Conserve Wildlife Foundation of New Jersey Archives - Page 8 of 25

CWF is Back in the Classroom at Ridge Street Elementary (Newark, NJ)

Posted on December 28, 2022 by Rachel McGovern

by Rachel McGovern, Director of Education

Educators and biologists at Conserve Wildlife Foundation of New Jersey are leading educational programs at Ridge Street Elementary School in Newark, New Jersey, for the eighth consecutive year. Comprehensive STEAM curricula that follow New Jersey State Learning Standards for Science were developed by CWF staff for grades K, 3, 5 and 6. These curricula provide a series of classroom lessons, projects, and field trips focused on New Jersey’s wildlife.

While delivery of this program, entitled “Soaring With STEAM,” was adapted to a virtual learning environment during the pandemic, this 2022-23 school year has been presented entirely in-person, allowing staff to meaningfully interact with students and teachers in the classroom.

In Search of Stumpy – A Wintering Piping Plover Adventure

Posted on December 21, 2022 by Rachel McGovern

By Todd Pover, Senior Wildlife Biologist

Earlier this summer, it was announced that the annual range-wide American oystercatcher meeting would be held in December on the Gulf Coast of Florida near Naples. Thrilled to finally be attending in-person after several pandemic years of virtual meetings, my mind immediately pivoted to what other nearby nature sites I could also visit. Or more specifically and not too surprising for those that know me…where could I go to view wintering piping plovers.

In late September, Hurricane Ian made a direct landing in this region of Florida. The meeting had to be scuttled, relocated to the Georgia coast. And just like that, my “add-on” plans – I had arranged a short trip to Outback Key about two hours north of the meeting – fell off the itinerary.

Or maybe not. Georgia borders Florida, right? Six hours of driving for a chance to see 50-60 piping plovers in one spot is reasonable, right? Did I mention at least one New Jersey breeder winters at the site?

So as soon as the oystercatcher meeting wrapped at mid-day, I found myself in a car, along with fellow CWF Biologist Emmy Casper, hurtling toward St. Petersburg, Florida. We arrived at nightfall, woke in what felt like a flash, so we could wait in a line of cars, still in the dark, for Fort DeSoto County Park to open at 7 am. We had a very narrow window for our visit with the morning low tide being optimal shorebird viewing at Outback Key and because we had mid-day flights home.

Ongoing Grassland Restoration Efforts Improve Conditions for Grassland Nesting Birds

Posted on December 20, 2022 by Rachel McGovern

by Meaghan Lyon, Wildlife Biologist

Over the past five years, long term efforts have been ongoing to complete a large-scale grassland restoration at the McGuire Airfield. So far, roughly 500 acres have been treated and seeded to encourage the growth of native warm season grasses with another 100 acres to be completed by next spring. The planting of species like little bluestem, sideoats grama, and blue grama has helped to create grassland bird nesting habitat and conserve existing habitat, while accommodating necessary airfield procedures and safety.

Keeping the vegetation on the airfield short is important to ensure airport safety and to achieve that goal, the fields must be mowed. When the vegetation reaches 12-14 inches, the area is mowed back down to 7 inches. The vegetation before the start of the restoration project was a mix of native and non-native woody, forb, and grass species, with some plants growing at a faster rate than others. The quicker these plants grow, the more frequent mowing must occur. It’s for this reason why native warm season grasses were planted, which have a slower growth rate and tend not to grow more than 12-14 inches. By planting these species and reducing mowing frequency, the grassland birds have less disturbance and human impacts on their nesting season.

This work is done in cooperation with the USFWS New Jersey Field Office, and grassland bird surveys are completed throughout the summer to monitor success. Stay tuned to learn more about our grassland bird results for the 2022 breeding season.

Vegetation must be mowed when grasses exceed 12 inches.

E-17 “Oran” Sighted Alive & Well

Posted on December 6, 2022 by vinyldev

by: Larissa Smith, CWF Senior Biologist

It’s always a good day when we get a resighting of a NJ banded eagle, especially if it was one that had a transmitter attached. On November 1st, 2022 “Oran” was resighted in Stone Harbor, Cape May County, NJ by John Kauterman. This is about 22 miles from where he had fledged along the Delaware Bay in Cumberland County in 2015.

E/17 November 1st, 2022: photo credit, John Kauterman

On May 18th, 2015 a remote eagle nest on the Delaware Bay was visited by biologists with the NJ Bald Eagle Project, from both the NJ ENSP & CWF. There were two eight week old chicks in the nest both and we banded both. The male, banded NJ Green band E-17, was outfitted with a transmitter and he was named “Oran”.

Northern Long-eared Bat, An Endangered Species

Posted on November 30, 2022 by Rachel McGovern

by Meaghan Lyon, Wildlife Biologist

It’s official. The Northern long-eared bat is listed as an endangered species under the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s (USFWS) Endangered Species Act. Earlier this year, the USFWS announced the proposed uplisting due to severe population declines. This uplisting would help to protect and recover this imperiled species and the ecosystems upon which they depend on.

A Northern long-eared bat is held in a gloved hand- these bats are less that 4 inches long with a wingspan of 9-10 inches.

Through the Endangered Species Act, species may be listed as either endangered or threatened. The term “Threatened” means a species is likely to become endangered within the foreseeable future. The term “Endangered” means a species is in danger of extinction throughout all or a significant portion of its range.

Stormy Spring Impacts Osprey Productivity

Posted on November 15, 2022 by vinyldev

by Ben Wurst / Habitat Program Manager

*An osprey nest with hatchlings on May 16, 2022. One of many nests that eventually failed to produce young this year.*

Whenever we look at how ospreys are faring, weather is always taken into account. When we summarize and report on the results of our summer osprey nesting surveys, we also look at the local climate. Being situated along the Atlantic coast, our weather is influenced by the ocean. As aerial predators of fish, ospreys are reliant on favorable water conditions to forage.

Preliminary results of the 2022 New Jersey Osprey Project Census show that the osprey population was not as productive this year as they have been over the past ~20 years. This was largely due to a low pressure system (nor’easter) that stalled off the coast in early May — when the majority of pairs were incubating eggs. The strong onshore winds caused moderate coastal flooding, windy conditions, increased wave action and water turbidity, which made it more difficult for ospreys to find and catch prey in coastal waters. Males do 100% of the foraging from the onset of egg laying until young begin to fledge, so when they are unable to provide food, females must abandon their nests and eggs to forage for themselves. The nor’easter in May appears to have affected the outcome of many coastal nests and in some cases, complete colonies. Of course there are many other causes for nest failure but this year weather played a major role.

Leave The Leaves This Fall

Posted on October 6, 2022 by Leah Wells

By Leah Wells

Once leaves fall to the ground, leave them be! Deciding not to rake, blow, and dispose of your leaves not only benefits native wildlife but provides nourishment to your garden and lawn.

A New Jersey First: Hawk Raised by Eagles

Posted on August 16, 2022 by vinyldev

By: Susan Harrison, NJ Bald Eagle Project Volunteer

I am a volunteer eagle nest monitor for New Jersey’s Bald Eagle Project. A new nest was discovered in central New Jersey this year by birder Chris Brown. Larissa Smith, the volunteer coordinator for the Bald Eagle Project and Conserve Wildlife Foundation asked me to monitor this nest. I did not know at the beginning of nesting season, what an interesting story would unfold!
In mid-April, by watching the behavior of the adult eagles, I could see that eggs had hatched and that the adults were feeding eaglets that were still too small to see. At the beginning of May I caught glimpses of the head of one eaglet peeking up over the top of the nest rails. Too cute! By the end of May, I could see the head of a second chick in the nest. But this chick looked very different! I soon discovered this chick looked different because it was not a Bald Eagle at all! It was a red-tailed hawk chick in the eagles’ nest! I could not believe what I was seeing! I took lots of photos to document this situation, a first for New Jersey! I consulted with two respected birders in the state, Chris Brown, who is a county eBird reviewer and Tim Brown, to help verify and document my observations for CWF and the NJ DEP/ENSP. We observed the adult eagles feeding both the red-tailed hawk chick and the bald eagle chick. It was one big happy family, with both chicks getting along with each other and with the adults quite well.

Special Guests During Bat Survey Nights

Posted on August 10, 2022 by Leah Wells

by Leah Wells

The Bat Team setting up a mist-net in the Pine Barrens

Surveying for bats means staying up late and spending a lot of time in the dark. Our evenings begin a few hours before sunset, giving us just enough time to set up for the night. We start off by scouting locations to set up our mist-nets which we use to capture bats. These fine nets, ranging from 8 – 30 ft across and 16 ft high, are attached to tall poles stationed along corridors which bats often use to forage for food. With our nets ready to be deployed, we use the last of the daylight to set up our work station where we will process the bats we hopefully catch.

Thank You Cathy and Jeff White for Helping New Jersey’s Eagles Thrive.

Posted on August 4, 2022 by vinyldev

by Larissa Smith, CWF Biologist

New Jersey Eagle Project nest monitors Cathy and Jeff White have been volunteering with the program since 2009. The 2022 eagle nesting season was officially their last as they will be “retiring.” When they started with the bald eagle project, they had two eagle nests that they monitored in Southern New Jersey. As of 2022 they were monitoring 25 eagle nests. That is a lot of nests to keep straight! During their 14 years of observing nesting behavior to determine egg laying, hatching, and fledging, a total of 244 eagle chicks fledged from their nests. The Whites have witnessed the eagle population grow over the years and have played a large role in the success of the eagles, including many rescues of both chicks and adults. Their dedication to the eagles through both the good and bad outcomes, is commendable and they are irreplaceable.

They have done so much for the eagle project and will be greatly missed. Thank you!

Photos taken by the Whites throughout their years of monitoring eagle nests.