Crow's Nest Natural Area Preserve occupies most of a peninsula between Potomac Creek and Accokeek Creek on Stafford County's southern edge, protecting over 3,100 acres of largely unbroken coastal plain wilderness. Its long geologic history left rare lime-rich soils, steep ravines, ridge crests, marshes, and mature hardwood forest, creating an unusual diversity of habitats. About 700 acres of freshwater tidal marsh fringe the peninsula, forming most of Stafford County's marshland and ranking among Virginia's best. The preserve contains globally imperiled forest communities, supports rare and state-listed plants, shelters wildlife including the endangered shortnose sturgeon, and preserves one of Virginia's finest remaining mature coastal plain forests.