Endangered New Jersey

NJ Native Fish Art and Writing Contest

2012-01-19T08:00:00.000-05:00

One of the 2011 Winning entries

The Native Fish Art and Writing Contest is an annual contest, sponsored by Trout Unlimited. It is open to all New Jersey students in grades 4 through 7.

Teachers should know that participation can meet NJ Core Content Curriculum Standards Science 5.5: Grade 4 - A.1, C.1; Grade 6 - C.1; Science 5.10: Grade 6 - A.1 (as based on Trout Life Cycle (pdf, 96kb) (from Trout in the Classroom Activity Guide).

To enter the contest, participants need to research one of New Jersey's native fish. With the information gained from their research, students write a short story depicting one year in the life of that fish and submit an artistic depiction of the species featured in their story.

The story must be original and include correct biological and ecological information about the fish. Things to include in the story are habitat, food, habits, and any other ecological information that pertains to that fish. The fish species must be named in the story and the fish must be native to New Jersey. Stories must be 500 words or more and typed.

The drawing of the native New Jersey fish can be done in acrylics, pencils, watercolors, oil, oil pastels, crayons or ink. Art must be original and depict a scene from the story. The finished size of the artwork must be 8.5 x 11 inches.

Entries will be judged on both the artwork and the short story.

There are first and second place winners in each of the following categories: 4th grade, 5th grade, 6th grade, and 7th grade. All winners will receive a certificate and fishing equipment. First place winners will also receive a youth membership in Trout Unlimited. In addition, each winner and their immediate family will be invited to the Pequest Trout Hatchery and Natural Resource Education Center in Warren County for a luncheon and awards ceremony on the morning of opening day of trout season (Saturday, April 7 in 2012). Winners will also be able to fish at the Pequest Fishing Education Pond.

Entries must be received by Friday, March 2, 2012. Entries must include the entrant's name, home address, home telephone number, grade and school name. Failure to include this information will lead to disqualification. All entries become the property of the Division of Fish and Wildlife and will not be returned.

Submit entries to:
Native Fish Art and Writing Contest
NJ Division of Fish and Wildlife
605 Pequest Rd.
Oxford, NJ 07863

Winners are notified within 2 weeks following the contest deadline. No other notifications are sent.

Note that this contest is not affiliated with Wildlife Forever's State Fish Art Contest. For information on their contest, see www.statefishart.com.

Follow these links for information on New Jersey Fish

Visiting Revolutionary War New Jersey

2012-01-18T08:00:00.000-05:00

Hopefully, anyone who grew up in New Jersey knows that our state was pivotal in the American Revolution and played an important part in the American colonists's victory. NJ is often referred to as both the "Crossroads of the Revolution" and the "Military Capital of the Revolution".

Throughout the Revolutionary War, there were 296 clashes between the Americans and British within the colony of New Jersey. That is more than any other colony in the Revolutionary War.

I have written here earlier about a key battle that occurred January 3, 1777 in the town of Princeton, when the patriots were pushed back by a British charge General Washington with his staff took to the field to rally the retreating troops back into battle.

But there are many other historical locations that are less well known.

The Abraham Staats House is one of the finest surviving buildings from the Dutch Settlement of the Raritan Valley in the 18th century.The house was entered onto the New Jersey Register of Historic Places and the National Register of Historic Places in 2002.

It is located on the Delaware-Raritan Canal. There are a variety of birds which have been spotted on the property and on the canal.

Of course, not all Jersey colonists were in favor of breaking from the crown. Governor William Franklin was the illegitimate son of Benjamin Franklin and was a loyalist who supported the Stamp Act. Governor Franklin signed the charter for Queen's College, which would evolve into Rutgers University. He was like other colonists who had emigrated from England and still felt loyalty to England. On January 8, 1776, Governor Franklin was arrested for opposing the Revolution.

Morven

Another National Historic Landmark in Princeton is known as Morven. Now, it is a museum and public garden. The museum occupies the house called Morven, which was formerly the New Jersey Governor’s Mansion and 18th century home of Richard Stockton, a signer of the Declaration of Independence. Its restoration and conversion to a museum were completed in 2004. Morven Museum & Garden is administered by Historic Morven, Inc., a non-profit organization founded in 1987, in cooperation with the New Jersey Department of State. The state acquired Morven in 1954.

The Jacobus Vanderveer House is located in Bedminster Township, Somerset County, on part of the 218 acres that make up River Road Park. The oldest part of the Jacobus Vanderveer House was built in the early 1770s. It is typical of the Dutch frame houses that dotted the countryside before the American Revolution. Much of the original fabric of the house remains intact. It includes a wall in the west parlor that features raised wood paneling above the fireplace with a barrel-back cabinet to the side and the home has original flooring of wide pine boards. The house gained a Federal style addition in the early 1800s.

Some Revolutionary War Links for New Jersey

New Jersey's Newest National Park

2012-01-12T16:07:00.001-05:00

Not far from downtown Paterson is is the Great Falls on the Passaic River which recently become America's 397th national park. The National Park designation makes the 35-acre site eligible for federal funds.

The 77-foot waterfall in downtown Paterson is second only to Niagara Falls in terms of water volume east of the Mississippi River.

Alexander Hamilton (lieutenant colonel in the American Revolution, confidant to George Washington, delegate to the Constitutional Convention, and first Secretary of the Treasury) formed in 1792 an investment group called the Society of Useful Manufactures (the “SUM”) whose funds would be used to develop a planned industrial city that was later to be known as Paterson.

Hamilton believed that the United States needed to reduce its dependence on foreign goods and should instead develop its own industries. The industries developed in Paterson were powered by the 77-foot high Great Falls of the Passaic, and a system of water raceways that harnessed the power of the falls. The district originally included dozens of mill buildings and other manufacturing structures associated with the textile industry and later, the firearms, silk, and railroad locomotive manufacturing industries. In the latter half of the 1800’s, silk production became the dominant industry and formed the basis of Paterson’s most prosperous period, earning it the nickname “Silk City.”

Take a look at the Great Falls from a webcam view via EarthCam and the City of Paterson.

Conservationist Aldo Leopold

2012-01-11T12:14:00.000-05:00

Lately, I have written a number of posts about the various hunting and trapping seasons here in NJ. So, today, when I saw on an almanac that it was the birthday of Aldo Leopold, I thought I should post a bit on him to balance the scales.

Aldo Leopold is the author of a key book in the conservation movement, A Sand County Almanac.

He was one of those kids that was drawn to the outdoors. After college, he entered Yale's forestry graduate program (one of the first in the country - not something you'd expect from an Ivy school) and became one of the nation's first professional foresters.

One of his assignments was to hunt livestock predators in a New Mexico national forest. But as he observed the bears, wolves, and mountain lions, he concluded that removing them had a broader impact on the entire ecosystem.

He developed a philosophy that humans should not dominate the land. He popularized a definition of "wilderness" that meant nature in its own, untended state, rather than the conventional idea that wilderness is land for outdoor activity.

Eventually, he developed the first management plan for the Grand Canyon. He wrote the Forest Service's first game and fish handbook. He formed The Wilderness Society with other conservationists in 1935.

His "sand county" farm (worn out land purchased for $8 an acre) near the Wisconsin River, became his real world experiment. He planted 40,000 pine trees and tried to tend the land with his own conservation ethic of peaceful coexistence with nature. He documented this in essays collected in A Sand County Almanac.

The book was published in 1948, one week before he died of a heart attack while battling a grass fire.

(via Amazon) ...A Sand County Almanac has enthralled generations of nature lovers and conservationists and is indeed revered by everyone seriously interested in protecting the natural world. Hailed for prose that is "full of beauty and vigor and bite" (The New York Times), it is perhaps the finest example of nature writing since Thoreau's Walden.

... the heart of the book remains Leopold's carefully rendered observations of nature. Here we follow Leopold throughout the year, from January to December, as he walks about the rural Wisconsin landscape, watching a woodcock dance skyward in golden afternoon light, or spying a rough-legged hawk dropping like a feathered bomb on its prey. And perhaps most important are Leopold's trenchant comments throughout the book on our abuse of the land and on what we must do to preserve this invaluable treasure... a new generation of readers can walk beside one of America's most respected naturalists as he conveys the beauty of a marsh before sunrise or the wealth of history to be found in an ancient oak.

Much more... www.AldoLeopold.org

Busy New Jersey Beavers

2012-01-11T07:30:00.000-05:00

USFWS.gov

The beaver is the second largest rodent in the world. Even children are familiar for its wide, flat tail, trre-gnawing and for building dams.

Those tails are useful for slapping the surface of the water to warn other beavers of approaching danger. Although these critters are rather awkward on land, they can navigate quickly under water and can stay submerged if necessary for up to 20 minutes.

Trees (bark and leaves) are their favorite winter food, but in summer other vegetation, especially aquatic plants like water lilies, make up their diet.

Beavers are known for their engineering of dams on rivers and streams. Their intent is to build their lodges (homes) in their preferred pond setting. They ingeniously place vertical poles, and then fill in the spaces between the poles with horizontally placed branches. Then, they further fill in the gaps with a combination of weeds and mud to hold back the water around their lodge. They have even been known to create "canals" in order to float larger tree materials they need rather than dragging them over land.

Their powerful front teeth are cartoonish but they are effective for cutting trees and plants for building and for food.

Though beavers are found throughout New Jersey, it is likely that many residents have never actually encountered one in the wild. Children and adults might mistake a groundhog for a beaver.

NJ's beaver population is strong because they generally coexist well with humans and they have few natural predators.

Not all cases of beaver building have been met with amazement by humans. There have been reports over the years of busy beavers encroaching on human activities. In Camden County, beavers on Kirkwood Lake created dams that made the water rise so that homes that normally had about 100 feet of land between them and the lake wound up with only a few feet of land.

In Middlesex County, a beaver blocked a culvert on a road in the Jamesburg Park Conservation Area and built a dam between two cranberry bogs. The town wanted to avoid flooding that had occurred in previous years. In that case, the town got a permit to trap the beaver out of season. They snared a 31.5-pound, 40-inch-long female beaver in an underwater trap.

This past year, in Princeton Township, human intervention with beavers also made the news.
A pair of busy beavers killed by a local animal control officer activated animal lovers who wondered why the beavers were not relocated rather than killed.

The beaver pair were contributing to flooding at the Pettoranello Gardens section of Community Park North, which has a pond and several streams. Workers tried to dismantle the dams, but the beavers got busy and rebuilt.

It didn't help that the state Division of Fish and Wildlife said the Princeton animal control department had not gotten the proper permit prior to killing the beavers. It seems odd but, according to a spokesman for the department, beavers trapped either in conibear traps, which kill them, or in live traps, still must be euthanized and may not be relocated.

As said earlier, our state beaver population is healthy. The state regularly surveys the 30 hunting and trapping zones in the state. Permits obtained from the Division of Fish and Wildlife are required to trap beaver and/or otter.

During the 2009-2010 season, more than 600 beavers were trapped and killed. The beaver season runs from the end of December to early February. (The duration of the trapping season for beaver on 23 Wildlife Management Areas is January 1 through February 9, 2012, but if the anticipated harvest of beaver and/or otter has not been accomplished during this season, up to 14 additional days may be authorized by the Director.)

More on "Beavers as Master Builders of Wildlife Habitats"

Coyote Hunting in NJ

2012-01-02T06:00:00.000-05:00

Beginning today, a special night hunting season on coyotes will begin in New Jersey. Hunters have been allowed to use rifles to shoot coyotes during daylight hours since November, but by obtaining a special permit, hunters are able to shoot coyotes at night during the season that continues until mid-March. The state established its coyote hunting program in 1997.

Estimates from the New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife say that there are more than 5000 coyotes in the state.

There were several reports of coyotes attacking pet dogs last year including one small dog that was walking unleashed with its owner that was killed in Sparta Glen Park in Sussex County.

Coyote attacks on humans are rare and they are wary of people and will avoid them. The rare cases include two separate attacks in NJ when in Monmouth County in 2007 coyotes attempted to drag off a child.

Coyotes' preferred prey is rabbits, mice, birds and other small animals. Coyotes play an important role in the ecosystem, helping to keep rodent populations under control. But, as with our Garden State bears, they have adapted to eating available sources like garbage, pet food and unattended domestic animals (especially cats and small dogs) and carrion.

Eastern coyotes in NJ can be up to 60 pounds, but average about 40 pounds. They are found in all NJ counties.

Eastern coyotes are larger than Western coyotes. Past interbreeding between gray wolves and coyotes may be responsible for the larger size and color variations in NJ coyotes. To the untrained eye, coyotes resemble German shepherd dogs. They can be seen in coats of blond, red and black, according to the state Division of Fish and Game.

Over 2,000 night hunting permits were issued, but because coyotes are extremely smart and difficult to find, the numbers are expected to be low.

http://www.state.nj.us/dep/fgw/coyote_info.htm

2011 Bear Hunt in NJ

2011-12-21T08:00:00.000-05:00

The 2011 bear hunt in NJ is over but the controversy over the hunt will certainly continue into 2012.

The hunt once again had a court challenge from anti-hunting groups this year. The challenge was ultimately rejected by the State Superior Court earlier this month. The New Jersey Animal Protection League and the Bear Education and Resource Group brought the challenge to the courts.

Their argument was that NJ's Comprehensive Black Bear Management Plan (CBBMP)which has the hunt as part of its plan to control our black bear population is seriously flawed.

So, the hunt went on. During the six-day firearms season, hunters in northern NJ (mostly Morris, Sussex, Warren, & northern Passaic counties, and plus smaller areas of Hunterdon, Somerset and Bergen counties) harvested more than 460 black bears. That number was actually less than the state's goal of 500.

The bears taken included a surprisingly large 776-pound bear taken in Montague, and a new record holding bruin that weighed in at 829 pounds. Those are weights that rival the sizes of a small grizzly in other parts of the country. Those are not bears you would want to surprise on a hike in northwestern New Jersey or in your backyard.

Despite the annual protests by animal rights groups, the NJDEP Commissioner Bob Martin contends that the state's plan is a "science and fact-based policy that we have adopted as part of the comprehensive approach to managing black bears" and that it is "a legitimate response to deal with the large back bear population and a resultant increase in public complaints about bear/human encounters."

http://www.state.nj.us/dep/fgw/bearseason_info.htm

NJ Bald Eagle Nesting Pairs Passes 100

2011-12-16T19:08:00.001-05:00

The dramatic recovery of the American bald eagle has reached a milestone in New Jersey, with more than 100 pairs now nesting in the Garden State, according to a newly released analysis of the species' population.

The survey by the NJDEP Division of Fish and Wildlife's Endangered and Nongame Species Program counted 102 pairs of actively nesting eagles, plus 11 more pairs in the process of establishing nesting territories. The survey documented a record 22 new nests, of which 16 are in southern New Jersey, four in northern New Jersey and two in central New Jersey.

"The recovery of the bald eagle from one nesting pair in an isolated swamp in southern New Jersey in the early 1980s to more than 100 pairs today is a truly remarkable success story that is a testament to the excellent work that has been done to manage the species, and to how far we've come as a state in restoring and protecting our environment," DEP Commissioner Bob Martin said.

The species' recovery from the edge of extirpation is directly related to a ban on the use of DDT, a once widely-used pesticide that caused egg failure, as well as decades of restoration and management efforts by the DEP, which released 60 eaglets from Canada into New Jersey in the 1980s and early 1990s to rebuild the population.

The bald eagle remains listed as an endangered species in New Jersey. The federal government removed the bald eagle from its endangered species list in 2007. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is overseeing a 20-year recovery monitoring period.

Each January, the Endangered and Nongame Species Program conducts a mid-winter survey as part of a nationwide effort to track population trends. The survey coincides with the time of year when eagles are preparing nests for the breeding season.

Statewide, 75 percent of the nests successfully produced offspring. A total of 119 eagle chicks were hatched, for a success rate of 1.25 per active nest.

The overall number of eagles counted during the mid-winter survey, including nesting eagles and those not nesting, stood at 238. This was 28 percent lower than the record 333 observed in 2010, likely due to snow and high winds impairing the visibility of observers.

Eagles primarily depend on fish for survival. With its broad expanses of undisturbed coastal wetlands, the Delaware Bay region of Cumberland and Salem counties remains the state's stronghold, with 60 percent of bald eagle nests.

But eagles are being found in many more places. Eighteen of New Jersey's 21 counties now have at least one active nest.

"In addition to the continued increase in the overall numbers of eagles, what's really exciting is that they are being found all across the state in all types of habitats, including along small lakes and reservoirs in northern New Jersey," said Kathy Clark, an Endangered and Nongame Species Program biologist who has worked on the recovery of the eagle since the program's early days.

This year, the Endangered and Nongame Species Program fitted a pair of eagle chicks that hatched at the Merrill Creek Reservoir in central Warren County with solar-powered transmitters that allow tracking of the birds' movement patterns by satellites.

The public can follow the movements of the two eaglets on the reservoir's website at www.merrillcreek.org. The Conserve Wildlife Foundation maintains a blog about these and the rest of New Jersey's eagles at www.ConserveWildlifeNJ.org.

"The tremendous results of 2011 show that species declines can, with hard work and dedication, be reversed," said Margaret O'Gorman, Executive Director of the Conserve Wildlife Foundation of New Jersey. "Continued investment in stewardship of wildlife is essential to continuing the recovery of eagles and other wildlife in New Jersey."

The Bald Eagle Research and Management Project is made possible by those who donate a portion of their New Jersey state income tax refund to wildlife conservation and those who purchase Conserve Wildlife license plates for their cars. The project is also supported by the Conserve Wildlife Foundation of New Jersey and federal grants.

"The bald eagle, along with scores of other endangered and rare wildlife species, have a much brighter future in our state due to the work made possible by funds from the tax check-off and the Conserve Wildlife license plate program," said DEP Division of Fish and Wildlife Director David Chanda. "It's not too soon to begin thinking about donating a portion of your refund to this worthy and successful effort."

The 2011 bald eagle project report, which includes a map and listing of the distribution of nesting eagles in New Jersey, can be found at http://www.njfishandwildlife.com/ensp/raptor_info.htm.

Source: NJDEP news release at http://www.nj.gov/dep/newsrel/2011/11_0141.htm

Water, Water Everywhere But Not That Much To Drink

2011-12-07T08:00:00.000-05:00

Water.org is a U.S.-based nonprofit organization committed to providing safe drinking water and sanitation to people in developing countries. I found the organization through a news story on TV featuring one of its founders, actor Matt Damon. It's good to have a famous face and name attached so that a cause gets some exposure, but Damon is seriously involved in this effort.

The water crisis today is not an issue of scarcity, but of access. It is a frightening and sobering fact that the water in an American's toilet is cleaner than the water many people in the world have to struggle to get for drinking and cooking.

Some water facts from water.org/learn-about-the-water-crisis/facts/

More people in the world own cell phones than have access to a toilet. 884 million people lack access to safe water supplies; approximately one in eight people.
3.575 million people die each year from water-related disease.
The water and sanitation crisis claims more lives through disease than any war claims through guns.
People living in the slums often pay 5-10 times more per liter of water than wealthy people living in the same city.
An American taking a five-minute shower uses more water than a typical person in a developing country slum uses in a whole day.
Only 62% of the world’s population has access to improved sanitation – defined as a sanitation facility that ensures hygienic separation of human excreta from human contact.
Lack of sanitation is the world’s biggest cause of infection and 2.5 billion people lack access to improved sanitation, including 1.2 billion people who have no facilities at all.
Diarrhea remains in the second leading cause of death among children under five globally. Nearly one in five child deaths – about 1.5 million each year – is due to diarrhea. It kills more young children than AIDS, malaria and measles combined.
Every 20 seconds, a child dies from a water-related disease, and 1.4 million children die as a result of diarrhea each year.

It is also shocking to see the impact water has on women. In just one day, more than 200 million hours of women’s time is consumed for the most basic of human needs — collecting water for domestic use. A study by the International Water and Sanitation Centre (IRC) of community water and sanitation projects in 88 communities found that projects designed and run with the full participation of women are more sustainable and effective than those that do not. This supports an earlier World Bank study that found that women’s participation was strongly associated with water and sanitation project effectiveness.

Over 50 percent of all water projects fail and less than five percent of projects are visited, and far less than one percent have any longer-term monitoring. Investment in safe drinking water and sanitation contributes to economic growth. For each $1 invested, the World Health Organization (WHO) estimates returns of $3 – $34, depending on the region and technology

And, of course, there is the impact on the environment. 70% of the Earth is covered by water BUT less than 1% of the world’s fresh water (or about 0.007% of all water on earth) is readily accessible for direct human use.

More than 80% of sewage in developing countries is discharged untreated, polluting rivers, lakes and coastal areas

The UN estimates that by 2025, forty-eight nations, with combined population of 2.8 billion, will face freshwater “stress” or “scarcity”.

Agriculture is the largest consumer of freshwater by far: about 70% of all freshwater withdrawals go to irrigated agriculture.

At home the average American uses between 100 and 175 gallons of water a day. That is less than 25 years ago, but it does not include the amount of water used to feed and clothe us. Conserving water helps not only to preserve irreplaceable natural resources, but also to reduce the strain on urban wastewater management systems. Wastewater is costly to treat, and requires continuous investment to ensure that the water we return to our waterways is as clean as possible.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/waterdotorg/

I like the Water.org philosophy that people in developing countries know best how to solve their own problems. They forge partnerships with carefully-screened partner organizations in the target countries that understand, and are part of, the local culture.The result is a solution tailored to the need of each community, instead of a technological fix the community has no way of maintaining.

Locally-based partners are better positioned to understand and navigate social, political, and economic issues impacting projects. They are more savvy at leveraging local financial resources for cost-sharing in projects. Using local expertise to implement projects is more cost effective than maintaining expatriate staff.

Help the efforts of water.org at DONATE.water.org

With each purchase of a limited edition Water.org CamelBak Groove bottle, you give a life-changing gift. While it keeps great-tasting filtered water always in your reach, it also brings safe drinking water and sanitation to people in developing countries. $10 from every bottle purchased supports Water.org The bottle is 100% BPA-free, holds 20 oz, is dishwasher safe, and features the patented CamelBak Big Bite Valve.

Undiscovered and Yet Endangered

2011-12-01T14:19:00.000-05:00

According to EndangeredSpeciesInternational.org, more than ten million species remain to be discovered in the world.

Most of them are already highly threatened since they are located within regions of great habitat destruction. Among the 46,000 species assessed, more than 17,000 are likely to become extinct in the very near future if no aggressive actions are taken. Plus, their natural ecosystems are vanishing at an alarming rate.

Plants and animals are part of our unique heritage, they keep us alive, purifying water, fixing nitrogen, recycling nutrients and waste, and pollinating crops. They are vital for the physical and spiritual well-being offering us a colorful and rich world.

A hundred bird species have vanished since 1600, nearly all due to human activities, chiefly habitat loss, overhunting, and introduced predators. Island birds are especially vulnerable. A list of some of these birds, the year each was last seen in the wild, and the cause(s) of extinction.is at endangeredspeciesinternational.org/birds5.html

The huia (Heteralocha acutirostris) from New Zealand
has already vanished. © Paddy Ryan

NJ DOT Reports More than 4700 deer killed by cars this year

2011-11-25T07:00:00.000-05:00

The New Jersey Department of Transportation says more than 4,700 deer have been killed by vehicles through the first week of November. That's on pace to nearly match last year's total of about 6,000.Mating season makes November the deadliest month for deer-vehicle collisions. A State Farm Insurance study found 18 percent of accidents occur in November. October and December are nearly as deadly.Those accidents cost an average of about $3,200. The state DOT says most deer killed in northern New Jersey end up in landfills. But those killed in Passaic County are used to feed animals at Space Farms Zoo in Sussex County.

via news12.com

Are You in North Jersey Bear Country'?

2011-09-23T12:54:00.000-04:00

The NJ DEP is advising residents and outdoor enthusiasts in North Jersey, especially in areas regularly frequented by black bears, to strictly adhere to guidelines for eliminating or securing potential black bear food sources during the fall period when bears feed extensively to build fat layers for hibernation.

Black bears may be especially on the hunt this season for high calorie foods, such as food scraps in household trash and bird seed from outdoor bird feeders, due to localized scarcities of acorns and other tree nuts, which are an important black bear food source known as ''mast.'' Mast production, especially the acorn crop, is typically cyclical, and this year's scarcity follows two very plentiful mast years. Factors such as gypsy moth infestation, spring frost, excessive spring rain and humidity influence the natural mast production cycle.

In low mast years, such as this year, bears are more likely to exploit alternative foods, such as human trash and bird seed, to provide the calories they need to prepare for winter. Homes and campgrounds become prime potential food sources for black bears when natural foods are in short supply.

The black bear population has stabilized this year in Northwest Jersey as a result of the State Comprehensive Black Bear Management Policy, which includes a mix of education, research, hunting, and non-lethal techniques. The result has been a decrease in bear-human incidents compared to 2010. But the mast shortage will increase the potential for bear-human conflicts this fall as bears may become bolder and more persistent in searching for food near homes and campgrounds.

"Residents, hikers and campers can reduce the likelihood of attracting bears if they are aware of all potential food sources for bears and diligently bear-proof residences and camps by removing or properly securing any potential bear food," said David Chanda, Director of the Division of Fish and Wildlife.

The bear hunt is just one facet of the State's Comprehensive Black Bear Management Policy, which also includes public education, research, bear habitat analysis and protection, non-lethal bear management techniques, enforcement of laws, and efforts to keep human food sources, especially household trash, away from bears to limit bear-human encounters.

New Jersey residents and visitors should be aware that feeding or intentionally providing food for black bears is against the law. Violators could face a penalty of up to a $1,000 for each offense. Conservation Officers and State Park Police, along with local police departments, will be on the lookout for incidents where food is intentionally provided for black bears.

These simple rules for living in black bear country--particularly Morris, Sussex, Warren, Hunterdon, northern Passaic, northern Somerset and western Bergen counties --will help minimize conflicts with black bears:

Reducing conflicts with bears is a community effort. It only takes several households with unsecured food for bears to create a nuisance bear that could affect an entire neighborhood.

Invest in bear-proof garbage containers. If not using bear-proof garbage containers, store all garbage in containers with tight fitting lids in a secure area such as a basement, the inside wall of a garage, or a shed.
Put garbage out on collection day, not the evening before.
Wash garbage containers with a disinfectant at least once a week to eliminate odors. Draping ammonia or bleach soaked cloth over containers will help to eliminate odors.
Do not place meat or sweet food scraps in compost piles.
Feed birds only from December 1 to April 1, when bears are least active.
When feeding birds when bears are active, suspend birdfeeders at least 10 feet off the ground. Clean up spilled seeds and shells daily.
Feed outdoor pets during daylight hours only. Immediately remove all food scraps and bowls after feeding.
Clean outdoor grills thoroughly after each use. Grease and food residue can attract bears.
Do not leave food unattended while camping or picnicking.
Store all food items in coolers inside vehicles where they can not be seen or in bear-proof food storage lockers at State Park facilities
Never feed a black bear. It is dangerous and against the law.
Report bear damage or nuisance behavior to your local police department or to the Division of Fish and Wildlife at (877) 927-6337.

To learn more about New Jersey's black bears, visit http://www.nj.gov/dep/fgw/bearfacts.htm

To read the State's Comprehensive Black Bear management Policy, visit http://www.nj.gov/dep/fgw/bearpolicy10.htm

SOURCE: NJDEP - News Release 11/P117 - Residents in North Jersey 'Bear Country' Urged to Secure Trash and Other Residential Food Sources:

Wildlife Rehabilitators Advisory Committee

2011-08-29T05:02:00.000-04:00

The NJDEP Division of Fish and Wildlife will be forming a Wildlife Rehabilitators Advisory Committee to improve the state's wildlife rehabilitation program and the care that is provided to injured and orphaned wildlife.

Wildlife rehabilitators answer questions and if necessary, properly care for sick, injured and orphaned wildlife. Wildlife rehabilitators donate their time and do not charge for their services.

Resumes are now being accepted from all interested applicants. Applications will be reviewed for a person's expertise, experience and geographic distribution throughout the state.

For more information on the committee, its makeup and duties, and how to apply to serve on it, visit njfishandwildlife.com/news/2011/rehabcommittee.htm on the division's website.

An injured baby raccoon is treated at the Woodlands Wildlife Refuge.

21st Great Tomato Tasting at Rutgers

2011-08-26T22:18:00.000-04:00

The 21st Great Tomato Tastinggives you the chance to taste over 60 tomato varieties (heirlooms and hybrids) along with apples, peaches, herbs, and honey. There is also a teaching garden and even a wagon tour highlighting Rutgers/NJAES agricultural and horticultural research.

The Melda C. Snyder Teaching Garden will showcase garden displays of deer tolerant ornamentals, the Rutgers holly and blueberry breeding programs, columnar varieties of fruit trees for the home landscape and award-winning Jersey Grown™ daylilies to name a few.

RSVP website: http://snyderfarm.rutgers.edu/tomatoes.html or call 908-713-8980

Wednesday, August 31, 2011 3:00 PM to dusk at Snyder Farm, 140 Locust Grove RoadCity, Pittstown, NJ.

Green Acres Program Fiftieth Anniversary Photo Contest

2011-08-25T02:40:00.000-04:00

A picture may be worth a thousand words, but how many pictures would it take to capture the amazing diversity and beauty of 650,000 acres of open space and parks protected in New Jersey over the past 50 years with the help of the state's Green Acres Program?

These last days of summer and early autumn still offer time to explore the parks and open spaces nearest you, and what better way to celebrate your special place than by taking a photograph.

Nearly every community in New Jersey has been touched by the Department of Environmental Protection's Green Acres Program. To help celebrate its 50th anniversary, DEP announced the photo contest in June, marking when the first Green Acres bond referendum was signed. The deadline for the photo contest is October 16.

The contest is open to anyone six years of age or older. The goal is to photograph a New Jersey park or open space property that is preserved with Green Acres funds, many of which are marked with distinctive green and white Green Acres signs emblazoned with a Mercer oak tree.

Participants are encouraged to enter up to 3 photos (one per category) in the following categories:

People in Parks
Scenic
Nature in New Jersey Close-Up

Prizes and certificates will be awarded to the winners at a public ceremony and the winning photos will be displayed online at the Green Acres website as well as at various parks throughout the state.

Need help finding the Green Acres properties nearest you? Visit the program's 50th anniversary website at http://www.NJGreenAcres.org. There you can search the program's Open Space Database or search for properties by using a state map.

Additional photo contest details, rules, judging and submission forms are available online http://www.state.nj.us/dep/ga50/50photo.htm.

NJ Deer Facts

2011-08-12T10:08:00.001-04:00

image via wikimedia.org

Estimates are that there are nearly 200,000 whitetail deer in New Jersey. 100 years ago, deer in NJ were "endangered."

This population explosion is causing many problems throughout the state including damaged landscaping to homeowners, major accidents to motorists, and an ecological imbalance.

According to njdeercontrol.com, who offer a deer repellent product and strategies to prevent deer from coming on your property, some of the "favorite" plants and shrubs of deer in New Jersey are:

SHRUBS: Arborvitae, Azalea, Burning Bush, Holly, Hydrangea, Lilac, Mountain Laurel, Red Twigged Dogwood, Rhododendron, Rose of Sharon, Viburnum, Yew.

FLOWERS: Aster, Astilbe, Bee Balm, Cardinal Flower, Coneflower, Daylily, Gayfeather, Geranium, Hosta, Impatiens, Sedum, Sunflowers, Tulips.

Some White Tail Deer facts:

A deer’s nose is about 100 times more sensitive than a human's
Deer can jump a 9 foot fence
They are the largest wild herbivore in NJ
Their stomach is able to digest different foods at specific times of the year. This helps it survive the changing availability of food, and why only certain plants and shrubs are eaten at particular times of the year.
They actually thrive in today’s environment because they are an "edge species." This means they do not like large homogeneous tracts of land, but land with borders and edge habitats. As the human population has increased and divided land, we have created a more suitable habitat for the whitetail deer.
They have no natural predators in New Jersey in high enough numbers to affect their population. Humans - especially motorists - and domestic dogs are the only real "predators."

Project PORTS Seeking Volunters for Oyster Restoration

2011-08-10T15:11:00.002-04:00

shells with spat

Project PORTS (Promoting Oyster Restoration through Schools) is a community-based restoration project that engages school children in activities associated with the enhancement of oyster habitat at the Gandy's Beach Oyster Restoration Enhancement Area.

Students construct shell bags, which are deployed in the bay to become a settlement surface, and home to millions of young oysters. Participating schools, PORTS Partner Schools, receive a truckload of clam shells, which are placed in stretchy mesh bags by students on site at the school. The bags are then transported to a lower Bay Cape Shore site where they are deployed for two months in the summer to capture the settling oysters known as spat.

According to the Littoral Society, the oysters have set a bit late this year, but they are growing nicely on the shell bags that were deployed in June.

They need volunteers to help with the oyster transplant on August 23rd and 24th in Green Creek, NJ.The estimated start times are:8:30 am on the 23rd8:00 am on the 24th.The work on the 23rd will be consolidating the bags into a few piles (min. age: 10).The work on the 24th will be moving, transporting, and emptying the bags onto the oyster boat (min. age: 15).

If you can assist with this project please email bill@littoralsociety.org

The oyster spat (a baby oyster or larvae) and shell are transplanted to the upper Bay Gandy's Beach location where they grow, thrive, and provide important ecological benefits to the Bay ecosystem.

This work complements the State and Federal fishery-centered restoration efforts and demonstrates a way that local citizens can invest in the Delaware Bay and feel a personal commitment for its stewardship.

These young oysters are transplanted to upper bay conservation and fishery areas in early August.

Mature oyster

The eastern oyster, Crassostrea virginica is one of, if not the most important species of the Delaware Estuary.

Dating back thousands of years, the oyster has served as a keystone organism in the estuary, positively influencing water quality and providing food, habitat, and refuge to countless organisms.

Challenged by disease, habitat deterioration, and overfishing, the resource is presently a fraction of what it once was.

The Everglades of Central Jersey

2011-08-09T14:20:00.000-04:00

Well, the marketing people weren't called in when they named Dismal Swamp in Central New Jersey. The Dismal Swamp Conservation Area is anything but dismal, in the same way that the "Pine Barrens" are not barren.

David Wheeler, Director of Operations for Edison Wetlands Association, (EWA) did several posts on the G.R. Dodge Foundation blog on protecting the Dismal Swamp.

Known as the “Everglades of Central Jersey,” the 1,240-acre Dismal Swamp Conservation Area is the largest natural area remaining in northern Middlesex County, spanning portions of Edison, Metuchen and South Plainfield. EWA is leading a number of coalitions to preserve, restore, promote, and transform this natural oasis from a long-overlooked area in one of New Jersey’s most overdeveloped regions into a nature sanctuary treasured by the public and immensely valuable to wildlife. EWA’s vision, leadership and collaboration resulted in the creation of the Dismal Swamp State Preservation Commission in 2009, with EWA’s Bob Spiegel continuing to strengthen this state oversight as Chair of the Commission.

The Dismal Swamp serves as a natural oasis holding United States Environmental Protection Agency Federal Priority Wetlands. The Dismal Swamp is home to over 180 species of birds, and two dozen species of mammals, amphibians and reptiles, as well as a dozen threatened and endangered species, such as the American bittern, bald eagle, and spotted turtle. The Dismal Swamp also provides natural flood control and wildlife habitat, while its forests produce oxygen, and its wetlands clean and purify water

Beaver-cut tree along the Bound Brook

EWA has worked since then to preserve many other key Dismal Swamp properties, partnering with groups like NY-NJ Baykeeper and New Jersey Audubon Society, and agencies like the Middlesex County Freeholders and the NY/NJ Port Authority to save over 800 acres in Edison and nearly 100 acres in South Plainfield from over development.

EWA is also working on a number of trails projects to expand opportunities for hiking, birding, and wildlife viewing in the area.

In 2011 the Middlesex Greenway just opened the newest leg of its trail connecting hikers and bicyclists from Perth Amboy, Woodbridge, and Edison with Metuchen’s portion of the Dismal Swamp. EWA continues to work with elected officials and the Edison Greenways Group to extend the greenway into the heart of South Plainfield’s Dismal Swamp.

David Wheeler is the author of Wild New Jersey. David also posted on the restoration of the Raritan River.

Long Pond Ironworks Museum

2011-08-08T16:20:00.002-04:00

Steam-powered sawmill on Longhouse Rd. - early 20th Century

The Long Pond Ironworks Museum is open to the public Saturdays and Sundays between 1pm and 4pm April through November. Organized groups and schools may arrange Museum visits by appointment all year.

The museum, operated and staffed by volunteers, opened for its first season on Saturday, April 10, 1999. Inside the renovated Old Country Store are interpretive displays, artifacts and relics from the furnace area and ironworkers village. Photographs and artifacts help illustrate how the area looked and what life was like in this industrial complex. There are also a limited number of items available for purchase.

Take a virtual tour of the Ironworks

Long Pond Ironworks was founded in 1766 by the German ironmaster Peter Hasenclever. With financial backing from British investors, Hasenclever purchased the existing Ringwood Ironworks as well as huge parcels of land, including the 55,000-acre Long Pond Tract. He also imported more than 500 European workers and their families to build ironmaking plantations at Ringwood, Long Pond and Charlottenburg in New Jersey and at Cortland in New York. From the wilderness they carved roads; built forges, furnaces and homes; and created supporting farms. At Long Pond, they dammed the river in order to provide water power to operate the air blast for a furnace and a large forge.

Long Pond Ironworks today tells a fascinating tale of ironmasters who built and developed the iron industry in the Highlands. Their contributions to history in times of peace and times of war reach far beyond the local economy. These nearly forgotten chapters of history need to be retold and remembered. Within the 175-acre Long Pond Ironworks Historic District lie the ruins of three iron blast furnaces, including the original Colonial-era furnace constructed in 1766, and two larger furnaces built for Civil War production; evidence of iron forges; remains of waterpower systems; and a variety of workers' homes and commercial buildings that were critical parts of the ironworking village. Long Pond also illustrates the evolution of ironmaking technology, as shown in the remains of the three successive furnaces, the ore roaster and the hydropower systems. The continual search for more efficient operations and materials is a story of industrial ingenuity at its best.

The Friends of Long Pond Ironworks, Inc. (FOLPI) is seeking additional volunteers so the hours the museum is open can be expanded. They also give monthly and special tours of the Historic District as well as educational-outreach programs for schools, Scouts, clubs and other organizations.

A Master Plan for the Long Pond Ironworks National Historic Landmark has been developed by the N.J. Division of Parks and Forestry, with help from the Friends of Long Pond Ironworks. The plan calls for the restoration of structures within the Historic District; stabilization of many of its ruins; ongoing archaeological excavation and research; and interpretation of the site to the public. You are welcome to become part of this process by taking advantage of the public tours and by becoming a member. Non-members are welcome to attend monthly meetings to learn more.

North Wheel - 1909

Horseshoe Crab Survey Funding Secured

2011-08-01T14:22:00.002-04:00

Full funding for the 2011 Virginia Tech Horseshoe Crab Trawl Survey has been secured through a matching donation from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF). NFWF funds match the combined $100,000 contribution from Lonza Walkersville, Inc. and Charles River Laboratory, providing the full $200,000 needed for survey operations in 2011.

Horseshoe crabs, Limulus polyphemus, provide the backdrop for one of the most interesting marine resource management issues along the Atlantic coast. They play a vital ecological role in the migration of shorebirds along the entire Atlantic seaboard, as well as providing bait for commercial American eel and conch fisheries along the coast. Additionally, their unique blood is used by the biomedical industry to produce Limulus Amoebocyte Lysate (LAL), an important tool in the detection of contaminants in patients, drugs and other medical supplies. The challenge of fisheries managers is to ensure that horseshoe crabs are managed to meet all these diverse needs, while conserving the resource for its self-perpetuation.

The survey, which has been administered by Virginia Tech since 2002, is the only survey designed to sample the horseshoe crab population in coastal waters. Its data are a critical component of the coastwide stock assessment and the new Adaptive Resource Management (ARM) framework, both of which were endorsed through an independent peer review in 2009. The ARM framework includes modeling that links management of horseshoe crab harvest to multispecies objectives, particularly red knot shorebird recovery. It was developed jointly by the Commission, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and U.S. Geological Survey in recognition of the importance of horseshoe crab eggs to shorebirds in the Delaware Bay Region.

"We are thrilled that the 2011 survey can be conducted with the combined funds from NFWF and the biomedical industry," stated Thomas O'Connell, ASMFC Horseshoe Crab Board Chair and Maryland DNR Fisheries Service Director. "Without the initial commitments of the biomedical companies and the fishing industry, this opportunity could not have materialized. I hope that these commitments will spur other interested groups to pledge resources, as the 2012 survey is still in need of funding."

"Ensuring that there are adequate horseshoe crab resources to support rebuilding Delaware Bay shorebird populations depends upon good science and management, which this survey and the ARM framework support," said Dr. Anthony Chatwin, Director of Marine and Coastal Conservation at NFWF. "We are happy to help support the survey this year, particularly when all of us are being challenged by tight budgets."

Additional donations have been pledged by Associates of Cape Cod, Inc., and members of the horseshoe crab and whelk industry including the Chesapeake Bay Packing, LLC, Bernie's Conchs, LLC, LaMonica Fine Foods, Southern Connection Seafood, Inc., Sea King Corp., Spot's Fish Company, and Delaware Valley Fish Company. These funds will provide seed money for the 2012 survey, the status of which will be based on the ability to secure full funding.

Little is known about the status of the horseshoe crab population. Limited time-series of horseshoe crab population data make it difficult to assess its status. However, the 2009 stock assessment and peer review concluded increasing trends in abundance in the southeast and Delaware Bay regions, and decreasing abundance in the New York and New England regions. In 2000, the Commission established state-by-state quotas in all Atlantic states for crabs harvested for bait. In 2006, through Addendum IV the Commission further reduced quotas in New Jersey and Delaware and added additional protection in Maryland and Virginia to increase horseshoe crab and egg abundance in and around Delaware Bay in response to decreasing migratory shorebird populations.

NFWF is a non-profit organization dedicated to preserving and restoring the nation's native wildlife species and habitats. Created by Congress in 1984, NFWF directs public and private conservation dollars to the most pressing environmental needs, facilitating matching funds throughout the process.

MORE INFORMATION

SOURCE: news release from the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission

Deer In Velvet

2011-07-19T21:16:00.002-04:00

Male deer with antlers in velvet
http://njwight.tumblr.com/post/7803845759/antlers

Now is the time that you can see male deer in NJ showing new antlers.

Each antler grows from an attachment point on the skull called a pedicle. While an antler is growing, it is covered with highly vascular skin called velvet, which supplies oxygen and nutrients to the growing bone. Growth occurs at the tip, and is initially cartilage, which is mineralized to become bone. Once the antler has achieved its full size, the velvet is lost and the antler's bone dies. This dead bone structure is the mature antler.

When summer ends, you can begin to see "deer rubs" which are the abrasions that male deer make by rubbing its forehead and antlers against the base of a tree. These can be found in any area with high deer populations. Deer rubs are used by hunters to find locations for hunting. The deer are rubbing the velvet off their antler growth. This is especially true during rut season because that area between the forehead and antlers contains a large number of apocrine sweat glands, and leave a scent that communicates a challenge to other male deer while also attracting potential mates. The size of the rub usually varies with the size of the deer.

U.S. Closer to Allowing Wind Farms Off New Jersey

2011-07-13T09:58:00.001-04:00

According to The Wall Street Journal

The U.S. Interior Department expects little environmental impact from testing the feasibility of wind farms off the coast of four Atlantic coast states, according to a draft document released Monday.

The findings, which could be changed after the department reviews public comments, are an indication that the agency may be prepared to lease the areas for wind development without a more lengthy environmental review.

The document released Monday is a preliminary assessment of a proposal to lease areas off the coasts of New Jersey, Virginia, Delaware and Maryland and to allow companies to test whether the areas are viable for generating wind power. It is part of a wider push by the Obama administration to speed up the permitting process for what are known as wind farms.

In a news release asking for public comment on the document, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said that, "with today's announcement, we are taking another step toward ensuring that renewable [energy] development along the Atlantic outer continental shelf becomes a reality."

The areas under consideration for lease include about 354,000 acres off southern New Jersey, 139,000 acres off the Virginia coast, 103,000 acres off Delaware's shores and 80,000 acres off the coast of Maryland. Leasing the areas and allowing testing there would have a relatively small effect on wildlife, commercial fishing, water quality and other concerns, the draft environmental review found.

The Fight Against Invasive Species

2011-07-07T09:25:00.000-04:00

The IUCN recently posted an article about "invasive aliens." No, these are not the type found in summer movies like Super 8. These are the species - animal and plant - that invade habitats where they do not belong.

Biodiversity is being lost at an unprecedented rate, with a whole host of factors contributing to the disastrous declines. Habitat destruction is well-documented as being one of the leading causes of species extinctions, but invasive alien species are also to blame. But what exactly is an invasive species? Invasive species are those organisms which have been introduced by man, either accidentally or on purpose, to areas in which they are not naturally found, and have thrived to the extent that they have taken over their new environment.

It is important, however, to make the distinction between these species and ‘non-native’ species. Plenty of species are introduced to areas outside of their natural range, and are hence non-native, but not all of these will become invasive. Many will not be able to adapt to the new environment at all, and may eventually die off. Other non-native species cope well in their new surroundings without ousting native species from the ecosystem, co-existing without competition. An ecosystem can support this change as its original components and key players are still there. The non-native species may itself prove beneficial to human wellbeing and in some cases may become part of the landscape, as in the case of the Mediterranean Cypress (Cupressus sempervirens) in Tuscany or the Common Pheasant (Phasianus colchicus) in many areas of North America and Europe. What causes a species to be labelled as invasive rather than simply non-native is its ability to out-compete native species, impacting on the biological diversity of the region and even on the livelihoods of human communities.

Stink Bug via http://media.nj.com/hunterdonnews_impact/

Invasive species in New Jersey include foreign bugs, plants, animals and aquatic creatures. Invasive species are introduced species that can thrive in areas beyond their natural range. They are characteristically very adaptable, aggressive, and have a high reproductive capacity. Their vigor combined with a lack of natural enemies often leads to outbreak populations that threaten and endanger native species.

For example, the East Asian stink bug is in NJ now and does literally stink.

The European green crab and the Asian Shore Crab threaten our native acquatic populations.

Flathead Catfish caught in the Delaware River near Lambertville
blogs.courierpostonline.com

The Flathead Catfish which is normally found in the Mississippi basin, has been found in NJ in places like the Delaware and Raritan Canal.

Giant Hogweed flower head

The Giant Hogweed sounds like something from science-fiction. This species that can grow up to 20 feet and it produces sap that cause blisters and severe burns that leave scars on humans.

Last fall, the first North American instance of invasive Chinese pond mussel was confirmed by New Jersey state biologists in Hunterdon County after DNA testing.

The USDA's website offers state lists and news. For NJ information, see invasivespeciesinfo.gov/unitedstates/nj.shtml

Further Reading

Latest estimates on endangered species

2011-07-05T11:14:00.008-04:00

Over 19,000 species of animal and plant are in danger of extinction worldwide, up from just over 11,000 in 2000, according to the latest "Red List of Threatened Species" from the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

via http://www.economist.com/blogs/dailychart/2011/06/endangered-species

About one-third are considered "threatened" (critically endangered, endangered or vulnerable).

Between 2000 and 2011 the number of species assessed by the IUCN grew by over 60%.

Amphibians (frogs, toads and salamanders) who were not fully assessed until 2004 show the greatest loss partially because of the increased evaluation.

Habitat loss, pollution, disease and invasive species continue to diminish all species.

Mammals fare the best with the percentage of endangered species down since 2000.

Arabian Oryx (Oryx leucoryx)

After the last wild individuals of the Arabian Oryx (Oryx leucoryx) were killed in the early 1970s, a captive breeding program and protective legislation were established to bring the species back from the brink of extinction. Formerly occurring throughout most of the Arabian Peninsula, the Arabian Oryx has been reintroduced to five countries. The wild population currently numbers 1000 mature individuals. Illegal live capture for sale to private collections remains a constant threat, and poaching continues to threaten individuals who wander outside of release sites. Drought and overgrazing have affected habitat quality in places, limiting potential future release sites. Despite these issues, its relatively steady wild population growth qualifies the Arabian Oryx to be downlisted in 2011 from Endangered to Vulnerable. Photo © D Mallon/Antelope Specialist Group

Loggerhead Turtles

2011-06-30T13:06:00.000-04:00

Loggerhead turtle
via http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8e/Loggerhead_sea_turtle.jpg

A recent review on movies.nytimes.com of the new film Turtle: The Incredible Journey got me thinking about this endangered species that visits New Jersey waters.

Though the reviewer is critical of special effects enhancements in the film, there's no doubt that the story is compelling.

The journey of the loggerhead turtle is, by any measure, an amazing life voyage, one that here reaches from the beaches of Florida to the eerie calm of the Sargasso Sea and the watery speedway known as the Gulf Stream before heading to Africa and then the call of motherhood. It’s a trip that eats up thousands of miles, takes some two dozen years and is fraught with dangers, though sometimes in the movie that threat may be more imaginary than actual, as when a basking shark, the second largest fish in the world, cruises by with its weird wide mouth open, yawning in water and prey. Armed with little teeth, the basking shark feeds on krill and plankton, but its size and cavernous mouth do make for dramatic viewing.

In 1978, loggerheads were listed as threatened and in 1979 the state of New Jersey classified four marine turtles - the Atlantic hawksbill, loggerhead, ridley and leatherback turtles - as endangered. (Also the Atlantic green turtle as threatened.)

Adult Atlantic loggerhead turtles, Caretta caretta, weigh from 170 pounds (77 kg) to 350 pounds (159 kg) and measure 31 inches (79 cm) to 45 inches (114 cm). The loggerhead sea turtle is omnivorous, feeding mainly on bottom dwelling invertebrates. Its large and powerful jaws serve as an effective tool in dismantling its prey.

The greatest concentration of loggerheads is along the southeastern coast of North America and in the Gulf of Mexico, but they are common throughout the temperate and tropical zones around the globe.

Scientists from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration proposed last year a reclassification of the loggerhead sea turtle’s designation from “threatened” to the more critical “endangered” category. That tells you that most efforts to protect the species have been ineffective.

The loggerhead sea turtle is found in the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian oceans as well as the Mediterranean Sea. It spends most of its life in saltwater and estuarine habitats, with females briefly coming ashore to lay eggs.

One problem the loggerhead sea turtle encounters today is that it has a low reproductive rate. Females lay an average of four egg clutches and then become quiescent, producing no eggs for two to three years. The loggerhead reaches sexual maturity within 17–33 years and has a lifespan of 47–67 years.

Untended fishing gear is responsible for many loggerhead deaths. Turtles may also suffocate if they are trapped in fishing trawls. Turtle excluder devices (TEDs) have been implemented in efforts to reduce mortality by providing the turtle an escape route.

Two other problems are the increasing loss of suitable nesting beaches, and the introduction of exotic predators has also taken a toll on loggerhead populations.

It is also more difficult to protect this species because it requires international cooperation since the turtles roam vast areas of ocean and critical nesting beaches are scattered among several countries.

The young loggerheads are threatened by a number of predators and the eggs are especially vulnerable to terrestrial predation.

Once the turtles reach adulthood, their formidable size limits predation to large marine organisms such as sharks.

Turtle: The Incredible Journey

2011-06-30T12:07:00.002-04:00

Turtle: The Incredible Journey - Trailer from Rockfish on Vimeo.

Have You Seen An Endangered Species?

2011-06-23T14:32:00.000-04:00

Red Wolf

A brief pictorial regional guide of endangered species from The New York Times. The plants and animals shown are among either the nearly 1,400 endangered or threatened species or populations.

They also feature some of the 260 candidates waiting to be listed under the Endangered Species Act. The Red Wolf (Canis rufus) has been driven to the brink by overhunting and habitat fragmentation. This wolf has a wild population of about 100 in northeastern North Carolina.

For our Northeast, they show the piping plover and the endangered roseate tern.

Piping Plover

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2011/05/13/travel/endangered-species.html?ref=travel

Mosasaur fossil found in Mantua Township

2011-06-14T11:03:00.003-04:00

http://www.oceansofkansas.com/Varner/varner.jpg

Well beyond "endangered" are dinosaurs. And dinosaur finds in New Jersey may be even more rare.

Mosasaurs (from Latin Mosa meaning the 'Meuse river', and Greek sauros meaning 'lizard') are large extinct marine lizards. The first fossil remains were discovered in a limestone quarry at Maastricht on the Meuse in 1764. Mosasaurs are now considered to be the closest relatives of snakes, and were varanoids closely related to terrestrial monitor lizards. They probably evolved from semi-aquatic aigialosaurs, which were more similar in appearance to modern-day monitor lizards, in the Early Cretaceous.

So, it's exciting that the assistant curator of natural history at the New Jersey State Museum has found one as part of a paleontological expedition working a site at Inversand [in Mantua] recently.

Although they have been undisturbed for 65 million years, Jason Schein is rushing to get his hands on the fossilized skeletons of sea-dwelling animals and dinosaurs from the depths of a marl pit here.

Schein’s fear is that, if he waits a day, the opportunity to excavate skeletons from the site may disappear forever.

Inversand’s manganese greensand pit in the township — the company has long asked that the exact location not be disclosed — is the last known site of its kind in South Jersey.

“In South Jersey in the late 1800s and early 1900s, there were dozens and dozens of these pits,” Schein explained as he took a break from the triple-digit heat on Thursday.

How do you think towns such as Marlton and Marlboro got their names, he asked.

The paleontologists who would dig in the pits hung out in Philadelphia, sharing finds and stories.

“Some of the most famous stories in the history of science got started here,” Schein observed.

Farmers had no use for the skeletons found in the pits.

“They originally dug it up as fertilizer,” he said of marl. Inversand markets the material that it digs from the pit here as a municipal and industrial water treatment.

Marl was also the right material to preserve the skeletons of what was trapped inside.

This week’s dig, financed with $1,500 from the Delaware Valley Paleontological Society and involving scientists from the state museum in Trenton, Drexel University and the Academy of Natural Sciences, has yielded “lots of good stuff.”

Wednesday, the team “took out of the ground the entire top shell of a big sea turtle.” The shell, Schein said, is “three feet across.”

More importantly, it is both “very well preserved” and “almost 100-percent complete.”

Thursday, the ground yielded the brain case of a mosasaur — a giant swimming komodo dragon.

“If there was ever a real life sea monster, this was it,” Schein suggested.

Sixty-five million years ago, South Jersey was a shallow sea home to fish, sharks, birds, sea turtles, crocodiles and mosasaurs.

The skeletons are headed first to Drexel and eventually to the state museum for study and possible display.

Such sites in the past have yielded the first substantially complete dinosaur skeleton — known as Hadrosaurus foukii. That skeleton was unearthed in Haddonfield and turned over to the Academy of Natural Sciences.

Mosasaur fossil found in Mantua Township marl pit | via NJ.com

NJ Had the First Drive-In Movie Theater

2011-06-06T14:05:00.001-04:00

Camden Drive-In

It was on this day in 1933 that the first drive-in movie theater opened, in Camden, New Jersey. But drive-in movies became an endangered species nationwide during the last quarter of the 20th century. New Jersey's last drive-in theater, Hazlet's Route 35 Drive-In, closed in 1991.**

The first one in the nation was the brainchild of a young man named Richard Hollingshead Jr., a Riverton, NJ native.

Hollingshead is said to have gotten the idea for a drive-in theater from his mother. His mother was a large woman who was uncomfortable in the seats at regular movie theaters. Hollingshead got an idea to help his mother that would combine his two main interests: cars and movies. He worked as a sales manager at his dad's store, Whiz Auto Products.

His test bed for the theater was his own driveway where he took a 1928 Kodak movie projector and mounted it on the hood of his car. For a movie screen, he nailed a sheet to the trees in his backyard. He placed a radio behind the screen to test for sound.

The challenge was figuring out how a person in a car parked behind another car could see the screen. Hollingshead tinkered with the spacing of the cars and put blocks under the front wheels. Eventually, he was able to build ramps that, when properly spaced apart, allowed every person to see the full screen.

In May 1933, Hollingshead got a patent for his drive-in theater, obtained funding and formed a company called Park-In Theaters, Inc.

After the first drive-in opened in 1933, more than forty drive-in theaters were opened over the years throughout New Jersey. The Newark Drive-In, with spaces for 2,400 cars, was the fifth largest drive-in theater in the nation.

An interesting innovation was the combination drive-in and fly-in theater. On June 3, 1948, Edward Brown, Jr. opened the first theater for cars and small planes. Ed Brown's Drive-In and Fly-In of Asbury Park, New Jersey had the capacity for 500 cars and 25 airplanes. An airfield was placed next to the drive-in and planes would taxi to the last row of the theater. When the movies were over, Brown provided a tow for the planes to be brought back to the airfield.

The Ten Commandments (1956) at the drive-in (from Life magazine)

In the 1970s, rising property values made the land used for drive-ins more profitable for other things. Add to that the fact that drive-ins often showed "B" movies (rather than the newest top releases), cable television and videocassettes for movies at home, and the business went into deep decline.

By 2003, the number of drive-ins in the U.S. was 432 and they were located largely in the warmer southern states where a longer season for outdoor movies was possible.

Plans had been announced to open a drive-in theater in Wall Township, NJ. The Wall Drive-In Theatre, located at the Wall Township Speedway, was set to be open from April to October when the racetrack is not in use and would have parking for 650 vehicles with an 80-foot screen and sound provided through car radios.

** CORRECTION As our first commenter notes, the Delsea Drive-In is alive and well and showing as of today the 4 top movies (not B-films) delseadrive-in.com

Sources:

Richard Hollingshead

Camden Drive-in Theater

Fly-in Theater

The Rise and Fall of Drive-Ins

New Jersey Drive-In Theaters

Turtle Back Zoo Free Admission June 4

2011-06-03T20:34:00.000-04:00

Joseph N. DiVincenzo, Jr., Essex County Executive and the Board of Chosen Freeholders invite you to attend the 9TH ANNUAL ESSEX COUNTY OPEN HOUSE on Saturday, June 4 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Essex County Turtle Back Zoo
(560 Northfield Avenue, West Orange, NJ)

Free Admission

~ Games and Family-Friendly Activities
~ Learn about Essex County Programs & Services
~ Ride the Carousel ($2 per ride)
~ Play miniature golf on the miniGOLF Safari ($5 children/$7 adults)
~ Walk through the Outback Adventure and Aviary ($2 per feedstick)
~ Visit our Natural Habitat Exhibits featuring Gibbons Apes, Black Bears, White Naped Cranes, Penguins, Otters, Alligators, Bobcats, Eagles, Cougars, Tropical Currents Aquarium and the Reptile House

For information, call 973-621-4400 or go to http://www.turtlebackzoo.com/tbzoo/

Help New Jersey Brewers

2011-06-03T09:20:00.041-04:00

After a lot of collaboration, New Jersey's small brewers are happy that there are two bills now in the state Assembly and Senate that will allow both brewpubs and production breweries more opportunity to market and grow their businesses.

The bills will help create jobs, increase tourism and cut red tape for small businesses. As a consumer/voter/constituent, you have the most powerful voice in helping make that a reality.

Contact your state representatives and ask them to support Senate Bill 2870 (S-2870) and Assembly Bill 3969 (A-3969).

The Garden State Brewers Guild has tools to help you find you representatives, a template for a letter that you can adapt and an overview of what the bills would accomplish. Go to
http://njbeer.org/news/help_nj_small_brewers_contact_your_legislators.php

This is a small, homegrown industry whose members rely on consumers and fans to help keep it growing.

Microbreweries produce small batches of beer for sale to wholesalers and retailers both inside and outside New Jersey. That means you can purchase New Jersey micro brewed beer from the shelves of liquor stores and in pubs around the country. Call the brewery for a list of retailers who carry your favorite micro brewed beers.

Brewpubs are restaurants that produce small batches of craft brewed on site and may sell their own beer by the glass for consumption on premise. They may also sell their beer for carry out in bottles, jugs known as "growlers" and in kegs. Brewpub beer is not available outside the restaurant.

You can download The Guide to New Jersey Craft Breweries.

Garden State Brewers Guild is at njbeer.org

Garden State Annual Beer Festival

2011-06-03T09:15:00.005-04:00

The Garden State Craft Brewer's Guild will hold their 15th Annual Beer Sampling Event on the Battleship New Jersey on June 18th.

16 Breweries from New Jersey will be attending. This is a rain or shine event held on the Fantail under tents. Food & Specialty Vendors will be present along with entertainment by the Cabin Dogs from 1:00-5:00.

Your festival ticket also offers a sampling glass with logo and a self-guided tour of the most decorated Battleship in U.S. History.

Cape May Ocean, Land and Air To Explore

2011-06-02T09:40:00.000-04:00

Some resources online for folks who want to do some birding in that beautiful and most southern tip of New Jersey.

BirdCapeMay.org offers birding maps

And for folks who don't want to go out into the ocean and who keep their gaze to the ground...

Cape May's Gingerbread Gems

Explorer's Guide The Jersey Shore: Atlantic City to Cape May: A Great Destination

Cape May Walking Tours: Short, Fun, No-stress Tours for All Ages and Abilities

Cape May Point: The Illustrated History : 1875 to the Present

Mushrooms As Recyclers

2011-05-31T11:30:00.006-04:00

I saw a headline that read "Mushrooms Can Break Down 90% of Diaper Materials Within 2 Months" and followed it to a post on Treehugger.

It was already known that mushrooms can be great at breaking down pollutants. WE also know that disposable diapers are slow-degrading poop-containers that are filling up landfills.

What about a kind of mushroom that feasts on diapers? Researchers at the Metropolitan University in Mexico City seem to have followed this divergent thinking and found some.

In an article published in the journal Waste Management, Alethia Vázquez-Morillas describes her research in cultivating the right type of mushroom. She discovered that certain species can break down 90% of the material they are made of within two months. Within four, they are degraded completely.

What is more, she says, despite the unsavory diet of the fungi in question, Pleurotus ostreatus (better known as oyster mushrooms) are still safe to eat. (To prove the point she has eaten them. I think I would be more hesitant.)

Oyster mushrooms are good at this job because they feed on cellulose, the main material used in disposable diapers. In the wild, the Oyster mushrooms grow on dead trees, so they have the enzymes to break down cellulose.

Mycelium Running: How Mushrooms Can Help Save the World

Changes Ahead For NJ State Parks

2011-05-23T11:33:00.000-04:00

http://www.state.nj.us/dep/parksandforests/parks/bass.htmlVisitors to NJ might find themselves paying more to take advantage to our state parks in the future, but they might find expanded services or facilities too.

Bob Martin, commissioner of the state Department of Environmental Protection, told lawmakers recently that the DEP didn’t plan to cut services or staff when the new fiscal year starts July 1. However, state parks probably cannot rely only on tax dollars and will need to consider new ways of making parks self-sustaining financially.

For example, Bass River State Forest is a 27,635-acre tract outside of New Gretna where the state charges up to $10 per vehicle on the weekend from Memorial Day weekend to Labor Day. It offers canoeing, fishing and swimming in Lake Absegami, as well as camping and hiking.

To compete with other East Coast state parks, NJ parks might offer additional amenities such as concrete pads, utility hook-ups, and pull-through sites that appeal to trailer campers, general stores,and the ability to book reservations online which is helpful for both in and out-of-state vacationers. Though these would require an initial capital outlay, it would also justify higher fees. The state could also do better online marketing of its natural areas.

more at AtlanticCity.com

International Day for Biological Diversity (IDB) May 22

2011-05-22T17:52:00.000-04:00

Reblogged from bodhipot.tumblr.com

The theme for this year’s IDB (stood for the title above) is Forest Biodiversity because 2011 is the International Year of the Forests.

The United Nations proclaimed May 22 The International Day for Biological Diversity (IDB) to increase understanding and awareness of biodiversity issues.

Forest Heroes Award and Programme, in collaboration of the United Nations Forum on Forest with the secretariat of Convention on Biological Biodiversity and other UN Agencies, Member States and mayor groups. This is to award and honor individuals dedicated in the promotion of sustainable forest management.

TEMATEA tool on international commitments related to forest biodiversity, The secretariat of the CDB launches a new forest module on international commitments related to forest biodiversity. The module aims to support a better and more coherent national implementation of forest-related international instruments.

International Economic Forum of the Americas, Conference of Montreal, 6-9 June 2011 a 2-day workshop on investments to forest ecosystem services, including the role of biodiversity for mitigating investment risks brought by the CDB in cooperation with the International Economic Forum of the Americas.

“Biodiversity, Carbon, Water, and More: Investing in Forest Ecosystem Services,” a topic at the 17th International Economic Forum of the Americas, Conference of Montreal will hold a panel discussion in the same context.

Fire breaks in N.J. Pinelands

2011-05-20T15:03:00.001-04:00

via http://www.nrs.fs.fed.us

NJ.com : Fire breaks are set up in N.J. Pinelands to help battle blazes

"As a result of a forest fire in 2007 that rampaged across southern Ocean County and sent thousands fleeing from their homes, strategic fire breaks are being created in the Pinelands forest, and local communities have stepped up their own emergency planning for a population living amid one of the most easily combustible terrains in the country."

Planting Time

2011-05-20T12:18:00.028-04:00

It has been a rainy week here in NJ, but it's still time get out the garden tools, turn that soil and set out those plants that you started indoors or bought at the garden center.

The last frost date is now past in most parts of NJ.

City	Spring Last Frost	Fall First Frost
Atlantic City	5/15	9/28
Hammonton	4/25	10/3
Jersey City	4/18	10/19
Millville	4/29	10/10
Newark	4/15	10/26
Newton	5/24	9/19
Shiloh	4/29	10/12
Trenton	4/15	10/23

Source: "Climatography of the U.S. No. 20, Supplement No. 1", 1988,
National Climatic Data Center, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

So, get outside this weekend, get planting and maybe even let Mother Earth News get you started on some summer garden projects.

OLD-FASHIONED COMPANION PLANTING
Planting an asparagus and strawberry garden bed to last a lifetime.

Easy DIY Garden Shed Plans
Almost all of us need a little place to store outdoor stuff, and building a shed is one of the best ways to create additional storage space. Our garden shed plans are simple and require only basic carpentry skills. These plans will help you build a basic shed, but don't stop there! To customize your shed, you could create a combination toolshed and greenhouse, put a martin house on top, or use part of the shed for a chicken coop or rabbit hutch.

Irises in Essex County

2011-05-19T09:04:00.001-04:00

Essex County's Presby Memorial Iris Gardens is a living museum that displays a rich variety of irises that bloom from mid-May to early June.Their activities and plant sale begins today. It was a Mother's Day tradition of mine for many years to take my mom there to wak through the blooms.

In 1927, the Presby Memorial Iris Gardens were established in the name of Frank Presby—a local resident known for his stewardship of the American Iris Society. These gardens were tended by curator Barbara Walther for more than five decades and are now maintained by a volunteer society, the Essex County Presby Memorial Citizens Committee.

Peak bloom season occurs from May 15 through June 6.

Seeing the non-profit organization that maintained the gardens struggling to survive, and in danger of having to sell the Walther House, the County of Essex formed an extraordinary partnership in 2009 with the Citizens Committee's Board of Trustees and the Township of Montclair. With $1.1 million in grants from the NJ Green Acres Program and the Essex County Recreation and Open Space Trust Fund, Essex County purchased more than seven acres of land that make up the House and Garden complex; the adjacent 3 acres of Township land will be sold to the County for $1.

Friday, May 20	"The Sound of Music" Screening	8pm
Sunday, May 22	Brunch on the Hill	1-3pm
Saturday, May 28	Annual Family Garden Party	10am to 3pm
Friday, July 15 & Saturday, July 16	Iris Rhizome Days / Bloom Room Open	10am to 4pm
Friday, August 19 & Saturday, August 20	Iris Rhizome Days / Bloom Room Open	10am to 4pm

The County now maintains the House and grounds, and the Citizens Committee, maintaining ownership of the iris bulbs, continues to preserve the Gardens and records, build an endowment and expand their educational programming.

The property, consisting of the Walther House and Iris Gardens, is designated as a historic site by the National and State Registers of Historic Places and attracts thousands of people from around the world each year. The gardens contain approximately 8,000 irises in 3,200 varieties and produce nearly 75,000 flowers at peak season.

http://essexnjblooms.org/Irises.aspx

DIRECTIONS: The Essex County Presby Memorial Iris Gardens is located at 474 Upper Mountain Avenue in Upper Montclair, New Jersey. Street parking is available on Upper Mountain Avenue (garden side) and Highland Avenue. Handicap parking is available on the Walther House driveway. Entrance to the gardens is free and open to the public from dawn to dusk daily all year round.

Family Bike Ride & Hike May 14

2011-05-11T22:47:00.000-04:00

Enjoy an easy walk or ride at your own pace at the 7th Annual Family Bike & Hike through the Hilltop Reservation - the newest park in Essex County.

Bring the whole family and join the Hilltop Conservancy on Saturday, May 14, from 10:00 am to noon for this easy, fun, self-paced tour.

The marked route is approximately 1.5 miles long on traffic-free pavement and gravel roadways, so even your youngest children will find this an easy and fun morning out for a leisurely ride and exploration.

Don’t bring money. The ride, beautiful scenery and memories are free. Do bring helmets, a camera and perhaps some drinks and snacks for your children.

Bikes with training wheels are very welcome. Start riding any time after 9:45 am.

Park in the lot behind the sports field on Mountain Avenue in North Caldwell (the Courter Lane entrance to the Hilltop Reservation).

View Larger Map

Jersey City Peregrine Falcon Webcam - Hatching Near

2011-05-03T13:27:00.000-04:00

Male peregrine guarding the nest. Note banding.

The Jersey City Peregrine Webcam streams live video from a nestbox atop 101 Hudson Street between April and July each year. Follow the season on screen during that period. Clicking on the still image will open a new window containing the live video feed when active.

They are projecting hatching to occur around May 5-6, so this is a great time to tune in.

Viewers get a glimpse of the four eggs only when the adults get up to exchange duties or to stretch, but these peregrines are the essence of diligence during the 32-33 days of required incubation, very focused on their duties.

The ENSP staff and volunteers are monitoring peregrine nesting at about 20 other sites around the state. The recent rain and wind storms may have caused problems at some sites that are more vulnerable to easterly winds. In many cases all we can do is document the outcome of those nests. (See the annual reports at www.njfishandwildlife.com/ensp/ for details.)

The Jersey City peregrines have been very successful over the years. During a nest check visit in March, it was determined that adults are the same birds that have nested here since at least 2005 (the female) and 2006 (the male). The female has not been identified except that she wears a silver federal band and no color band. The male was banded in 2003 at Riverside Church in NY, making him 8 years old this year. Both are fiercely defensive of their nest and have been good parents over the years.

Keep watching this great natural show!

NJDEP Division of Fish & Wildlife - Peregrine Falcon Webcam

Spring Birding

2011-04-29T12:00:00.016-04:00

Red-headed Woodpecker via state.nj.us/dep/fgw/ensp/somdec.htm

Warming weather not only brings some bird species to NJ, but brings out the more reluctant birders. Even if you're not a "birder" officially, you probably are paying more attention to seeing birds in your neighborhood.

NJ Audubon offers lots of information for anyone on either end of the birding continuum.

Check out their sightings reports at njaudubon.org/Tools.Net/Sightings/

Look for the sightings in your own area, like at the Montclair Hawk Watch in northern NJ.

http://www.njaudubon.org

Food and Chemicals

2011-04-27T11:24:00.025-04:00

Part of the campaigns at FoodDemocracyNow.org is to get people to contact politicians and government agencies about their concerns with the environment and our food and personal health.

One of their current requests is for people to tell the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to put the health and safety of the American people over corporate agribusiness profits by banning the use of the toxic chemical methyl iodide from agricultural use.

Methyl iodide is a known carcinogen, endocrine disruptor and neurotoxin that is proven to cause late-term miscarriages and presents clear dangers to farm workers and surrounding populations when used for agricultural applications.

Already banned in New York and Washington, significant outcry from scientists and citizens around the country has led the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to reconsider the ill-conceived approval of this toxic chemical from being sprayed on our food. Leading strawberry growers in California have lobbied for this toxic chemical's approval, despite the scientific evidence that it can cause pose human health and environmental risks.

It's easy to click and send an email to add your voice in telling the EPA to immediately to ban the registration of methyl iodide as a soil fumigant.

NJ Bears Have Emerged From Winter Dens

2011-04-25T12:00:00.000-04:00

The NJ Dept. of Environmental Protection has announced that black bears have exited their winter dens throughout New Jersey and are entering their most active period of the year as they search for food and mates, making encounters with people more likely.

To reduce the risk of such encounters, State residents - especially those living in "bear country'' in Northwest Jersey - are urged to take some simple precautions.

DEP wildlife experts are offering the following tips to minimize conflicts with bears this spring:

Use certified bear-resistant garbage containers if possible. Otherwise, store all garbage in containers with tight-fitting lids and place them along the inside walls of your garage, basement, a sturdy shed or other secure area.
Wash garbage containers frequently with a disinfectant solution to remove odors. Put out garbage on collection day, not the prior night.
Avoid feeding birds when bears are active. If you choose to feed birds, do so during daylight hours only and bring feeders indoors at night. Suspend birdfeeders from a free-hanging wire, making sure they are at least 10 feet off the ground. Clean up spilled seeds and shells daily.
Immediately remove all uneaten food and food bowls used by pets fed outdoors.
Clean outdoor grills and utensils to remove food and grease residue to minimize odors. Store grills securely.
Do not place meat or any sweet foods in compost piles.
Remove fruit or nuts that fall from trees in your yard.
Properly installed electric fencing is an effective way of protecting crops, beehives and livestock.

Wildlife experts also offer the following information:

A black bear passing through a residential area should not be considered a problem, as long as it is behaving normally and not posing a threat.
If you encounter a bear remain calm and do not run. Make sure the bear has an escape route. Avoid direct eye contact, back up slowly and speak with a low, assertive voice.
Black bear attacks are extremely rare. Should a black bear attack, fight back. Do not play dead.

Report bear damage, nuisance behavior or aggressive bears to the Wildlife Control Unit of the DEP's Division of Fish and Wildlife at (908) 735-8793. During evenings and weekends, residents should call their local police department or the DEP Hotline at (877) WARN-DEP.

To view the DEP news release concerning this issue visit
http://www.state.nj.us/dep/newsrel/2011/11_0055.htm
To learn more about New Jersey's black bears and ways to avoid problems with them, visit http://www.njfishandwildlife.com/bearinfo.htm

Happy Earth Day

2011-04-22T12:00:00.000-04:00

Today is Earth Day!

Celebrated since 1970, the Earth Day Network (EDN) works with over 22,000 partners in 192 countries to broaden, diversify and mobilize the environmental movement. More than 1 billion people now participate in Earth Day activities each year, making it the largest civic observance in the world.

This year's Earth Day's theme is A Billion Acts of Green, a people-powered campaign to generate a billion acts of environmental service and advocacy before Rio +20.

Sedge Island Natural Resource Education Center Workshops for Teachers

2011-04-22T11:11:00.006-04:00

Are you interested in earning professional development credits in a fun and unique setting while learning about NJ's remarkable estuarine environment?

The New Jersey Division of Fish & Wildlife offers an extraordinary learning experience at our Sedge Island Natural Resource Education Center, located within NJ's first Marine Conservation Zone, just off Island Beach State Park in Barnegat Bay.

A 15-minute ride to the island within the Sedge Islands Wildlife Management Area via the Division's pontoon boat sets the stage for the experience.

The shallow water surrounding the group of islands serves as a nursery for many species of marine animals. Blue claw crabs, hard clams and fish abound. In fact, crabbing and clamming are just two of the many hands-on activities used to teach about the ecology and culture of the bay.

In season, striped bass, weakfish, summer flounder and many other species of fin-fish provide some of the best fishing on the coast.

A small grove of pine and cedar trees on Sedge Island provides nesting and resting sites for many birds. The WMA's location within the Atlantic Flyway ensures exciting birding year-round.

During the three-day/two-night workshop you will stay in the Sedge House, a renovated duck-hunting lodge, which is equipped with a common room, 7 bunkrooms (you will have to share a room), a full kitchen and dining room. As part of the experience, you will live a conservation ethic. Fresh water is limited (we transport bottled water from the mainland) as is electricity-a solar generator provides power. Grey water from sinks and showers is treated in a special grey-water system and sewage is composted in a Clivus Multrum composting toilet.

The workshop explores both the natural and cultural history of the Barnegat Bay area using hands-on methods including marsh walks, kayak tours, and conventional fishing, crabbing, and clamming techniques. Further investigation of the marine environment will be done using nets, microscopes, field guides, and more. Whether it's seining near an eel grass bed to observe the importance of submerged aquatic vegetation or having a built in anatomy lesson while cleaning and preparing a meal of fresh caught seafood, the activities offered provide first-hand insight to the wise use of New Jersey's natural resources, their importance and the role the Division plays in their management. You will leave the workshop with a deeper understanding of the entire ecosystem that you will be able to convey to your students.

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT FOR EDUCATORS
The Division is a registered provider with the DOE; professional development credit will be granted for the three-day/two-night workshop. The workshop fulfills core curriculum standards in both science (5.12) and social studies (6.9).

You are responsible for all your food during the two-night stay. There is a gas range stove and refrigerator, a gas grill and a quick steamer for preparing the day's harvest, as well cooking utensils you may need.

The cost of a three day program is $135 per adult, $85 per student (2 nights, minimum of 10 participants - maximum 14 per group). A non-refundable deposit of $100 is required to secure a date. Cost includes transportation to and from the island, instruction, equipment and facility use. Participants provide their own meals and bedding. (Rates for length of stay other than standard three day program available upon request.)

Classroom teachers or other educators who wish to gain experience and knowledge of marine environments and/or are interested in earning professional development credit, or a group of teachers and students who are embarking on a special course of study or leadership training, are our priority groups.

Summer Field Experience at Sedge Island for Grades 7-9 Students (pdf, 145kb)
Field Experience Application Cover Page (.doc, 52kb)
Internship Opportunity at Sedge Island
Conserve Wildlife Foundation Contest Winners Visit Sedge Island (nj.com video report)
http://www.state.nj.us/dep/fgw/sedge.htm

NJ Wildlife Diversity and Education Grants

2011-04-20T10:39:00.004-04:00

The NJDEP Division of Fish and Wildlife's Endangered and Nongame Species Program is making small matching grants available for projects directly related to wildlife diversity and education. The funds are from the Conserve Wildlife License Plate renewal fund

The maximum amount available per proposal is $3,500 ($1,000 is the minimum amount). The Conserve Wildlife matching grant is a 50:50 cost share grant - therefore, grant funds cannot exceed 50% of the total project cost.

At least 25% of the grantee's share of project funding must be in a dollar amount and the remainder may be in-kind support of the project.

Eligible applicants are those nonprofit organizations defined as a 501(c)(3) or 501(c)(4). The deadline for requests is May, 4, 2011 by 5:00 p.m.

For more information on the grants, including application information and examples grants awarded in the past, visit http://www.njfishandwildlife.com/ensp/cwgrants.htm

Earth Day 2011

2011-04-19T01:53:00.006-04:00

This Friday, April 22, is Earth Day. This year, Earth Day's theme is A Billion Acts of Green, a people-powered campaign to generate a billion acts of environmental service and advocacy before Rio +20.

The first Earth Day, on April 22, 1970, activated 20 million Americans from all walks of life and is widely credited with launching the modern environmental movement. The passage of the landmark Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, Endangered Species Act and many other groundbreaking environmental laws soon followed.

Growing out of the first Earth Day, Earth Day Network (EDN) works with over 22,000 partners in 192 countries to broaden, diversify and mobilize the environmental movement. More than 1 billion people now participate in Earth Day activities each year, making it the largest civic observance in the world.

Round Valley Reservoir

2011-04-18T12:53:00.015-04:00

View Larger Map

The Round Valley Reservoir in Clinton Township, New Jersey was formed in 1960 when the New Jersey Water Authority constructed two large dams and flooded a large valley in the state's Hunterdon County.

The reservoir is named after the naturally formed circular valley surrounded by Cushetunk Mountain. The deep Valley was caused by erosion of the soft sedimentary rock. The surrounding ridges of Cushetunk Mountain endure because they were underlaid with dense and durable volcanic rock diabase that cooled slowly under the surface of the earth.

Here are some big numbers for this body of water: Round Valley reaches depths of 180 feet (55 m). This 2,000 acre (8 km²) reservoir is best known for its pristine clear blue waters. The reservoir contains 55 billion gallons of water for use in central New Jersey, and is distributed during times of drought via the nearby south branch of the Raritan River.

The reservoir has been called the Bermuda Triangle of New Jersey as over 25 people have drowned there since 1971 and 6 of them have never been found.

The New Jersey Division of Wildlife claims the reservoir is the southernmost body of water that contains naturally reproducing lake trout. Some of the other species of fish in the lake include bass, pickerel, catfish, american eel, yellow perch, brown trout, and rainbow trout. The park also has a wilderness area for camping, swimming facilities, a boat ramp and nature hiking and biking trails.

http://www.njparksandforests.org/parks/round.html
http://www.nynjtc.org/park/round-valley-state-park
http://www.roundvalleyfishing.com

Cushetunk Mountain

2011-04-15T12:32:00.045-04:00

Cushetunk Mountain is a horsehoe-shaped mountain located in Readington and Clinton Township, New Jersey.

It was formerly known as Mount Ployden, Pickel's Mountain and occasionally as Mount Cushetunk or Coshanton. The Lenape called the mountain "Cushetunk" meaning "place of hogs" after the wild hogs that were found there.

Before the arrival of Europeans, Cushetunk Mountain was inhabited by Unami speaking Lenape, particularly the Musconetcongs who ranged between Cushetunk Mountain and Sourland Mountain to the south. An interesting claim put forward by Beauchamp Plantagenet, one of the first Europeans to explore the area around the mountain, states that a Native American king held his seat in a place resembling the valley formed by Cushetunk Mountain. The claim exists today as a legend, and no evidence has ever been found confirming Plantagenet’s story of a ‘Raritan king’.

In the 1960s, the valley at the heart of the mountain was dammed and filled with water to create Round Valley Reservoir.

The mountain’s U-shaped arc is approximately two miles in diameter, with the more massive portion of the mountain occupying the southwest corner of the ridgeline. The man-made lake, Round Valley Reservoir, occupies the valley at the center of the horseshoe.

Cushetunk Mountain is occasionally referred to as a mountain range and includes Round Mountain, a 610 foot peak located about a mile and a half south of Cushetunk Mountain in Readington. Round Mountain is linked to Cushetunk Mountain by a sheet of intruded diabase rock running beneath the surface.

Two famous names from New Jersey’s colonial history owned land on the north slope of Cushetunk Mountain in Potterstown (part of Readington and Clinton Township). One was John Stevens, a delegate to the Continental Congress, whose grandson founded Stevens Institute of Technology. The other was Lord Stirling, an American Revolutionary War General who was ranked 3rd or 4th behind George Washington.

Contrary to popular belief, the ring-like shape of the mountain does not represent a crater, particularly since the mountain was formed primarily within the Earth. Instead, the mountain’s shape seems to be the result of an intruding sheet of magma becoming dramatically flexed as it penetrated local strata.

While most of the mountain ridges in New Jersey run generally north to south, Cushetunk Mountain primarily has an east-west ridge orientation because of the elongated north and south prongs of its horseshoe-like ridge. This produces significantly different microclimates between the north facing and south facing slopes of the mountain.

Because the north slope of the mountain is cooler and shaded, moisture is more easily retained. This results in larger trees, as well as the growth of trees not seen on southern facing slopes. These trees include black birch, tulip tree, white ash, basswood, hickory, beech, and sugar maple. Shrubs are abundant in the understory of the northern slopes, as well as herbs typical of more northern forests, including wild ginger, wild sarsaparilla, black snakeroot, and columbine.

On the warmer, dryer southern slopes chestnut oak and red oak prevail, although the trees are also common to the northern slopes. In the understory, dogwood is dominant, and the diversity and number of shrubs is reduced. Grasses and sedges are the most prevalent ground cover.

Wildlife supported by Cushetunk Mountain includes a variety of woodland birds, including a nesting pair of bald eagles. Groundwater seeps, particularly on the northern slopes, provide habitat to amphibians, while outcrops of trap rock offer ideal environments for small reptiles.

The NJ EagleCam

2011-04-12T12:42:00.013-04:00

Located on Duke Farms in central New Jersey, the EagleCam allows viewers an up close and personal view into the lives of a pair of bald eagles as they breed, incubate, and raise young.

Bald Eagles are extremely sensitive to human disturbance. At no time should anyone approach nesting eagles. People who want to observe or photograph eagles and who come too close may actually cause the birds to abandon a nest. So, the nest cam is the perfect tool for teaching about wildlife and covers a variety of topics including animal behavior, bird biology and natural history, endangered species, food webs, contamination, and more.

On April 7, the first chick hatched and viewers could see the parents feeding the chick.

The nest at Duke Farms

Eaglecam: Bald eagle nest camera, lesson plans, and environmental education at Duke Farms via Conserve Wildlife Foundation of New Jersey

Trout Season Opens

2011-04-11T05:07:00.005-04:00

Angler on the Rockaway River for opening weekend

More than 180,000 freshly stocked trout were awaiting anglers when they casted their lines on the opening day of trout season this past weekend.

The DEP's Division of Fish and Wildlife had, for the past two weeks, been stocking nearly 200 streams, lakes and ponds across the state.

The season officially opened at 8 a.m. Saturday and an estimated 100,000 anglers statewide were expected to participate.

The Division of Fish and Wildlife will continue stocking trout over the next couple of months until a total of nearly 600,000 fish have been placed in 88 streams and 90 ponds and lakes throughout New Jersey. These will include 6,000 big trout - 3- to 8-pounders - that will join big trout released last fall and winter that eluded capture.

Nine ponds and small lakes each will get special allocations of 30 to 50 big trout that measure 16 to 24 inches and weigh 3 to 8 pounds. The locations of those nine sites and other important spring trout stocking information are posted on the DEP's Division of Fish and Wildlife website at http://www.state.nj.us/dep/fgw/trtinfo_spring.htm

Weekly in-season trout stocking information is also available by calling the Trout Stocking Hotline at (609) 633-6765.

"Trout fishing has truly never been better in New Jersey,'' said DEP Division of Fish and Wildlife Director Dave Chanda. "The fact that Trout Stamp sales have increased nearly 20 percent since 2005 and that sales to out-of-state residents are increasing tell us clearly that the word is spreading about the quality of the trout we stock and the wonderful experiences people are having fishing New Jersey's fabulous trout waters.''

Fishing for trout in New Jersey requires a fishing license and trout stamp for anglers between the ages of 16 and 70. Anglers under age 16 and 70 years of age and older do not need a fishing license or trout stamp.

Buying a fishing license and trout stamp can be done easily through the Division of Fish and Wildlife's Automated Licensing System. Anglers can buy and print a fishing license and trout stamp online or can purchase a license and stamp at one of more than 200 license agent locations throughout the state.

All proceeds from freshwater fishing licenses are dedicated to improving fishing in New Jersey and protecting the quality of the state's waters both for fish and people.

A wealth of information about trout fishing and all other freshwater fishing in New Jersey, including regulations, fishing access points and fishing tips, can be found at www.state.nj.us/dep/fgw/fishing_fresh.htm.

GeesePeace

2011-04-04T11:06:00.005-04:00

Essex County is looking for volunteers to participate in GeesePeace, a county-wide program that uses humane methods to control the Canada geese population.

The program is geared to limit the birth of goslings and is endorsed by the Humane Society of the United States.

Training will be provided through an “on-call” system based on the number of volunteers who are interested in participating.

“The growing population of Canada geese has affected our residents’ quality of life, and we are committed to continue our partnership with Essex GeesePeace to help control the goose population in a humane way,” said Essex County Executive Joseph N. DiVincenzo, Jr. “Participating in this volunteer program is a great way for individuals, families and organizations to get involved and contribute to your community,” he added.

“This is a wonderful opportunity to combine our resources and work together toward humane, effective solutions to wildlife conflicts,” Essex GeesePeace Volunteer Coordinator Del DeMaio said. “Community schools, private property owners, golf course managers, public works officials and others should be calling on us for assistance to learn how they can coordinate efforts to improve effectiveness and efficiency,” she added.

If you want to volunteer, contact Essex County Environmental Affairs Coordinator Tara M. Casella at tcasella@parks.essexcountynj.org or 973-228-8776.

Pequest Open House This Weekend

2011-04-01T15:41:00.014-04:00

The Pequest Trout Hatchery and Natural Resource Education Center opens its doors to the public for the annual Open House.

2011 Pequest Open House and Fishing Flea Market

April 2 & 3, 2011

10 a.m. - 4 p.m. daily

FREE!

With a week until trout season, you get to see the trout raised at the state of the art Pequest Trout Hatchery. This event is great for people of all ages and there are so many things to see and do throughout the day. Bring your family, friends, scout troops, church groups, fishing clubs and anyone else for a fun time in the outdoors.

The Pequest Trout Hatchery and Natural Resource Education Center is located 9 miles west of Hackettstown on Route 46 in scenic Warren County.

OPEN HOUSE INFO http://www.state.nj.us/dep/fgw/peqoh.htm

New Jersey Wineries

2011-03-30T11:38:00.000-04:00

Renault Winery, Egg Harbor City renaultwinery.com

New Jersey has a growing wine industry with more than 40 wineries producing over 225 different varieties of wines from dry and semi-dry to sparkling and fruit and dessert wines.

Most people think of taking winery tours in the autumn, but there are New Jersey wine festivals, special events, wine-tastings and new wine releases all year.

The Garden State Wine Growers Association as information on all of them.

For example, the “Blues & Wine Festival” is May 28 & 29, 2011 at Natirar Park in Peapack-Gladstone, NJ.

There's also a “Mother’s Day Wine Trail Weekend” on May 7 & 8, at participating wineries across the state.

For a list of NJ wineries and their websites, see http://www.state.nj.us/jerseyfresh/wine.htm

White-Nose Disease Has Killed A Million Bats So Far

2011-03-29T09:25:00.006-04:00

White-nose disease was first discovered in a single bat cave in upstate New York in 2006. Since then, the fatal fungal illness, which shows up as white patches on the faces and wings of hibernating bats, has spread to 16 states and crossed the Canadian border. The fungus, Geomyces destrucans, is now killing bats in caves, mine shafts, and abandoned buildings as far south as North Carolina, and as far west as Oklahoma. Biologists say that a million bats have died so far, and they add that, unless a way is found to stop the disease, within two decades bats may be entirely extirpated from some regions of the country.

The little brown bat (Myotis lucifugus) has been hardest hit by the sickness—but that’s only because the little brown is the most common of our bat species. There are 22 other species of American bats that also hibernate in caves, and many of those bats are being affected as well...

Bats apparently spread the disease to one another when they gather in groups to hibernate. Biologists note that damp, cool caves are ideal places for a fungus to grow. According to scientists, people may also unwittingly be spreading the disease on their shoes and clothing when they travel from one cave to another. As a result, wildlife biologists recommend that people stay out of caves where bats are hibernating.

Another way people can help bats is by using as few pesticides as possible. Each night, bats eat up to two-thirds of their body weight in insects, and when the insects they eat have been exposed to insecticides, the poisonous chemicals can quickly build up to levels that cause reproductive problems, or even death, in the bats.

White-Nose Disease Has Killed A Million Bats So Far: —And There’s No Cure On The Horizon

Coyotes

2011-03-28T11:33:00.002-04:00

Coyote sightings in NJ will probably increase in the next month or so. Coyotes bear litters during April and May, and this is when encounters with humans is more likely to occur. Females deliver between three and nine pups, and they are most likely to cross paths with humans (and their pets) as the adults forage for food for the pups in the spring and summer.

Coyotes are very adaptable and though their preferred prey is rabbits, mice, birds and other small animals, they will use whatever is available, such as garbage, pet food and domestic animals that are left unattended and carrion that they find. And, like our Jersey black bears, they are learning to be quite tolerant of human activities and allowing both species access to human food and garbage can lead to problems.

Although attacks on humans are extremely rare in eastern states, as with any predatory animal they can occur and in suburban and urban areas, coyotes have occasionally attacked small pets.

Coyotes play an important role in the ecosystem, helping to keep rodent populations under control.

"Blonde" coyote

The coyote is a wild member of the dog family. This resourceful mammal has expanded its range significantly in the recent past, colonizing the entire Northeast and now found throughout the Garden State.

The coyote was never introduced or stocked in New Jersey, but has firmly established itself in our area through its extremely adaptable nature.

Eastern coyotes differ from their western counterparts with a larger average size and various color phases, including blonde, red and black.

photos via http://www.state.nj.us/dep/fgw/

The NJ Department of Environmental Protection recommends that residents

put garbage in tightly closed containers that cannot be tipped over to prevent bear and coyote foraging.
reduce the protective cover for coyotes by clearing brush and dense weeds from around homes.
be more cautious about children and pets being on their own even in their backyards.
in response to a coyote encounter, do not run, because that initiates the "prey instinct" in the animal and the coyote will go into pursuit mode. Rather, act aggressively - "yelling, waving your arms, stamping your feet, or throwing stones” until it leaves.

Endangered New Jersey Two Years On

2011-03-27T01:00:00.088-04:00

Today is the two year anniversary of this blog. That's a toddler in the blogosphere. It's one of about a half dozen blogs that I write on.

A few observations so far...

The most popular (based on views) posts are, nor surprisingly, older ones. They have been around longer, so they have more hits. Although some older ones are not so popular and the oldest ones are not the most popular.

The top ones are Wolves in New Jersey , Are Bees Endangered?, Successful Comeback for Bald Eagle in New Jersey, Encountering Bobcats in New Jersey. The top post from 2010 is about Lyme Disease.

Most folks who find us come by way of Google, Bing or Yahoo (in that order). WE also get a fair amount of traffic from the fine and like-minded site WildJersey.tv which compiles lots of environmental stories from all over the place about NJ (including our little site).

When people do search and end up on our site, the most likely terms lately seem to be: bees, the Jersey Devil, ocean plastic, wolves, habitat, coyotes, and bobcats.

The majority of visitors are from the United States, but we do get a lot of traffic from Canada. From beyond North America, the top visiting countries are Germany, the United Kingdom,Australia, India, the Netherlands, Russia, Philippines, and France.

Over these two years we average about 1300 visitors a month, but it's very encouraging that the past few months the number is closer to 4-5000 visitors.

Hollywood on the Jersey Side of the Hudson

2011-03-25T12:26:00.001-04:00

This site occasionally moves outside its usual domain of the environment to examine some of New Jersey's historical preservation for other thing endangered in our state.

I have long been a film fan and used to teach some film courses. Too many people (in and out of NJ) don't know about our state's important early role in the American motion picture industry.

Thomas Edison invented his motion picture system in New Jersey in the 1890s, and within a few years most American filmmakers could be found on either side of the Hudson River.

New York City offered actors, artists and financial backing. New Jersey provided settings and Thomas Edison.

Hollywood on the Hudson is a book that that explains that even after much of the film industry had moved to California, this area was still an economic and administrative location, and that many writers, producers, and directors continued to work here.

Fort Lee, NJ: Birthplace of the Motion Picture Industry is a good book about a favorite location of film pioneers like D. W. Griffith and Mary Pickford. Fort Lee was the first center of the American motion picture industry and studios lined both sides of Main Street. Film laboratories produced thousands of reels of film for the nickelodeon market. Broadway stars and producers came across the Hudson to make many of their first feature-length films.

By the end of the 1920s, much of the business and stars like Theda Bara, Fatty Arbuckle, and Douglas Fairbanks had gone west. But a local film business continued for quite some time with some of the many behind the scenes roles such as printing, storage, and the distribution of movies being made in Hollywood.

One milestone of film from NJ is the first "Western" – "The Great Train Robbery" in 1903. It was directed and photographed by Edwin S. Porter, a Thomas Edison Company cameraman and director.

Movie Poster via http://wikimedia.org

It is a one-reel (10-12 minutes) action picture. It has 14-scenes that were filmed in November 1903. The settings included Edison's New York studio, Essex County Park (NJ) and along the our Lackawanna railroad tracks.

It may look amateurish and primitive to an audience today, but some of the cinematic techniques were new because telling a story on film was new. Narrative storytelling, parallel editing, any camera movement, and location (rather than studio) shooting was groundbreaking.

The story's inspiration was with the real Butch Cassidy’s 1900 train heist, and the film includes blowing open a safe and escaping with the cash. (A scene done more grandly in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid in 1969.) The film was originally advertised as "a faithful duplication of the genuine 'Hold Ups' made famous by various outlaw bands in the far West."

Porter worked for Thomas Edison's motion picture company and saw, perhaps more than Edison, the potential for film. In 1899, he joined the Edison Manufacturing Company and was soon in charge of motion picture production at Edison's New York studios. He operated the camera, directed the actors, and assembled the final print.

He was arguably the most influential filmmaker in America then. His earlier experiences as a touring projectionist gave him a good sense of what audiences enjoyed.

He borrowed techniques in his earlier films such as "Jack and the Beanstalk" (1902) and "Life of an American Fireman" (1903) from the French filmmaker Georges Méliès.

The first cowboy star, Gilbert "Broncho Billy" Anderson played several roles in TGTR including a bandit, a wounded passenger, and a tenderfoot dancer.

Porter used a title which was the same as a popular contemporary stage melodrama. He saw that in this pre-nickelodeon era that a film could be commercially-viable.

Porter used a number of innovative techniques, many of them for the first time, including parallel editing, some camera movement, and location shooting.

The film edits and intercutting (showing two different events happening at identical times but in different places) must have been almost jarring to the new movie audience. Film grammar that even unsophisticated modern viewer understand from experience were innovations. The very early film experiments all had fixed cameras, but this film had the first pan shots where the camera moved right/left while filming. Porter had experimented earlier with dissolves (overlapping scenes) and included an ellipsis in this film as a transition between scenes. A very obvious dummy standing in for the train's fireman is thrown off the moving train marking a kind of "special effect" used before stunt doubles.

All of the film's fourteen scenes would be redone many times in Western films in the 100+ years to follow.

In 1909 Porter left Edison and joined with others in organizing Rex, an independent motion picture company. He sold Rex after three years and became chief director of the new Famous Players Film Company. It was the first American company that regularly produced feature-length films. Porter directed the first five-reel American film, The Prisoner of Zenda (1913), and also directed Mary Pickford, Pauline Frederick, and John Barrymore in feature films.

Black Maria - Library of Congress image

Thomas Edison National Historical Park preserves Thomas Edison's laboratory and residence, Glenmont, in West Orange, New Jersey. From those laboratories came the motion picture camera, improved phonographs, sound recordings, silent and sound movies and the nickel-iron alkaline electric storage battery.

The Black Maria (pronounced mah-rye-ah, and also known as the Kinetographic Theater) was Thomas Edison's movie production studio in West Orange and is considered America's first movie studio.

The 1893 building was covered in black tarpaper and had a huge window in the ceiling that opened up to provide the tremendous amount of light required for early film stock and cameras. It was built on a turntable so the window could rotate toward the sun throughout the day and supply light all day. The studio was used for eight years and produced hundreds of short films.

Edison built a glass-enclosed rooftop movie studio in New York City in 1901, and stopped using the Black Maria. It was demolished in 1903, but a reproduction was made in 1954 at what is now the Edison National Historic Site in West Orange. (A previous reconstruction had been built and dedicated in May 1940 when MGM held the world premiere of Edison, the Man starring Spencer Tracy in NJ theaters in West Orange, East Orange, South Orange, and Orange.)

The Centaur Film Company in Bayonne, New Jersey, 1907

History of Edison Motion Pictures at The Library of Congress

The Movies Begin: Making Movies in New Jersey, 1887-1920
Fort Lee: The Film Town (1904-2004)
Fort Lee: Birthplace of the Motion Picture Industry
South Jersey Movie Houses
Cinema Treasures: A New Look at Classic Movie Theaters

Great Train Robbery - 100th Anniversay
Landmarks of Early Film, Vol. 1 Thomas Edison
Fort Lee: The Film Town (1904-2004)

Equine New Jersey

2011-03-23T11:17:00.002-04:00

New Jersey's Wildlife Management Area System, administered by the Division of Fish and Wildlife's Bureau of Land Management, preserves a diversity of fish and wildlife habitats from Delaware Bay coastal marshes to Kittatinny Ridge mountain tops.

Ranging in size from the 0.68 acre Delaware River Fishing Access Site at the Pennsauken WMA to the 30,000-acre Greenwood Forest Tract in Burlington and Ocean counties, Wildlife Management Areas provide countless outdoor recreational opportunities for New Jersey residents and visitors from out of state.

Did you know that horseback riding is allowed on designated WMAs?

With a permit purchased ($25.00 per person, per calendar year, plus $2.00 application fee) from the Division of Fish and Wildlife's license Web site at www.wildlifelicense.com/nj/, horseback riding is currently permitted in designated areas at:

Flatbrook and Whittingham, Sussex County
Black River, Morris County
Alexauken Creek and Capoolong Creek, Hunterdon County
Assunpink, Monmouth County
Colliers Mills and Greenwood, Ocean County
Great Egg Harbor River, Atlantic County
Medford, Burlington County
Glassboro, Gloucester County
Winslow, Camden County
Bevans, Union Lake and Peaslee, Cumberland County
Higbee Beach and Tuckahoe (MacNamara), Cape May County

Permittees are responsible and liable for any damage which may occur and shall abide by regulations for use of Wildlife Management Areas.

Did you know that the state animal of New Jersey is the horse (Equus caballus)?

The U.S. Equestrian Team headquarters is located in Gladstone, New Jersey.

On the NJ Equine Calendar of Events, you'll find upcoming show horse events in the state.

The Horse Park of New Jersey is a 147-acre facility in Stone Tavern, Monmouth County that is fast becoming a world class equine exhibition facility. It has hosted Olympic Game trials and in March through November, equine events are scheduled for most weekends and many weekdays, including frequent multi-day events.

The New Jersey Equine Facilities site is a way to find a place to board your horse, buy a horse, rent a horse, get riding lessons, breed a horse, or see a horse show.

Horsing Around in New Jersey: The Horse Lover's Guide to Everything Equine

The Great Canal Walk

2011-03-21T12:00:00.004-04:00

CrossJerseyWalk.org is the starting place if you plan to walk on your own or join the FreeWalkers on the first of three free organized group walks that in combination will cover the entire 100-mile stretch of the East Coast Greenway (ECG) through New Jersey.

April 9, 2011

The Great Canal Walk (Trenton to New Brunswick)

Starting from the Delaware River, trace the footsteps of this 175 year old waterway and transportation system across Central New Jersey - from Trenton to New Brunswick. The TR2NB40 - Great Canal Walk, a forty-mile, one -day long distance walk, is a superb physical and mental challenge and the first event in a series of three walking events aiming to walk across New Jersey following the East Coast Greenway.

April 16 is the New Brunswick to Metropark section and May 21 is The Big Walk (Metropark to Penn Station, NYC)

Free Nature Walk Sunday, Laurel Hill

2011-03-19T08:33:00.001-04:00

We posted about Laurel Hill (AKA Snake Hill) earlier this year.

Sunday, March 20, 10 a.m.

First Day of Spring Bird Walk

with the NJMC and BCAS

This free two-hour nature walk starts at the ball fields of Laurel Hill County Park in Secaucus. We’ll look for the (possibly nesting) common ravens, raptors, waterfowl and herons on the Hackensack River, and any other birds we can find. We meet at the big parking lot by the Laurel Hill ball fields at 10 a.m. We will not also meet at the first parking lot in DeKorte Park in Lyndhurst at 9:20. The walk is run by the N.J. Meadowlands Commission and the Bergen County Audubon Society. Check meadowblog.net for last-minute weather updates. You will have to sign a standard liability release for this event. To rsvp, contact Don Torino of the BCAS at greatauk4@aol.com or 201-636-4022.

SOURCE: Free Nature Walk on Sunday, Laurel Hill from The Meadowlands Blog

Pequest Open House Is April 2 & 3

2011-03-17T11:00:00.001-04:00

2011 Pequest Open House and Fishing Flea Market

April 2 & 3, 2011

10 a.m. - 4 p.m. daily

FREE!

Every year the Pequest Trout Hatchery and Natural Resource Education Center opens its doors to the public for the annual Open House, which usually takes place the weekend before Trout Season opens. The Open House allows the Division of Fish and Wildlife to show off the trout raised at the state of the art Pequest Trout Hatchery and it serves as a reminder that spring is just around the corner.

Each year, thousands of people come to the hatchery to experience this event for themselves. And each year, the Division of Fish and Wildlife strives to make this a bigger event than the year before.

This event is great for people of all ages and there are so many things to see and do throughout the day. Bring your family, friends, scout troops, church groups, fishing clubs and anyone else for a fun time in the outdoors.

The Pequest Trout Hatchery and Natural Resource Education Center is located 9 miles west of Hackettstown on Route 46 in scenic Warren County.

For more information on public or group visitation/programs call 908-637-4125 or see the online schedule of public programs

OPEN HOUSE INFO http://www.state.nj.us/dep/fgw/peqoh.htm

Not the Way We Want Species Removed from the Endangered Species List

2011-03-16T20:28:00.001-04:00

Although the eastern cougar has been on the endangered species list since 1973, its existence has long been questioned. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) conducted a formal review of the available information and, in a report issued today, concludes the eastern cougar is extinct and recommends the subspecies be removed from the endangered species list.
“We recognize that many people have seen cougars in the wild within the historical range of the eastern cougar,” said the Service’s Northeast Region Chief of Endangered Species Martin Miller. “However, we believe those cougars are not the eastern cougar subspecies. We found no information to support the existence of the eastern cougar.”

SOURCE: Northeast Region, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

The Silence of the Bees

2011-03-15T13:02:00.000-04:00

In the winter of 2006, a strange phenomenon fell upon honeybee hives across the country. Without a trace, millions of bees vanished from their hives, leaving billions of dollars of crops at risk, threatening our food supply. The epidemic set researchers scrambling to discover why honeybees were dying in record numbers - and to stop the epidemic in its tracks before it spread further.

Colony collapse disorder (CCD) has wreaked havoc on U.S. beekeeping businesses (and the agriculture industry) since its devastating arrival five years ago.

One of the causes may be the impact of neonicotinoids — a class of widely used pesticides — on honeybees and other pollinators. Scientists have not come up with a definitive answer to the the problem. Possible factors besides pesticide exposure include: invasive parasitic mites, an inadequate food supply and a new virus that targets bees' immune systems.

Bees are the most important pollinators in the Northeastern U.S., and there are hundreds of species of bees that live in New Jersey.

Bees are one of the issues for the Natural Resources Defense Council when seemingly healthy bees were abandoning their hives. Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD), as it became known, may have caused an estimated one-third of all honey bee colonies in the country to have vanished.

You can watch a very good program on this from PBS Nature free online called "Silence of the Bees."

There are hundreds of hours of award-winning feature films, documentaries, and television shows available at http://video.pbs.org including DVDs whose purchase helps support PBS and their programs.

Watchung Mountain Tour Part 3

2011-03-11T10:22:00.001-05:00

This post concludes our virtual walk along the parks and reservations of the Watchung Mountains that we began in part 1 and part two.

We pick up the trail in Washington Rock State Park which is a 52-acre (210,000 m2) state park on top the first Watchung Mountain in Green Brook Township, New Jersey. The park is operated by the New Jersey Division of Parks and Forestry and is currently being managed by the Somerset County Park Commission. It is open daily sunrise to sunset.

It is famous for the scenic overlook which was used by General George Washington in 1777 to monitor British troop movements when the Continental Army was stationed at the Middlebrook encampment. The 30-mile (48 km) panoramic vista covers the eastern plains of New Jersey up to New York City, making it a valuable lookout point during the American Revolution. General Washington used it in June of 1777 when the British army under General William Howe was moving toward Westfield. From the vantage point of this natural rock outcropping, General Washington was able to instruct his troops to circle behind Howe’s troops and cut off their retreat.

One of the oldest state parks in New Jersey, Washington Rock was originally purchased in 1913 to commemorate the historical events of 1777. Situated on top of Watchung Mountain, the park is a popular site for easy walks, picnicking and relaxation.

Closely connected is Washington Valley Park. This 715-acre (2.89 km2) public park is between the first and second Watchung mountain ridge in the Martinsville section of Bridgewater Township. It is also administered by the Somerset County Park Commission.

This partially developed park has a western and eastern section separated by the Bound Brook Gap with the Chimney Rock Road that connects Bound Brook with Martinsville. The terrain is rocky and mountainous and covered with pine and hemlock.

At the center of the western section of the park is the 21-acre (85,000 m2) Washington Valley Reservoir. The reservoir was created in 1920 when the western branch of the Middle Brook was dammed. (Its former name was the Bound Brook/Elizabeth Reservoir.) The eastern section of the park has the much smaller East Branch Reservoir and the Buttermilk Falls of the eastern branch of the Middle Brook.

Adjacent to the park is the Chimney Rock Quarry built atop the old Chimney Rock Copper Mine (a.k.a. Bound Brook Quarry or Washington Mine). There are still copper mines over 165 feet deep and active mining continues today. Copper from here was used to mold a small brass cannon later used at the siege of Yorktown during the Revolutionary War. There is also still calcite mined from the Chimney Rock Quarry and marble and granite taken from this area.

The reservoirs have no boat access but are of interest to anglers. Species that can be caught include largemouth bass, black crappie, bluegill, pumpkinseed, and yellow perch.

The park contains numerous trails that are used by hikers and mountain bikers.

At an outcropping of the first Watchung mountain ridge is Chimney Rock Hawk Watch. In the fall, the area is visited by birdwatchers to observe the annual southward migration of species including broad-winged hawks, sharp-shinned hawks, bald eagles and golden eagles. Hawk watching lasts from early September into November, the second half of September being the peak time.

The eastern part of the park was the site of a military fortification that was used by the Continental Army near the site of the 1777-78 Middlebrook encampment. Remnants can be found in the shape of earth walls. A look-out point is preserved that was used to observe movements of the British Army in the plains towards New Brunswick.

Two more areas to visit that are connected brings our walk to a close. The Leonard J. Buck Garden and the Moggy Hollow Natural Area are our last stops along the Second Watchung Mountain.

The Moggy Hollow Natural Area is a 14-acre (5.7 ha) nature preserve near Far Hills in Somerset County. It's an area of geologic interest. The area was designated a National Natural Landmark in January 1970.

As the Wisconsin Glacier advanced and ancient Glacial Lake Passaic formed, it deepened to 240 feet until it found an outlet to spill over at Moggy Hollow. From here the water drained to the Raritan river.

The ledge of harder basaltic rock at 331 feet (101 m) above sea level served as a spillway for Lake Passaic carving a deep ravine out of the softer soil as the lake drained. Moggy Hollow remained the main outlet as the glacier retreated due to natural debris dams until Little Falls and Paterson (Passaic County) emerged from the ice.

This 20-acre property adjacent to the North Branch of the Raritan River and the Far Hills Fairgrounds is a testament to the beauty of once-unchanged floodplains of the region. The floodplain is forested with a mixture of Oak, Maple, and some outstanding Sycamore trees. It is an excellent place to spot Kingfishers or Great Blue Heron. A trail runs parallel to the river and fishing is allowed in the trout-stocked waters.

The woodland and bog have ecological value, providing a diverse mixture of trees, shrubs and herbaceous plant species. But this is not an especially visitor-friendly site. The terrain is very steep and hazardous. Rocky slopes abruptly meet the bog, and walking is difficult, but worth the challenge for those who are interested in glacial geology.
The property is owned and managed by the Upper Raritan Watershed Association. Most of the current site was donated to the association in 1967 by J. Malcolm Belcher, a former mayor of Far Hills, on behalf of the Belcher family.

The ravine is located adjacent to and above the Leonard J. Buck Garden. Visitors can either ask to cross the Buck garden to reach the lower portion of the ravine, or park above on Liberty Corner Road to access the top of the ledge.

The garden is one of the premier rock gardens in the United States. It features native and exotic plants displayed in a naturalistic setting of woodland, streams, and rock outcroppings. A wooded, rocky ravine is home to numerous wildflowers interspersed among flowering trees and shrubs.

The best and most popular time to visit is in the spring.

The Garden began in the 1930s when geologist Leonard J. Buck, a trustee of the New York Botanical Garden, met landscape architect Zenon Schreiber and the two created varying exposures and microclimates.

The garden is sculpted from the glacial stream valley where waterfalls once cascaded, leaving behind rock faces, outcroppings, ponds and a stream. After Mr. Buck's death in 1974, the garden was donated by Mrs. Buck to the Somerset County Park Commission and was opened up to the public in 1977. A small donation is requested.

The plantings are extensive and include aconite, anemone, azalea, beech, birch, bloodroot, boxwood, Chinese fringe tree, columbine, cyclamen, daffodils, Dawn redwood, dogwoods, enkianthus, forget-me-nots, forsythia, geraniums, grape hyacinth, heathers, herbs, hornbeam, hydrangea, Japanese maple, Japanese painted fern, Japanese peonies, Labrador violets, magnolias, mahonia, maidenhair fern, maples, mountain laurel, narcissus, oak, ostrich ferns, primroses, rhododendron, saxifrage, shagbark hickory, Siberian squill, skimmia, snowbell, star magnolia, sweet woodruff, trillium, viburnum, violets, Virginia bluebells, and wind anemones. You can check their website to see what is in bloom during this season.

Falconry in NJ

2011-03-09T10:25:00.002-05:00

On NJ.com, I found an interesting article about how a small band of NJ hunters are carrying on the 4,000 year old practice of falconry.

Hunting has its opponents, especially amongst some people who might read this blog. In my years as a volunteer, I worked with hunting programs and fishing programs and have been more often positively surprised by synergies between those groups and environmentalists.

Falconry seems so odd in our modern world. Hunting in NJ is often controversial and the practice of hunting with trained falcons or hawks for small animals like rabbits, squirrels or pheasants must seem even stranger. And yet, it has some kind of appeal and connection with a time of nobles and gentleman hunters.

Check out the article. What's your opinion on the sport of falconry?

READING LIST
Falconry: The Essential Guide
Falconry & Hawking
The Falconer's Apprentice
Art of Falconry; Being the De Arte Venandi cum Avibus of Frederick II of Hohenstaufen
Falconry Manual

Endangered Species and a Tax Check-Off

2011-03-07T11:00:00.049-05:00

Did you know that New Jersey residents can help secure the future of the State's threatened and endangered wildlife by making a dedicated donation when they file their State income tax returns this year?

"Despite being the nation's most densely populated state, New Jersey has an incredible diversity of wildlife, including some of the world's most beautiful and rare animals,'' said NJDEP Commissioner Martin. "These are special creatures that need our protection, and which we'd like to preserve in the Garden State for our children and future generations. We can support this important effort by making a simple check-off for wildlife on our State income-tax returns."

Residents should look for Line 58 -- the New Jersey Endangered Wildlife Fund -- on the NJ 1040 income tax form, or remind their tax preparers they want to make a contribution.

Each donated dollar goes directly to the DEP's Division of Fish and Wildlife, enabling its Endangered and Nongame Species Program biologists to continue their work to restore, conserve and enhance New Jersey's populations of rare species.

Each contribution is matched by an equal amount of federal funding, which further strengthens efforts to protect imperiled species.

The Endangered and Nongame Species Program manages nearly 500 wildlife species, including 73 species of birds, reptiles, amphibians, invertebrates, mammals and fish currently listed as endangered or threatened.

When I have done talks as a volunteer for the ENSP, one thing I have always emphasized is that the program is funded almost entirely by federal grants, which require matching state funds from the state income-tax check-off and sales of New Jersey's distinctive Conserve Wildlife license plate.

No, it's not paid for by your tax dollars. What a way to fund a program! And what a time to ask for donations - when people are paying their income taxes!

Nevertheless, those two revenue sources, which generated $292,000 in 2010 and $1.8 million over the past five years, help finance efforts by DEP biologists to prevent some rare species from becoming extinct in New Jersey, and to make sure other creatures do not have to be added to the state's list of endangered and threatened species.

What are the "dividends" that your investment makes?

New Jersey biologists restored our bald eagle population from one nest in 1979 to 82 nesting pairs today.

New Jersey biologists have led the international effort to prevent the Western Hemisphere extinction of the red knot, which depends on the eggs of spawning Delaware Bay horseshoe crabs they devour in New Jersey each spring to fuel an epic migration from their South American breeding grounds to Canadian Arctic nesting grounds.

The bobcat was reintroduced in New Jersey 30 years ago, and research and protection efforts since then have allowed this secretive cat to establish a foothold in the northern third of the state.

More than 30 years of intensive management and cooperative efforts with coastal communities have prevented the State extinction of three New Jersey beach nesting birds, the piping plover, least tern and black skimmer.

Peregrine falcons disappeared from New Jersey in the 1960's but through a reintroduction project and intensive management we now have a stable population of 20 nesting pairs statewide.

Learn more about New Jersey's endangered species:
http://www.njfishandwildlife.com/ensphome.htm
http://www.njfishandwildlife.com/tandespp.htm

For information on the Conserve Wildlife license plates:
http://www.nj.gov/dep/fgw/ensp/plates.htm

Princeton Battlefield Park

2011-03-04T09:52:00.000-05:00

General Washington rallying his troops at the Battle of Princeton.

The first inhabitants of the Princeton area were the Lenni Lenape Indians. Europeans founded the settlement in the latter part of the 17th century. The first European to find his home in the boundaries of the future town was Henry Greenland who built his house in 1683 along with a tavern. It was in that tavern that representatives of West and East Jersey met to set boundaries for the location of the township.

Princeton was to be divided into two parts: a borough and township. It was founded from pieces of Middlesex, Burlington, Somerset and Hunterton counties which were divided by the central “King’s Highway.” The King's Highway is today's Nassau Street which eventually turns into Princeton-Kingston Road to the north and Stockton Street to the south.

Even though New Jersey's capital is the city of Trenton, the governor's official residence has been in Princeton since 1945. That is when Morven became the first Governor's mansion. It was later replaced by the larger Drumthwacket, a colonial mansion also located in the township. Morven is now a museum property of the New Jersey Historical Society.

Princeton Battlefield State Park is a 200-acre (81 ha) state park located in Princeton Township. The park preserves the site of the Battle of Princeton on January 3, 1777.

On the night before the battle, George Washington, Commander-in-Chief of the Continental Army, repulsed a British attack at the Battle of the Assunpink Creek in Trenton. That night, he evacuated his position, circled around General Lord Cornwallis' army, and went to attack the British garrison at Princeton. Brigadier General Hugh Mercer, of the Continental Army, clashed with two regiments under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Charles Mawhood of the British Army.

Mercer and his troops were overrun and Washington sent some militia under General John Cadwalader to help him. The militia, on seeing the flight of Mercer's men, also began to flee. Washington rode up with reinforcements and rallied the fleeing militia. He then led the attack on Mawhood's troops, driving them back. Mawhood gave the order to retreat and most of the troops tried to flee to Cornwallis in Trenton.

In Princeton itself, General John Sullivan forced some British troops who had taken refuge in Nassau Hall to surrender, ending the battle. After the battle, Washington moved his army to Morristown, and with their third defeat in 10 days, the British evacuated southern New Jersey. With the victory at Princeton, morale rose in the ranks and more men began to enlist in the army. The battle was the last major action of Washington's winter New Jersey campaign.

Princeton hosted the first Legislature under the State Constitution of New Jersey to decide the State’s seal, Governor and the organization of its government. In addition, two of the original signers of the Declaration of Independence—Richard Stockton and John Witherspoon lived in Princeton.

In 1783, Congress fled from Philadelphia to Princeton, fearing a mutiny by some of the soldiers. General Washington took up residency at Rockingham in Rocky Hill, where he wrote his Farewell Orders to the Army.

On September third, he rode to Nassau Hall to receive news that the Treaty of Paris had been signed, which officially recognized America's independence. Princeton, thereby, became the first Capital of the new nation.

The Battlefield Park is maintained by the New Jersey Division of Parks and Forestry, and is located on Mercer Road (Princeton Pike), about 1.5 miles south of Princeton University and 3.8 miles north of Interstate 295/95.

Besides the battlefield itself, another stop is the Mercer Oak named after Hugh Mercer, a brigadier general in the Continental Army during the American Revolution. During the Battle of Princeton, Mercer was stabbed by an English soldier's bayonet. According to legend, he was unwilling to abandon his troops, and rested on the tree's trunk while they stood their ground. After the battle, Mercer was taken to the Clarke House where he died from his injuries nine days later.

The tree was about 300 years old when it was torn by strong winds in March 2000. It is the emblem of Princeton Township and appears on the seal of the township and is an element of the seal of Mercer County, New Jersey. For public safety reasons, arborists cut off the remnants of the trunk the day after the tree fell and several scions from the tree were planted around the battlefield. In May 2000, an 8-foot sapling grown from a Mercer Oak acorn was planted inside the stump of the former tree.

The Thomas Clarke House Museum, built in 1772, was built by the third generation of Quakers at Stony Brook. The house is furnished in the Revolutionary period and contains military artifacts and battle exhibits, as well as a research library. During the battle General Mercer was brought to the Clarke House and treated unsuccessfully by Dr. Benjamin Rush.

There is also an Ionic Colonnade designed by Thomas U. Walter (architect of the US Capitol Building)and a stone patio marking the grave of 21 British and 15 American soldiers killed in the battle. A poem was written for the site by Alfred Noyes, Poet Laureate of England.

The park's hiking trails lead to the Delaware and Raritan Canal and to the adjacent property of the Institute for Advanced Study.

The Princeton Battle Monument is located near Princeton University on park property at Stockton Street and Bayard Lane.

The Historical Society of Princeton uses the Bainbridge House which had previously been used once for a meeting of Continental Congress in 1783, a general office and as the Princeton Public Library. The House is actually property of Princeton University and is leased to the Princeton Historical Society for one dollar per year. The house has kept its original staircase, flooring and paneled walls and is 70% unaltered.

Take a virtual tour of the Princeton Battlefield Park

Princeton Battlefield State Park official site

Planning Your Garden State Vegetable Garden

2011-03-02T09:44:00.000-05:00

There is nothing like a few warm days in this cold month and the arrival of some seed catalogs to get me thinking about the garden.

Even if you have never planted a vegetable garden, you can consider a few crops for this season to support our Garden State of mind.

Mother Earth News did a story on planning a first garden with ten easy crops that offer great eating possibilities.

I started getting seed and plant catalogs in January and started folding over pages. Now you can even order seeds online through Amazon!

So here are 10 to start out with in NJ.

Radishes do well even in not-so-great garden soil and are ready to harvest in only a few weeks.

Salad greens like lettuce, spinach, arugula and corn salad are available in mixed packets. People plant in spring and fall, and you can pick salads almost year-round.

Green beans are easy to grow and prolific. If you get a big crop, they freeze well, and they’re also delicious when pickled as dilly beans. Start with seeds after all danger of frost has passed.

For onions, you can do seeds and bulbs, but you might try small plants if it's your first time. If they do well, you can harvest onions. If not, you might get small bulb onions and you can always eat the greens.

Fresh-picked ripe strawberries are unbelievably sweet, and the plants are surprisingly hardy. Buy bare-root plants in early spring. Put this perennial in a sunny spot and keep it well weeded.

Both hot peppers and bell peppers are easy to grow. You can try seeds, but plants give you a jump on the season. Let peppers from the same plant ripen for different lengths of time to get a range of colors and flavors. Did you know that the green peppers eventually go red?

Zucchini squash won't take up as much room in your garden as many other types, and it’s very prolific. Start from seeds or plants. You won't need more than a few plants for a bumper crop. Have you ever tried the breaded and fried flowers?

Basil. Many herbs are easy to grow, but basil is a good choice because it’s a nice complement to tomatoes. Basil is easy to grow from seeds or from transplants.

Jersey tomatoes. It's required. There’s just no substitute for a perfectly ripe homegrown tomato. I still have to take those pale things that you get in a salad (even in NJ!) that they call tomatoes. Seeds are great but you need patience and some technique. It's hard to go wrong when you start with strong plants. Do seeds when you want some heirloom or a variety not available in the garden center. Maybe you can support an old Jersey heirloom - the Rutgers tomato. Even the fried green tomatoes are good come fall when it's too late to ripen. Don't even bring up that ripening in a brown bag method...

Let's end with potatoes. You might be surprised that they are an easy-to-grow staple that stores well when kept cool. There are simple and low-maintenance approaches like planting potatoes in straw rather than soil. I planted one year in a large black garbage bag of composted soil and gut great, easy to harvest potatoes. I've seen people use an old garbage can with the bottom cut out. "Seeds" for potatoes are actually whole or cut sections of potatoes. Don't use ones from the grocery store because they have been treated.You can buy them from catalogs or at good garden centers in early spring.

Spring Must Be Near

2011-02-28T10:02:00.002-05:00

Robins on your lawn might be your sign of spring, but a post on the NJ Osprey Project blog reminds me that adult ospreys begin heading north in the first weeks of March.

Volunteers with the NJ Osprey Project help install an osprey platform
along Patcong Creek in Linwood
Image © Ben Wurst via http://njospreyproject.blogspot.com

In the northeast U.S., Ospreys migrate south, from September to early November, to winter in the Gulf States, Florida and Central America. Ospreys return to the same nest site year after year, and young adults return to where they originated to reproduce when they are 3 years old.

Ospreys usually live till around 10 years old in the wild. The oldest osprey that was ever encountered in New Jersey was a female that was 18 years old.

OSPREY - U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

Osprey are large (22”-25” in length) black and white fish-eating raptors, with a bold white forehead and eyebrow, and a wingspan of 58”-72” inches.

Both males and females are similar, but females generally exhibit more spotting (a “necklace” of spots) on the breast than males and are generally a little larger. In flight, they hold their wings back in a characteristic “M” shape.

Ospreys nest in tree tops, poles, towers, stubs, sometimes roof tops, chimneys, navigation buoys, rock pinnacles, stick piles, and even on the ground, but never far from water. Nesting material includes sticks, grass, seaweed and clods of mud.

The adults return year after year in early March to rebuild and add material to the nest. Some nests are occupied every year for 40 or more years by a succession of birds and reach a depth of over 10 feet. Fledglings leave the nest after about 8 weeks from their hatch date.

New Jersey Osprey Project: Prepping for Another Nesting Season

Delaware and Raritan Canal

2011-02-25T09:55:00.000-05:00

Historic map of the D&R Canal
click image for large size via http://mapmaker.rutgers.edu

The Delaware and Raritan Canal (D&R Canal) is a canal in central New Jersey, that was built in the 1830s and served to connect the Delaware River to the Raritan River.

D&R Canal Company

It was intended as an efficient and reliable means of transportation of freight between Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and New York City, especially coal from the anthracite coal fields in eastern Pennsylvania. Before the advent of the railroads, the canal allowed shippers to cut many miles off the traditional route from the Pennsylvania coal fields. That route took the coal down the Delaware, into the Atlantic Ocean, around Cape May, and up along the coast to New York City.

The canal system was dug mostly by hand tools, mostly by Irish immigrants. Work began in 1830 and was completed in 1834, at an estimated cost of $2,830,000. When the canal first opened, teams of mules were used to tow canal boats through it (the steam engine was not yet applied to such uses).

The canal's greatest usage occurred during the 1860s and 1870s during the area's Industrial Revolution. On May 18, 1872, the D&R Canal Company was merged with several parallel railroads into the United New Jersey Railroad and Canal Company, and leased by the Pennsylvania Railroad. Over time, the importance of the D&R Canal waned as railroads were used to perform, more rapidly, the same function as canals, but it remained in operation until 1932.

Over the years, sections were filled for various road and rail projects and other sections of the canal were piped underground.

Today, the D&R Canal offers us a number of natural and historical resources, including 160 species of birds, wooden bridges, canal locks, historic bridge & canal houses, and former mill sites. The park can be enjoyed individually or at one of the many nature and history related programs that are offered throughout the year by the park's naturalist and historian.

The total length of the entire canal system was approximately 66 miles (106 km).

A steam tug docked on the canal in front of a Princeton hotel.

Unfortunately, some sections of the canal are forever lost. A section of the main D&R Canal in Trenton, along Mulberry Street, has been covered over (the water still flows below) and redeveloped, and is inaccessible to public use. The portion of the canal that provided access to the Delaware River in Bordentown is also abandoned. In Trenton it has been covered by NJ Route 129, which opened in 1996. Another section south of Trenton is located in Hamilton Township, Mercer County, New Jersey between the southern boundary of Trenton and the Crosswicks Creek.

Locks were used to overcome elevation differences along the D&R canal. Many of the locks are still present along the canal route; however, the lock gates have been replaced on the upstream side with small dams and water outfalls. The downstream gates have been removed, so the water in the locks is level with the water on the downstream side. Some of the locks have been buried or removed due to construction projects in the vicinity of the canal.

A number of spillways, which drained excess water from the canal into nearby waterways during periods of heavy flow, are located along the canal route. Spillways are evident as a dip in the tow path along the canal.

Image: bikinghikingwithkids.com

In 1974, most of the canal system was declared a New Jersey state park. It remains one today, and is used for canoeing, kayaking, and fishing.

A graded natural-surface trail along the side of the canal, which was the tow path that mules used to tow barges on the canal before steam powered barges, is now used for hiking, jogging, bicycling, and horseback riding. Some 36 miles (58 km) of the main canal, and all 22 miles (35 km) of the feeder canal, still exist. The feeder canal along the Delaware, being a former railroad rather than a towpath, is especially suited to bicycling. The park is operated and maintained by the New Jersey Division of Parks and Forestry.

The D&R Canal trail is a recreational trail of 77 miles (124 km) trail is made up of three segments that transverse three counties: a canal towpath from New Brunswick to Trenton; a canal towpath / rail trail from Trenton to Bull's Island; and a rail trail from Bull's Island to Frenchtown. The three combined trails together form the largest completed trail entirely in New Jersey. Much of the trail runs inside the state park. [Note: There is no direct connection between the main canal and the feeder canal paths along the Delaware River. Signed on-street connections are required to traverse the entire trail system.]

The proposed Capital to Coast Trail is planned to connect to the D&R Canal Trail.

The canal is accessible from many points along its route, with small parking areas providing access at most road crossings. One of the most scenic and popular sections of the D&R Canal state park is the segment along Lake Carnegie in Princeton, New Jersey, which features the canal on one side of the path and the lake on the other side. Another attractive section borders the Colonial Park Arboretum and Gardens in East Millstone.

The Delaware and Raritan Canal was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1973 and the many historic canal houses where the bridgetenders lived (such as the Blackwells Mills Canal House and the Port Mercer Canal House) were listed as contributing properties.

Slideshow and Talk on Birds of the Meadowlands

2011-02-24T10:51:00.003-05:00

From Jim Wright, blogger at the New Jersey Meadowlands Commission, is a post that he will present a free talk and slide show on the birds of the Meadowlands next Tuesday, March 1, at the Hackensack River Canoe and Kayak Club.

The talk will feature some photos of a range of common to once-endangered birds that Jim has photographed in the Meadowlands in the past few years. The emphasis will be on birds that can be seen on the river, as well as some other wildlife seen there.

The meeting begins at 7 p.m. at the Elks Club in Paramus, with Jim's talk to begin around 7:30 p.m.

See http://www.meadowblog.net for directions or click here for a Google map

Adopt a New Jersey Species

2011-02-23T10:26:00.000-05:00

You can help protect rare wildlife by adopting a species. Your symbolic adoption supports Conserve Wildlife's efforts to protect New Jersey’s rarest animals, restore important habitat, and foster pride in New Jersey’s rich wildlife heritage.

Adopting a Species also makes a great gift and it's a gift that gives twice!

Full information is at ConserveWildlifeNJ.org

It's also a good classroom activity. Educator can use the Adopt a Species Educator page.

Animals Available for Adoption

Continuing Along The Watchung Mountains

2011-02-21T10:33:00.124-05:00

This post continues our virtual walk along the Watchung Mountains that we began in an earlier post with three more stops in Essex in Union Counties.

Eagle Rock seen on a 1907 postcard

Continuing south through New Jersey, we come to Eagle Rock Reservation, on First Watchung Mountain. The Reservation is a 408.33-acre (165.25 ha) forest reserve and recreational park primarily in the communities of West Orange, Montclair, and Verona. The land is owned and administered by the Essex County Department of Parks, Recreation and Cultural Affairs.

The reservation is named after the Eagle Rock, a bare rock looking down from the mountain, which marks the boundary between the towns of Montclair and West Orange, New Jersey. The Lenape Trail passes through the reservation.

Overlooking the Manhattan skyline is a memorial built in honor of those killed during the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks with the names of all who perished at the World Trade Center or on the two planes that crashed into the twin towers permanently inscribed in a marble memorial.

That particular day, I left my job when the planes hit and drove home past this reservation where cars were lined along the road and at the overlook as people could clearly see the burning and then collapsing towers to the east.

Check out the Eagle Rock Reservation Conservancy for more information including a map.

Campbell's Pond - South Mountain Reservation

Our next natural area is South Mountain Reservation which covers 2,047.14 acres (8 km²) in central Essex County, New Jersey, in portions of Maplewood, Millburn and West Orange, bordering South Orange, between the first and second ridges of the Watchung Mountains.

Wikipedia gives us some history of the area. In 1896, John Durand described the mountain that includes South Mountain Reservation as:

“a wilderness, as it probably existed at the time of Hendrick Hudson, a primitive forest abounding with deer and other wild animals, and traversed by streams alive with trout. Game was plentiful – partridges, quail, woodcock, rabbits, squirrels of every species, raccoons and foxes; while occasionally a hungry bear that had trespassed on the farmyards in the vicinity would be tracked to its den and shot.”

In 1680, wolves, bears and cougars were observed in the area, and there was a bounty on them.

The park has a Revolutionary War historic site at what is called Washington Rock. It dates back to the late 18th century when Beacon Signal Station 9 was located here. It was one of 23 beacons built by General George Washington to observe British troop movements quartered on Staten Island and New York City.

From this outlook on June 23, 1780, Essex County and Newark Militia were first warned that the British had launched an attack westward toward "the Gap," (Hobart Gap), a natural pathway to Washington's troops encamped at Morris Town. In a pincer movement designed to gain access to the Gap, Hessian troops fought bitterly along Vaux Hall Road, while the British advanced along Galloping Hill Road, until they were repelled, the Hessians at the base of the mountain and the British in Millville (now Millburn).

Washington Rock served again as a lookout for the Army when reactivated during the War of 1812.

The reservation has been well preserved and is primarily in a wild state today. Woodlands abound in a variety of hardwood trees, and tall hemlocks tower above streams, creeks and ponds. The west branch of the Rahway River flows through the valley. A reservoir and watershed owned by the City of Orange lies in the northern tract.

As a youngster, I spent many days wandering this reservation. Our family often took weekend drives that included a stop along Crest Drive which leads to Washington Rock and once led to the "deer paddock" where we would feed the deer.

The paddock is gone (but the deer have certainly thrived) and Crest Drive has been closed to vehicular traffic at the point of the old paddock, but visitors can take an easy walk down to Washington Rock.

Though many people know the area from South Orange Avenue south to Millburn as the Reservation, it extends farther north and includes the Turtle Back Zoo and the South Mountain Arena. The zoo's train rides through the woods along the Orange reservoir.

From different locations, there are vistas allowing views of New York City, Elizabeth, Union Township, and even Staten Island.

Hemlock Falls is one dramatic feature, and neighboring Blackrock Falls is another picturesque smaller cascade. A hike to Hemlock Falls is a moderate one and uses the Lenape Trail.

The reservation was built from land purchases that started in 1895. Frederick Law Olmsted visited the newly acquired reservation and said it was some of the most beautiful and promising terrain he had ever seen. The Olmsted Brothers designed the park in stages with much of the construction work of trails, footbridges, and shelters being done by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the 1930s.

More at the South Mountain Conservancy

Watchung Reservation is the largest park in Union County and it is bounded by the city of Summit, the borough of Mountainside, the townships of Berkeley Heights, Scotch Plains, and Springfield. The reservation consists mainly of the upper valley of Blue Brook, between the ridges of First Watchung Mountain and Second Watchung Mountain. A dam near the headwaters of the creek creates Lake Surprise.

The 1,945 acre (7.8 km²) parcel is forested, and the reservation is managed for the preservation of its natural resources, but it does contain playgrounds, golf courses, stables, and a museum within the reservation.

The most popular recreational activities in the reservation are hiking and horseback riding on its many trails. The county-owned Watchung Stables are located on a large cleared area in the eastern end of the park, and at the center is the Trailside area, a large park with picnic tables and playground equipment with the Trailside Nature and Science Center at the southern edge in Mountainside.

The land in the reservation is not as pristine and undeveloped as our earlier stops. In fact, an entire village, Feltville, once existed in the woods in the northwestern quadrant and recently became inhabited again.

One popular hike through the western reservation goes through a pine plantation planted by the Civilian Conservation Corps during the 1930s.

In late 1950s, the U.S. Army built a Nike missile base here and operated it between 1957 and 1963 to defend the airways over New York City. It is now the site of the stables.

During the 1980s, NJDOT completed a section of Interstate 78 through the northern fringe of the reservation. An attempt was made to build "land bridges" to allow wildlife to travel safely between the split parts of the Reservation, but they failed to be successful.

A Reservation Map (pdf) is available along with more information at the Trailside Nature and Science Center.

Wild New Jersey: Nature Adventures in the Garden State

2011-02-14T10:27:00.003-05:00

David Wheeler's book, Wild New Jersey: Nature Adventures in the Garden State has just been published by Rutgers University Press.

David is the Director of Operations for the Edison Wetlands Association and the founder of the Wild New Jersey blog which (like this blog) looks at environmental and wildlife news from around the state and often features videos.

The book is a through-the-year sweep of New Jersey from the mountains to the beaches. It's a reminder of how diverse our state is in its habitats. The Pine Barrens and other spots in our state have an incredible diversity of wildlife that surprises even NJ residents - and just might shock outsiders.

David @DavidHWheeler and the Wild New Jersey blog @wildnewjersey are both on Twitter too.

Atlantic Sturgeon in the Delaware River

2011-02-11T11:09:00.007-05:00

The sturgeon family is among the most primitive of the bony fishes. The shortnose sturgeon shares the same general external morphology of all sturgeon. The body surface contains five rows of bony plates or "scutes." Sturgeon are typically large, long-lived fish that inhabit a great diversity of riverine habitat. Sturgeon are found from the fast-moving freshwater riverine environment downstream and, for some species, into the offshore marine environment of the continental shelf.

Atlantic sturgeon are similar in appearance to shortnose sturgeon (Acipenser brevirostrum), but can be distinguished by their larger size, smaller mouth, different snout shape, and scutes.Atlantic sturgeon have been aged to 60 years. (There is generally faster growth and earlier age at maturation in more southern populations.)

In their estuarine and freshwater habitats, Atlantic sturgeon face additional threats, including habitat degradation and loss from various human activities such as dredging, dams, water withdrawals, and other development. Some populations are being impacted habitat impediments including locks and dams and ship strikes (e.g., Delaware and James Rivers).

Each river system in which Atlantic and shortnose sturgeon occur is considered to contain a unique stock despite the mixing of individuals in coastal waters. A review of Atlantic sturgeon stock status in 1998 by the National Marine Fisheries Service and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service concluded that although the abundance of sturgeon had declined significantly, adequate spawning stock still remained for the persistence of the population and for juvenile production. Habitat improvements and fisheries conservation were recommended to improve the likelihood of full population recovery.

Video from NJN on the unique Atlantic sturgeon population found in the Delaware River

Shortnose sturgeon were federally listed in 1967 as an endangered species but in some systems abundance may be increasing to levels that would allow reconsideration of their endangered status. For example, the shortnose population in the Saint John River, New Brunswick Canada is among the largest in North America, and the Hudson and Delaware Rivers also support significant numbers of shortnose sturgeon.

Stock abundance of Atlantic and shortnose sturgeons steadily declined throughout the 20th century as a result of overfishing and habitat destruction. Fisheries for Atlantic sturgeon existed until 1997 when a moratorium was declared from Maine to Florida.

Research into the biology, habitat requirements and stock status of both of sturgeons continues, with the goal of restoring both species to sustainable levels of abundance.

sturgeon t-shirt

Horseshoe Crab and Whelk Processors and Dealers Contribute to Horseshoe Crab Survey

2011-02-10T12:36:00.018-05:00

Arlington, VA - Members of the horseshoe crab and whelk industry from the Chesapeake Bay Packing, LLC, Bernie's Conchs, LLC, LaMonica Fine Foods, Southern Connection Seafood, Inc., Sea King Corp., and Spot's Fish Company have collectively pledged $15,000 to support the Horseshoe Crab Trawl Survey for 2011. Combined, the biomedical industry and whelk and horseshoe crab processors and dealers have contributed more than $115,000 to conduct the survey this year.

Rick Robins, who coordinated the additional financial support for the survey, stated, "The Commission deserves credit for putting the Delaware Bay regional horseshoe crab population on a solid path to recovery. The Virginia Tech Horseshoe Crab Trawl Survey provides scientific information to the Commission that is essential to the successful management of this ecologically and economically important fishery."

The survey, which has been administered by Virginia Tech since 2002, is the only survey designed to sample the horseshoe crab population in coastal waters. Its data are a critical component of the coastwide stock assessment and the new Adaptive Resource Management (ARM) framework, both of which were endorsed through an independent peer review in 2009. The ARM framework includes modeling that links management of horseshoe crab harvest to multispecies objectives, particularly red knot shorebird recovery. It was developed jointly by the Commission, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and U.S. Geological Survey in recognition of the importance of horseshoe crab eggs to shorebirds in the Delaware Bay Region.

"These contributions will go a long way to ensure that this essential survey is conducted at least in part in 2011," stated Thomas O'Connell, ASMFC Horseshoe Crab Board Chair and Maryland DNR Fisheries Service Director. "An additional $85,000 will enable the survey to be fully conducted in 2011 and may allow for the continuance of the survey through 2012 if we can get matching funds. I sincerely thank and commend both the biomedical and fishing industries for coming together to support horseshoe crab management. Given these contributions, I am hopeful that other interested groups will come forward to help support this important survey."

Generally supported by congressionally-directed funds in the past, the survey would have been shut down without the generosity of the companies from the biomedical and fishing industries, who depend upon a healthy population of horseshoe crabs. To garner support for the survey, the Commission had reached out to various stakeholders groups that have an expressed interest in shorebird conservation and horseshoe crab management. Support is still being sought to fund the remainder of the 2011 survey, as well as the long-term continuance of the survey.

Horseshoe crabs play an important role on many levels - their blood is used to produce Limulus Amoebocyte Lysate, an important tool for detecting contaminated medical devices and drugs; their eggs are consumed by hundreds of thousands of migratory shorebirds as they complete their northward migration to the Arctic; and the crabs themselves are harvested by fishermen to be used as bait for whelk and eel fisheries. The Commission and the states manage horseshoe crabs through the Interstate Fishery Management Plan for Horseshoe Crabs (adopted in 1998) and subsequent addenda. The commercial bait fishery is controlled through state quotas, male-only harvest, and closed seasons.

News release from the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission www.asmfc.org The ASMFC Vision is healthy, self-sustaining populations for all Atlantic coast fish species or successful restoration well in progress by the year 2015.

Walk Across Jersey

2011-02-08T11:19:00.002-05:00

The 2011 Cross-Jersey Walking Challenge from the East Coast Greenway Alliance and FreeWalkers.org is free and open to the public. It challenges you to walk 100 miles across the entire state – from Trenton to New York City within the next 12 months – along the East Coast Greenway.

The East Coast Greenway runs the length of the Eastern seaboard from the top of Maine all the way to Key West, a total distance of about 3,000 miles.

Part of this effort is to add advocates of alternative transportation who are interested in helping build better and healthier communities.

If you become a registered walker, you can enter and track progress at their website during the year.

You can walk when you want, alone or with friends, or join the FreeWalkers on one or all of the three free organized group walks that in combination will cover the entire 100-mile stretch of the ECG through New Jersey.

April 9, 2011 is the The Great Canal Walk (Trenton to New Brunswick)

April 16, 2011 - New Brunswick to Metropark

May 21, 2011 - The Big Walk (Metropark to Penn Sta. NYC)

http://crossjerseywalk.org