom, this cozy cottage remains a peaceful place to relax and view nature. Take a seat in one of our comfortable rocking chairs or benches which look out onto a complete bird habitat. Feeders supply a variety of seeds to birds year round, a small pond provides drinking and bathing water, and various nest boxes encourage birds to take up residence. A microphone mounted outside the cottage brings the sounds of nature inside. Inside a large diorama displays animal activity throughout the seasons. Handicap accessible bathroom.

Natural Playscape - Open May 2010

The word playscape is a combination of the words play and landscape.  The idea is that the environment in and of itself has an extremely high play value.  Our Nature PlayScape takes components in our environment that naturally hone children’s’ skills (like balancing logs, tree stumps and boulders) and organizes them into a reliable, low cost and experiential “play area” aimed at the developmental needs of children. The PlayScape is open every day from dawn to dusk. Parent supervision is recommneded. 

Trails

Over a mile of trails wind their way through Briar Bush's 12.5 acres of land. They are lined with thick logs and mulched for easy walking. Benches along the trails provide places to take a break and listen to the peaceful sounds of nature all around you. Staff and volunteers work together to maintain our trails year round, so please come and take a walk around!

Our trails are open every day from dawn to dusk. Please observe these simple rules so everyone can enjoy our trails!

    • Please stay on the trails.
    • Briar Bush is a wildlife sanctuary so dogs and bikes are not allowed on trails. Abington has several other parks where you can bike and walk pets.
    • Please leave anything you find on the trails (feathers, bones, animals) for other visitors and wildlife to enjoy.

View a printable trail map.

Pond

In order to provide vital fresh water to the plants and animals living at Briar Bush, a pond was built in the late 1970's using Abington Township funds. The windmill looking over the pond, built in 1979 thanks to a generous donation from Hank and Barbara Haines, pumps water from an underground well into the pond, providing with fresh water even when rain is scarce. The pond is an ecosystem within itself, supporting a variety of microscopic plants and animals, diverse plant species, and larger animals such as Leopard Frogs and Painted Turtles.