Wildlife Rehabilitators Advisory Committee

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

The 21st Great Tomato Tasting gives 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 Road City, Pittstown, NJ.

• Rediscovering the Jersey Tomato
• Tomato Varieties
• Heirloom Tomato Reference Info & Seed Suppliers
• FCHS Canning Resources

Green Acres Program Fiftieth Anniversary Photo Contest

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:

1. People in Parks
2. Scenic
3. 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

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:

1. A deer’s nose is about 100 times more sensitive than a human's
2. Deer can jump a 9 foot fence
3. They are the largest wild herbivore in NJ
4. 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.
5. 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.
6. 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

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 23rd 8:00 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

Image via appliedeco.com

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" is 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. 

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 overdevelopment.

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

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

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

• species profile
• stock status
• habitat fact sheet

SOURCE: news release from the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission