Birds Threatened and Endangered in the NJ Meadowlands

  Endangered Peregrine Falcon under the Route 3 bridge
NJ.com staff photo by Michael Karas

Though some people from outside New Jersey may think of the Meadowlands as a swath of green by the Turnpike and other northern NJ highways, hopefully natives of our state are better informed.

The Meadowlands are home to a large variety of birds and the area and its inhabitants are generally experiencing a revival.


There are 20 endangered and 14 threatened bird species in New Jersey, two of which have also earned the endangered classification at the federal level. In the Meadowlands, at least 18 nesting birds are on New Jersey's watch list, according to Jim Wright, bird columnist, member of the New Jersey Meadowlands Commission and blogger at The Meadowlands Nature Blog. 

Nesting in the Meadowlands are 4 endangered species - Pied-billed Grebe, Peregrine Falcon, Least Tern and Northern Harrier - and 4 threatened species - Osprey, Savannah Sparrow, Yellow-crowned Night Heron and Black-crowned Night Heron.

And there are also 10 species of "special concern" - not yet threatened - that nest here: American Kestrel, Barn Owl, Brown Thrasher, Common Gallinule (moorhen), Common Nighthawk, Horned Lark, Least Bittern, Saltmarsh Sparrow, Spotted Sandpiper and Virginia Rail.

A yellow crowned night heron - threatened in NJ and appearing
in the Meadowlands. This one was spotted in Carlstadt.

Ospreys and Peregrine Falcons have been experiencing a comeback in the past few decades. There are 24 pairs of Peregrine Falcons nesting in the state, including in Jersey City and Newark. There are first-year falcons in the Meadowlands and other young falcons hunting there. Adults have nested on two bridges in the Hackensack River in recent years.

The Meadowlands is a good location to see the endangered Northern Harrier which can appear year-round but primarily in the winter.

The Meadowlands is also a temporary home for migrating birds, translating to about 280 species of birds spending at least part of the year in the area.

SOURCE: Birds fighting extinction here in Meadows

Birds of the NJ Meadowlands

A video of some of the birds found in the NJ Meadowlands of Secaucus, Lyndhurst, and Kearny. Seen are the Black-crowned Night Heron, Osprey, Great Egret, Hawks, and Swans.

Great Egret

                            Great Egret in the NJ Meadowlands

Formerly known as the "American Egret," "Common Egret," "Large Egret," "White Egret," "Great White Egret," and "Great White Heron," this bird's official name in North America is now Great Egret.

This species has recovered from historic persecution by hunting to obtain the feathers. The danger for the Great Egret now is the destruction of wetlands. This is even more true in the West where colonies are few and widely scattered.

Like the Great Blue Heron, it usually feeds alone, stalking fish, frogs, snakes, and crayfish in shallow water.

The Great Egret is one of the tallest birds. They will sit waterside fishing for hours spearing fish with their sharp bills.

Watch an egret catch a fish and you will see it toss it slightly up in the air to put it into position to swallow - and you may actually see it wiggle on the way down. They also eat insects and even small shore birds that are preoccupied with their own fishing.

SOURCES:
http://birds.audubon.org
http://wildnewjersey.tv

Free Nature Walk Sunday, Laurel Hill

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

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Northeast Region

Service special agent examines carcasses of an immature bald eagle and an osprey during an investigation of bird shootings on private hatchery property. USFWS photo


The Northeast Region of the US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) includes field offices that cover ME, VT, NH, MA, CT, NY, NJ, PA, MD, RI, WV, DE, and VA.

I was surprised to discover this past weekend that the Northeast Region is now on Twitter! You can follow their latest updates.

A good example of the state-centric information that is available there is The Hackensack Meadowlands Initiative: Preliminary Conservation Planning.

Though it was released in 2007, this report prepared by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service details human recreational, agricultural, industrial, and scientific activities in the Hackensack Meadowlands and their effect on the Meadowlands ecosystem in some 450 pages.

It is a great resource for understanding ecological issues in the Meadowlands.

450 pages is overwhelming to most of us, but an overview available online (pdf) summarizes ideas and issues discussed in the original document. It may also serve as a guide to direct you to specific areas in the Plan



New Jersey Field Office

NJ Meadowlands Environment Center

The Meadowlands Environment Center (MEC) is a New Jersey Meadowlands Commission facility operated by Ramapo College of New Jersey.

The MEC offers public programs for all ages, special programs for educators and scouts and MarshAccess programs for people with disabilities. MEC has hands on educational programs for grades K-12 that can introduce students to a variety of topics while satisfying the NJ Core Curriculum Standards.

It's a great place to discover exactly what is a wetland. Wetlands are lands that are flooded or saturated at or near the ground surface for varying periods of time during the year. Wet habitats generally occur between uplands and deepwater. Based on their characteristics wetlands are further defined as marshes, swamps, bogs, fens, wet meadows, etc.

The goal of the New Jersey Meadowlands Commission is to preserve natural and open areas of the Meadowlands, to restore degraded wetlands, and to improve the water quality of the Hackensack River Estuary. The Commission has acquired over 1700 acres of wetlands for preservation and pursues the acquisition of additional sites as they become available.

The Meadowlands Environment Center was formed to increase awareness and enjoyment of our vital ecosystem. The New Jersey Meadowlands Commission and Ramapo College of New Jersey entered into a partnership in 2003 to develop a comprehensive environmental education program for schools and the general public. Together, the New Jersey Meadowlands Commission and the experienced team of educators from Ramapo College encourage the use of the environment as a classroom, increase awareness of the resources of the Meadowlands, and help communities recognize the critical issues that affect the Meadowlands District.

• NJ Meadowlands informaton on Wikipedia
• The Meadowlands Blog
• Meadowlands Environment Center, Two Dekorte Park Plaza, Lyndhurst, NJ, 07071