Reporting Rare Wildlife Sightings in NJ

I get emails and comments at this blog fairly regularly when people sight what they believe is an endangered, threatened or rare species. Some of those contacts have led to posts, but this is not an official blog, so I can't always get the information to the people at the NJ Division of Fish and Wildlife or the Endangered and Nongame Species Program.

Fisher - via wikipedia commons

Just this week, a commenter reported sighting a fisher. The state agencies are understaffed and really need accurate information, so that conservation action can be focused on NJ's most important natural areas. If you have information on the location of an endangered, threatened or rare animal or plant and would like to help, you can report the sighting. This data will helps develop critical habitat mapping and look at habitat and population trends, and ultimately helps to develop conservation strategies for endangered and threatened species.

TO REPORT A SIGHTING

• Look at the information at www.state.nj.us/dep/fgw/ensp/rprtform.htm 
• Complete a sighting report form OR, for marine wildlife, please use the Marine Wildlife Sighting Report Form Complete this form in its entirety - anonymous submissions cannot be incorporated into the database.
• These reports are for first hand field observations only. DO NOT COMPLETE THIS FORM if the source of your information is a report, news item, email, conversation, or other document. If that is the case, send the documentation instead.
• Only report one species at each location per form and map.
• Mark the location of the sighting on a map. When submitting a report, a map is necessary to help our biologists determine if suitable habitat is present at the location. Once the suitability of the area is determined the map provided aids in the delineation of land to be protected.

Mail completed surveys to:
Endangered and Nongame Species Program
NJ Division of Fish and Wildlife
P.O. Box 400
Trenton, NJ 08625-0400
or send it as an e-mail attachment to: Gretchen.Fowles@dep.state.nj.us

In order to maintain the validity and integrity of the database, each record will be reviewed by an ENSP biologist. NOT ALL SUBMISSIONS WILL BE ACCEPTED.

Click these links for a listing of the current New Jersey Endangered and Threatened Species List or Special Species of Concern.

If you have any questions please contact ENSP at 609-292-9400.