A Look at the Pilesgrove Eagles Nest Over Time (2009-2015)
By:Larissa Smith, Wildlife Biologist and Volunteer Manager
New Jersey Bald Eagle Project Volunteers Jeffrey and Cathy White have been monitoring the Pilesgrove eagle nest since the pair’s first nesting season in 2009. The pair has successfully raised and fledged 9 young for the past six years. This season the pair has two chicks which are currently six weeks old. Jeffrey took a photo of the nest on April 19, 2015. He then went back through his photos and found one that he taken on the same date April 19, 2009 in their first nesting season. This comparison really shows just how large eagle nests can get after years of use.
Contest winner to help band EagleCam chicks at Duke Farms next month
By: Lindsay McNamara, Communications Coordinator
From Left to Right: Duke Farms Executive Director Michael Catania, Contest Winner Diane Cook, CWF Executive Director David Wheeler
Copper Hill School computer teacher Diane Cook was recognized by Duke Farms and Conserve Wildlife Foundation for winning their EagleCam lesson plan contest earlier this week. Cook will join wildlife biologists to help band the new Duke Farms EagleCam chicks next month.
The EagleCam Lesson Plan contest, jointly organized by Duke Farms and Conserve Wildlife Foundation, called on educators to submit lesson plans incorporating the Duke Farms EagleCam into their classrooms. Installed in 2008, the Duke Farms EagleCam, a web cam on a tree adjacent to a Bald Eagle nest, has provided a streaming look into the daily lives of the eagle family for over 10 million viewers.
Diane Cook submitted three creative lesson plans for the contest and is working with the Duke Farms and Conserve Wildlife Foundation EagleCam team to expand the camera’s potential as an educational vehicle.
“Duke Farms is delighted to support dedicated teachers that bring nature to life in their classrooms. Diane Cook’s winning lesson plan featured innovative strategies to teach digital citizenship through student observations of the nesting eagles,” explained Michael Catania, Duke Farms Executive Director. “Her participation in this year’s banding of the Duke eagle chicks will be a highlight for our staff.”
The EagleCam has been a staple of Diane Cook’s classrooms since the webcam was installed in 2008. Cook began blogging about the eagles in 2011 and allows students in grades kindergarten through four to share their thoughts, observations or questions on what they see happening in her computer literacy class. Cook also live streams the EagleCam in her classroom for her students to watch. Her first graders use the webcam as a part of an internet safety unit and her third and fourth graders use the EagleCam to learn how to write blogs themselves.
“Watching the EagleCam gives us all, adults and students, the opportunity to experience nature happening right before our eyes. It opens the way for meaningful discussions and great questions, both at school and at home as families watch together,” said Computer Literacy Teacher and Contest Winner Diane Cook. “This year, I am using the EagleCam to teach how to write a thoughtful and meaningful comments in social media forums. Fourth graders are learning how to blog. They are excited to write about a topic that excites them.”
“As a dedicated and inspiring teacher, Diane Cook is helping us realize the incredible potential for connecting our kids with the natural world around us,” stated David Wheeler, Conserve Wildlife Foundation Executive Director. “The amazing comeback of Bald Eagles across New Jersey mirrors the recovery that our state has made from the devastating legacies of unchecked pollution. Teachers like Diane Cook work so hard to make sure the next generation of leaders understands first-hand how much all of us – humans and Bald Eagles alike – depend on a clean and healthy environment.”
Originally from Branchburg, New Jersey, Cook now resides in Ringoes. She has been an educator at Cooper Hill School in the Flemington Raritan School District for 19 years, teaching first grade, second grade and now computer literacy. Cook gets outside as often as she can, and she enjoys gardening, birding or looking for other wildlife, hiking, walking, fishing, and learning her newest craft of photography.
“I’m hoping to instill in all who learn about the EagleCam in my class a sense of wonder, appreciation for our natural world, and a desire to take care of our world,” explained Cook. “Environmental science is one of my passions. I want to pass along a small part of that to others.”
Lindsay McNamara is the Communications Coordinator for Conserve Wildlife Foundation of New Jersey.
Training Session scheduled for May 12th at 6pm in Tuckerton
A female terrapin pauses while crossing Great Bay Blvd in Little Egg Harbor, NJ.
We work hard to protect wildlife for future generations to enjoy. One of those species, who is largely an underserved species in New Jersey is the northern diamondback terrapin. Terrapins are so cool yet hardly noticed by many. They face a HUGE amount of threats. To list a few (from greatest to least): Poaching, drowning in crab traps, road mortality, predation (usually of eggs or young), and collisions with boats and boat props. That’s a long list of threats to the health of their population, which no one really knows how they are doing…
What we’ve done with them in Tuckerton and Little Egg Harbor is address a problem which was believed to be the root cause for their decline in the area. Studies that have been done in the area have stated that the overall size and age of terrapins has decreased over time. Another documented the total road mortality rate at 70% of individuals that crossed the road (the actual rate in a more recent study was around 30%, but that’s still high and having an impact). Either way, each year many terrapins are being injured and killed by motor vehicles.
Each year we recruit volunteer “Terrapin Stewards” to help patrol area roads. This hardy and extremely dedicated group of volunteers work tirelessly to prevent terrapins from becoming road kill and also collect valuable data on their annual migration to find suitable nesting areas. On May 12th at 6:00pm we are hosting a short training session for anyone interested in volunteering this year. Attendees will also learn more about all of the work that we’ve done over the past 5 years.
Enter Conserve Wildlife Foundation’s New Species on the Edge 2.0 Contest by May 22, 2015
By: Lindsay McNamara, Communications Coordinator
Attention New Jersey High School Students!
Love experimenting with new multimedia and technology programs? Want to express your concern for New Jersey’s endangered species and help show the public why wildlife protection is important in the Garden State? Make sure to enter our Species on the Edge 2.0 Multimedia Contest!
Open to all New Jersey high school students, this contest invites students to submit a video, app, podcast, digital graphic design, webpage, or other multimedia component showing why wildlife protection is important in New Jersey. Watch the new Species on the Edge 2.0 video, created by 2015 Video Intern Tyler Grimm, to learn more about this great opportunity.
CONTINUING THE 2015 RESTORATION SEASON AT FORTESCUE AND THOMPSON’S BEACH
By: Lindsay McNamara, Communications Coordinator
Spring on the Bayshore is in full swing, there are ospreys hunting in Dividing Creek.
Conserve Wildlife Foundation of New Jersey and American Littoral Society are moving right along with this season’s restoration work in Delaware Bay! Currently, we are working on projects on Fortescue Beach and Thompson’s Beach. Read more about our restoration work on RestoreNJBayshore.org.
Dr. Larry Niles of LJ Niles Associates LLC, a leader in efforts to protect red knots and horseshoe crabs for over 30 years, has shared updates throughout the month of April on the blog of RestoreNJBayshore.org:
Back in June of 2014, I wrote a blog when Conserve Wildlife Foundation was contacted by Linda Oughton regarding a New Jersey banded bird nesting in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. The female referred to as “Jersey Girl” recently made the news in The Reporter.
One correction, the article states that B/64 is from Northern New Jersey, she was actually banded in southern New Jersey, Cumberland County in 2004.
The Pennsylvania pair started incubating on February 14th, 2015 and hatching occurred the weekend of March 21st, 2015. It has been confirmed that the pair has two chicks this season.
Oyster Reef Build on South Reeds Beach a Huge Success
By: Lindsay McNamara, Communications Coordinator
Photo by: Lindsay McNamara
Over 130 volunteers and veterans worked alongside Conserve Wildlife Foundation of New Jerseyand American Littoral Society to establish a near-shore whelk shell bar at South Reeds Beach in Cape May Court House on the Delaware Bayshore on Saturday, April 4, 2015. The shell bar was built to prevent sand loss from wind-driven waves. During the “Shell-a-Bration,” an approximately 200-foot oyster reef was constructed offshore to test whether the reef bars help reduce beach erosion and create calmer water for spawning horseshoe crabs.
“We are rebuilding the habitats of Delaware Bay to strengthen its ecology, its communities and its economy. This reef approach will be a key technique which we will try to expand around the Bayshore,” stated Tim Dillingham, American Littoral Society Executive Director.
The South Reeds Beach Oyster Reef is one of the many projects that American Littoral Society and Conserve Wildlife Foundation are working on to restore the ecology and economy of the Delaware Bayshore, thanks to generous funding by the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation.
“The project focuses on creating resiliency in Delaware Bay beaches while improving their usefulness to horseshoe crabs. We have a great challenge: how do we create a reef to protect against damaging Bay storms without stopping horseshoe crabs from getting ashore to breed,” said Dr. Larry Niles, a biologist who leads the beach restoration efforts for Conserve Wildlife Foundation of New Jersey and American Littoral Society, and has studied Red Knots for three decades. “This project is an experiment to help us do both,” he added.
Shorebirds, like the federally listed Red Knot, depend on an uninterrupted supply of horseshoe crab eggs when they stopover in Delaware Bay during their migration. In recent years, countless horseshoe crab eggs have been lost because of the devastating storms that swept away the beaches they depend on.
“The time-honored migration of Red Knots to reach the eggs of these ancient horseshoe crabs is a wildlife spectacle of global significance right here in Delaware Bay,” explained David Wheeler, Conserve Wildlife Foundation of New Jersey Executive Director. “Red Knots come to New Jersey’s Delaware Bay from as far away as the southernmost tip of South America to feed on horseshoe crab eggs. It is vital that we promote coastal resiliency projects like this one to support the largest population of horseshoe crabs in the world, and the human communities of the Delaware Bayshore alike.”
The new oyster reef will attenuate waves but still allow for horseshoe crab breeding. In existing areas where crabs can breed without interruption, like creek mouths protected by sand shoals or rock jetties, egg densities can exceed ten times the egg densities on unprotected beaches.
The projects are being funded by National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) through their Hurricane Sandy Coastal Resiliency Grants Program, and are being developed in partnership with U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife.
“The Delaware Bayshore is a perfect location to demonstrate how communities benefit from their connection to a healthy natural resource base – for fishing, boating, wildlife watching and tourism,” said David O’Neill, National Fish and Wildlife Foundation Vice President of Conservation Programs. “The economies of Bayshore towns have historically been intertwined with the bay. And with the NFWF Hurricane Sandy grant, American Littoral Society and Conserve Wildlife Foundation of New Jersey are already restoring shorelines to make Bayshore natural resources and communities more resilient for the future.”
Event guests enjoyed a barbecue and oysters, and family-friendly activities like a “Green Eggs in the Sand” Easter Egg Hunt. In addition, local leaders and biologists spoke to the attendees about the oyster reef project at a mid-day “Whelk-come.”
Conserve Wildlife Foundation of New Jersey Releases a New Story Map: “Harbor Seals in New Jersey”
By: Michael Davenport, GIS Program Manager
Conserve Wildlife Foundation of New Jersey (CWF) has partnered with Jenkinson’s Aquarium of Point Pleasant Beach, New Jersey to create and release our latest Story Map, “Harbor Seals in New Jersey.”
Over the years, CWF staff have worked with a number of marine biologists in order to monitor seal populations in New Jersey and minimize disturbance or harm to them. Most recently, CWF held two workshops in 2014 to educate first responders on handling marine mammal (and sea turtle) strandings. We’re continuing our efforts at educating the public about these amazing animals with our “Harbor Seals in New Jersey” Story Map. A Story Map is a web-based interactive map embedded with multimedia content, such as text, photographs, and video.
The release of this Story Map coincides with the renovation of the seal exhibit at Jenkinson’s Aquarium. Jenkinson’s has been home for harbor seals since 1991, when their first seal (“Luseal”) moved in. She was soon joined by another seal, “Seaquin.”
This Story Map provides general information about harbor seals: where they live, how they live, and what dangers they face in the wild from both predators and humans. Luseal and Seaquin also have pages devoted to them, with photos and interesting facts about their lives and behaviors.
Conserve Wildlife Foundation of New Jersey and American Littoral Society have started this season’s restoration work in Delaware Bay! Currently, we are working on projects on Fortescue Beach and Thompson’s Beach. Read more about our restoration work on RestoreNJBayshore.org.
Dr. Larry Niles of LJ Niles Associates LLC, a leader in efforts to protect red knots and horseshoe crabs for over 30 years, has shared updates throughout the month of March on the blog of RestoreNJBayshore.org:
A Closer Look into the Relationship between Amphibians and Their Habitats
Conserve Wildlife Foundation is excited to celebrate Amphibian Awareness Month during March 2015! Follow us on social media and be sure to check your email (sign up for our list) for weekly stories on the amphibians of the Garden State and our work to protect them.
Amphibians are unique group in the animal kingdom, they have porous skin! This permeable skin allows water and air to pass directly pass into their body without filtering through their stomach.
While their permeable skin and soft eggs give amphibians an advantage to take in more oxygen, it also makes them more susceptible to pollutants. Amphibians therefore can serve as “canaries in the coal mine” for water quality. Biologists throughout the world are concerned about the health of amphibians because their health can be linked to the health of the environment they live in.
Water pollutants, such as, road salts, pesticides, metals and other sources of runoff from agriculture and cities can have negative effects on overall health and reproduction of these critters. Water quality degradation has been linked to physical malformations in amphibians and may also reduce their ability to fight off pathogens, leading to reduced reproduction and mortality. These issues linked with water quality and amphibians may also have a larger implication of the health of the ecosystem, including human health.
Therefore, it is important that populations of amphibians and other wildlife are carefully monitored and protected. In order to protect our water quality in and around our homes it is important to limit sidewalk salts, garden fertilizers and pesticides as much as possible. Make sure to follow label instructions and application rates. Amphibians are also beneficial as they eat insects, including agricultural pests and serve as food to other wildlife. They have also been an important role in research and medicine. Each day, consider taking small steps in your own house to help the amphibians that call the Garden State home.
