Tag: NJ

Spotlight on Dale Rosselet, Women & Wildlife Education Award Winner

Posted on by CWF

The 2012 Women & Wildlife Education Award Winner is Dale Rosselet.  Dale has been sharing her passion about the environment and advancing environmental education for 29 years at NJ Audubon.   Join us to honor Dale and other 2012 Women & Wildlife Award Winners on Sunday, April 15th beginning at 2pm.  Click here for tickets and more information.

What is the best thing you get to do?   I LOVE working with teachers and get to do that on a regular basis…I will almost never turn down a professional development workshop.  I LOVE working with other staff at NJ Audubon – we have such an amazing group of creative people and the discourse is great, but I guess the coolest thing I get to do is lead occasional eco-tours to places that I would not otherwise be able to visit.  Getting out of the US and visiting these places, learning a little bit about other cultures and how people live, really broadens one’s world view and helps put things in perspective.

What has been your biggest success in your current job?  I became VP for Education at NJ Audubon after my predecessor Pat Kane retired.  She was (and is) a mentor and friend.  Under her guidance and vision we created a strong foundation for NJ Audubon’s environmental education platform.  I’ve had the pleasure of working with talented people to strengthen the work we do in urban environmental education and reaching people who don’t have access to our vast open spaces.  This part of the NJ Audubon education platform continues to grow and mature, but it is very exciting to be a part of it as that happens.

 What delights you in your daily work?  I really like the diversity of tasks that the VP for Education is responsible for.  I could be planning teacher professional development or working with staff to write a grant to help them realize a programmatic goal or cutting out photos to go on an exhibit board. I could be developing assessment tools or leading a bird field trip or talking to people in our bookstore about bird sightings.  While sometimes this diversity makes me seem schizophrenic, I wouldn’t have it any other way.

 What is the one tool or resource that makes your job easier? The resources that make my job easier are the other professionals that I work with – both at NJ Audubon and in the environmental education community.  I am constantly amazed and humbled by the commitment to this field and the broad experience and vision that people bring to the table.

 What wildlife “lives” in your office? I don’t have anything the lives in my office…except for the occasional mouse passing through, but I have a world of wildlife right outside the window.  One of my favorite things is that when I am on a conference call (and those are numerous!), I can stare out over the marsh and watch Osprey or Bald Eagle fly by or pick my binoculars up and see Indigo Buntings or Orchard Orioles in the back trees.
If you could be one animal (that lives in NJ of course!) what would you be and why?  Box turtle!  I have always had a soft spot for box turtles and when I found out that they live so long and their home range is about the size of a football field that just amazed me.  I keep a photo library of “my” box turtles in the yard and am up to about 7 individuals.

 Why did you decide to protect or educate people about NJ’s wildlife? I grew up on the edge of the Great Swamp in Morris County.  The more time we spent outside the better life was…climbing apple trees, catching frogs, picking blackberries, roaming the sandpit nearby, catching toads, getting muddy, building forts.  With this kind of background, I had no choice but to go into the education field. I wanted to make sure that people – especially children – have access to having a similar set of experiences.

Spotlight on Laurie Pettigrew, Women & Wildlife Leadership Award Winner

Posted on by CWF

The 2012 Women & Wildlife Leadership Award Winner is Laurie Pettigrew.  Laurie has been a biologist with the NJ Division of Fish & Wildlife for the last 25 years.  She established the Becoming an Outdoors Women Program and is the author of the New Jersey Wildlife Viewing Guide.  She is an eloquent ambassador for wildlife recreation in our state and has helped to restore hundreds of acres of grassland habitat in southern New Jersey for many endangered bird species such as the American kestrel and Eastern meadowlark.   Join us to honor Laurie and other 2012 Women & Wildlife Award Winners on Sunday, April 15th beginning at 2pm.  Click here for tickets and more information.

Laurie Pettigrew enjoying a kayak adventure.

What is the worst thing you have to do for your job?  Paperwork.

What is the best thing you get to do?  Play with power tools!

What is the one tool or resource that makes your job easier?  My big girl truck! Just kidding. It is one of my favorite tools even though I hate to admit it. My most useful resource is ArcGIS.

If you couldn’t do what you are doing now, what profession would you attempt?  Cookie baking.

What is the best thing anyone ever taught you?  Always carry a pocket knife.

What wildlife “lives” in your office?  Mice, black snakes, and a few spiders!

 What were you doing before you answered these questions?  Training my dogs to find shed antlers.

Keep Your Distance

Posted on by CWF
Respect Signage to Protect Bald Eagle Nests

by Margaret O’Gorman, Executive Director

The recovery of New Jersey’s bald eagle population is a great success story for the state and for the many biologists, conservationists and volunteers involved in the effort.  This recovery has been over 20 years in the making with over 100 pairs now breeding in New Jersey, a huge increase from the late eighties when one pair remained in our state.

Bald Eagle pair © George Cevera

While we celebrate the success of our eagle population, we must now begin to deal with the fact that eagle nests are increasingly located in places where more people can view them and get close to these magnificent birds and who wouldn’t want to observe these iconic species?

But close observation can be dangerous to these birds and damaging to the continued recovery of the population.  Bald eagles do not react well when people or pets get too close to their nests.  They can be easily disturbed by humans in close proximity and this disturbance can cause them to expend valuable energy when flushed or, at the extreme, to abandon their nests leaving eggs to fail or newly hatched chicks to die. Continue reading “Keep Your Distance”

Reduce the speed limit on Great Bay Blvd.

Posted on by Ben Wurst
Ask Little Egg Harbor to help us protect terrapins!

by Ben Wurst, Habitat Program Manager

This female northern diamondback terrapin was not able to lay her clutch of eggs after being killed by a motor vehicle on Great Bay Blvd. © Ben Wurst

Currently there are no posted speed limits on Great Bay Boulevard from Sea Isle Drive to the east end in Little Egg Harbor Township, Ocean County, New Jersey. The road bisects one of the largest state wildlife management areas along the entire coast of New Jersey which is also designated as the Jacques Cousteau National Estuarine Research Reserve. Designation as a National Estuarine Research Reserve is “to promote the responsible use and management of the nation’s estuaries through a program combining scientific research, education, and stewardship.” The habitat alongside the road is home a diverse array of wildlife and one species, the northern diamondback terrapin, often crosses the roadway to get to prime nesting areas along the road shoulders.

Female terrapins range in length from 6-9″ and actively search for nesting areas during summers months from May through July. They are hard to see with their dark coloration and high speed limits make identification even harder. On some days as many as 50 terrapins can be seen crossing the road. Many people stop to help these terrapins cross safely and they themselves put their lives in jeopardy. Luckily no one has been seriously injured or killed yet. Unfortunately, terrapins aren’t so lucky, previous studies have indicated that up to 30% of terrapins are killed on Great Bay Blvd. while attempting to find suitable nesting areas (Szerlag and McRobert, 2006).

The Township of Little Egg Harbor knows about the problem there but has done little to help solve it. Public safety should be a serious concern for any type of government. In other parts of New Jersey and in other states people and property have been seriously injured or killed and damaged while either helping one cross safely or by avoiding a collision with them.

Little Egg Harbor can help reduce the chances that a pedestrian gets killed or injured, and they can reduce the amount of terrapins that are killed by motor vehicles. By reducing the speed limit along the road from 50 mph to 30mph both people and wildlife benefit and motorists get to their destination safely.

References: 
Szerlag, S., and S. P. McRobert. 2006. Road occurrence and mortality of the northern diamondback terrapin. Applied Herpetology 3:27-37.

 

Cheesequake State Park: Winter Bird Photography…with Climate Control

Posted on by CWF

by Brett Klaproth, CWF volunteer photographer & wildlife advocate

Forested habitat at Cheesequake State Park. © Brett Klaproth

What does Middlesex County’s Cheesequake State Park have over Cape May, Forsythe, Sandy Hook, the Great Swamp, and other more notable New Jersey birding sites?  Reliably abundant and nearly effortlessly managed (Talkin’ to you there, Barnegat Light…) stellar winter photo ops.  Plus heat.

Cheesequake is just 5 minutes off Garden State Parkway exit 120 and a 5 minute walk through the hardwood forest off its first parking lot reveals the park’s nature center. The building’s raised and roofed entrance deck sits before a small, lightly wooded area designated as a wildlife sanctuary and serves as a near ideal (Shadow issues (See wooded…).) shooting platform.

The center is operated and the sanctuary maintained by naturalist Jim Faczak, who has installed (soon to be upgraded) platform, jar, and commercial seed and suet feeders–the most active a mere 3 or so yards from the deck’s edge. Protected from hikers by split rail fencing and a steep decline across its far end, the location attracts a roster of favorite species, at times in dizzying (Almost fell once…) numbers, with most taking little issue (Aaand…there’s a titmouse on my lens…) with human observers.

Red-bellied woodpecker. © Brett Klaproth

The most prevalent–the aforementioned tufted titmouse and the Carolina chickadee and white-breasted nuthatch–frequently alternate positions on the platforms (Focus on the one on the right (Ha ha–focus (Never mind…).).), with the latter assuming dominance in the pecking order by virtue of its, well, yes, pecking. Red-bellied and downy woodpecker compete similarly at the suet cages with their
hairy cousins sometimes entering the rotation.

Dark-eyed junco scavenge below, and several resident Carolina wren (One lives in that house hanging off the corner of the building…) maneuver in intermittent shifts through low lying branches. Blue jay make their presence known vocally before venturing in, and a small group of more reserved mourning dove typically makes its way closer as afternoons progress.

Song sparrow. © Brett Klaproth

Northern cardinal, song sparrow, and brown creeper are occasional visitors, with others including American crow, American goldfinch, American robin, hermit thrush, American tree sparrow, and fox sparrow observed during more brief and isolated periods. Though rarities are aptly uncommon, there are also no invasives with which to contend, unless we define the term differently and include the occasional hawk.

Red-tailed, Cooper’s, and sharp-shinned all check for status updates, mostly via flyover. Strikes occur extremely rarely. The raptors’ mere appearances though, elicit an instant freezing (as in assuming a motionless position–not in an it’s 30 degrees in the shade and I forgot the Under Armour kind of way) among the smaller birds, creating a silent and somewhat surreal spectacle.

On the plus side of contending with 30 degree temperatures, though choosing a sunny day is most advantageous, shooting here after or even during (See roofed…) a snowfall makes for a sublime photographic experience. The forest itself provides a kind of magical (That’s right, going with magical.) setting when coated in white. And the ground being blanketed not only encourages increased activity at manmade food stations but provides images with added beauty and character as well as enhanced lighting (See shadow issues (Maybe see wooded again if necessary…)…).

With a slight increase in temperature, titmouse and chickadee cling to icicles, drinking droplets as they form. And for those without prejudice, deer can often be easily spotted under these conditions throughout the park. This might be of worthwhile if secondary interest as the sanctuary of course loses the light before do Cheesequake’s many fields.

Carolina wren. © Brett Klaproth

The nature center is typically open from 8-4 Wednesday through Sunday. Calling in advance is advisable if one wants to be assured of immediate access to bathroom facilities and escapes from the cold (and a hand dryer which, okay, odd, but for the warmth provided a photographer would likely eventually share my appreciation).

Food might not be present at all times but Jim is giving readers permission to bring and distribute seed (Be sure there’s sunflower in the mix.) and suet to insure activity. Results are typically swift and satisfying.

And oh yeah, nuts. Offering peanuts will garner immediate popularity with certain (upwards of two dozen) bushy-tailed residents. If not looking to make friends nor prone to begging-induced guilt (Just me?), indulging the squirrels will also help keep feeders clear for the more typically welcome feathered patrons.  And dispensing on the previously recommended platform in particular will optimize results by bringing the most discriminating (blue jay, wren) and timid (red-bellied woodpecker) subjects closer.

Throw in lunch for yourself and a rewarding and unusually comfortable cold weather day at Cheesequake is virtually guaranteed.  Just remember the Under Armour.

All photos were taken last winter with a handheld Canon 40D and 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS. That’d be the author on deck with a tripod-mounted Canon 500mm f/4L IS this winter.

“Essential Life” Exhibit at New Jersey State Museum

Posted on by CWF
 Now through February 19th at the New Jersey State Museum.
Fight or Flight. © Tricia Zimic

“Essential Life,” a new art exhibition at the New Jersey State Museum in Trenton is one artist’s response to the decay of our environment and its impact on the indigenous wild creatures that once lived there.  Tricia Zimic champions these animals, both in her exquisite sculptures and paintings and through her work on an ambitious conservation project on a 2,110-acre site in New Jersey. Zimic creates pieces that are startling and provocative. Through painting, clay, fiberglass, and found objects, she depicts creatures that have been displaced by urban and suburban sprawl: a black bear and its cubs foraging for pizza in the meadowlands, a red wolf traversing a highway or owls inhabiting a metal beam. Zimic offers viewers examples both of animal resourcefulness and population collapse.

Short-eared owl & northern pine snake sculpture. © Tricia Zimic

Tricia Zimic trained at the Parson’s School of Design where she studied with artists including Maurice Sendak and Frank Giorgini. Her ceramic work is installed in public and private collections worldwide. Prior to starting her career in fine arts, the artist worked for many years as an illustrator of young adult books including the iconic Nancy Drew series. Through her current work in narrative art, Zimic seeks to communicate a message of renewal and conservation. We hope you will have the opportunity to view Ms. Zimic’s 35  inspirational sculptures and paintings. The exhibition will run until February 19, 2012, at the New Jersey State Museum, located at 205 West State Street, Trenton, NJ.  Open Tue- Sat. 9 am – 4:45.

 

Dedicated volunteers survey for NJ’s calling amphibians

Posted on by larissasmith
Results of the 2011 CAMP season

by Larissa Smith, Biologist & Volunteer Manager

Each spring Calling Amphibian Monitoring Project (CAMP) volunteers take time out of their busy lives to drive  the dark roads of NJ and listen for the calls of NJ’s amphibians.  Not only do these volunteers have to find the time to schedule the three surveys, each in a specific four week period, they need to meet the protocol for the surveys. This means meeting the minimum temperature requirement, which is not the easiest in March, as well as other weather protocol.  Once they find a perfect night to survey the volunteers follow a 15-mile route with 10 stops. They stop and listen for 5 minutes at each stop and record the amphibians they hear.  This can be a frustrating experience depending upon the route.  Noise from cars can make surveying difficult and some of the  routes in more developed areas record no amphibians calling on many of the stops.  Meanwhile volunteers on the less developed routes can often hear a chorus of frogs and toads that can be almost deafening.

I’d like to thank all the dedicated CAMP volunteers for finding the time to survey this season.

Survey Results

Thirty-one volunteers surveyed 33 routes.  Each route is to be surveyed three times during the spring in March, April & June.  A total of 77 surveys were conducted.  All 16 species of NJ frogs and toads were detected on the surveys.  The species that was heard on the most routes was the Northern Spring Peeper which was heard on 31 routes out of 33 that were surveyed. The second most detected species was the Green Frog heard on 22 routes out of the 33 surveyed.  The least detected species was the Spade Foot Toad which was only heard on one route.

Would you like to help next year?
  • Fourteen routes are available for the 2012 season.

 

Photo from the Field

Posted on by Ben Wurst
Final Phase of site work at Ballanger Creek Complete!

by Ben Wurst, Habitat Program Manager

An excavator removes milled asphalt that was dumped into freshwater wetlands. © Ben Wurst

In late 2009 we received notification that we were going to receive funding through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 to carry out a habitat enhancement project inside Bass River State Forest. The purpose of the project was to enhance habitat on site for migratory birds and other wildlife, especially rare species. The main part of the project was to remove fill and control invasives, like phragmites, that was illegally dumped on the edge of freshwater wetlands. The first phase of the project was to create scrub-shrub habitat. In early 2010 we planted over 1,000 native shrubs that provide both food and cover. Even though it was a hot, dry summer last year many of the shrubs are already flowering and bearing fruit. In summer we broadcast 75 lbs. of wildflower seed in the old fallow fields. Finally, over the past 2 weeks a crew from Anthony Excavating Inc. used excavators to remove tons (literally) of milled asphalt, concrete, and other debris (everything but the kitchen sink) along the edge of the wetlands. They used a small excavator that was able to reach a long distance without disturbing much of the surrounding area.

A series of interpretive signs are being designed and will be installed on site this fall. I also plan to work with volunteers from Bass River State Forest to enhance a 1.5 mile loop hiking trail around an old fire road on the edge of the wetlands.

 

 

Removing milled asphalt that was dumped into freshwater wetlands. © Ben Wurst

Species Spotlight

Posted on by Ben Wurst
American Kestrel (Falco sparverius)

Kestrels are the smallest falcon (about the same size as an American Robin) in North America. Its plumage is striking with rufous coloration its back and tail. Although the American kestrel is widespread, meaning they live year round throughout much of the United States, the northeastern kestrel population is declining. Today the kestrel is listed as a Species of Special Concern in New Jersey (not yet endangered or threatened but on its way).

American kestrels are versatile, opportunistic hunters feeding on assorted small prey, such as grasshoppers, lizards, mice, snakes and small birds. © Robert Lin

Kestrels are found in open, grassy habitats – especially ones that have cavities for nesting and perches for hunting. Kestrels can be seen hovering in grasslands, pastures and parklands or perched along the road on telephone lines. The decline of kestrels in New Jersey is likely due to destruction of grasslands from development. Also, nesting cavities are lost. As we clean up our fields, we remove trees with nest cavities the kestrels use.

Researchers have not determined the exact reason for kestrel declines but, we do know that the availability of cavities for nesting appears to be a limiting factor. Conserve Wildlife Foundation of New Jersey, in partnership with the Endangered and Nongame Species Program implemented a nest box installation and monitoring program in 2006.

What the Ears Don’t Hear…

Posted on by CWF
CWF visits the “Big Muddy” to learn acoustic bat detection technology

By MacKenzie Hall, Private Lands Biologist

I "listen" for bat calls, acoustic detector in hand. Photo by Brian Henderson

For the past week, fellow CWF’er Brian Henderson and I have been getting familiar with our new toys – two AnaBat acoustic detectors.  We bought the detectors with help from a NJ Landowner Incentive Program (LIP) grant to monitor and learn more about New Jersey’s bats.  The four-day training took place at Western Illinois University’s Kibbe Field Station in Warsaw, Illinois, just a couple thousand feet from the mighty Mississippi River.  We were lucky to have three long-time bat researchers as instructors:  Kim Livengood, Cori Lausen, and AnaBat pioneer Chris Corben.

Instructor Cori Lausen (pointing) teaches AnaBat students to interpret bat calls on a field laptop. Photo by MacKenzie Hall

Acoustic detectors are able to “hear” and record the the echolocation calls that bats give off as they travel and hunt for insects.  Different bat species produce unique call patterns at varying frequencies of sound that can be used to tell them apart (although many calls are very similar and sometimes impossible to distinguish).    Acoustic technology thus allows you to document the diversity and abundance of bats in an area of interest.

The detectors can be used while walking or driving, or they can be set up outside and left to record data for several days, weeks, or even months.  We’ll be doing all of these things, some of them as part of regional/national studies.

Instructor Chris Corben spotlights a bat overhead while Brian Henderson (right) records its echolocation calls. Photo by MacKenzie Hall

At AnaBat training, classroom tutorials were followed each day by nighttime acoustic surveys.  The first night that we went out with our straight-outta-the-box detectors, I can only describe our reaction as bubbly…our “Ooh!”/“Whoa!”/“No way!” squeals were utterly countless as the telltale tick-marks popped up on our PDA screen, indicating nearby bats that we could neither see nor hear on our own.

Back in the classroom, we downloaded the previous night’s bat calls onto our laptops  and practiced identifying the types of bats who had made them –red bats, big brown bats, evening bats, hoary bats, tricolored bats,…and even an endangered Indiana bat or two.  All without having to catch, hold, or even see a thing.

We’re excited to start using this technology in our bat research here in NJ.  Check back for updates about our work with AnaBat!