CWF’s “Howls for Owls” event at Screamin’ Hill Brewery in Cream Ridge, New Jersey was certainly among our most fun fall activities. Owl enthusiasts flocked to this 170-acre farm for an evening of family-friendly activities in celebration of barn owls. Children and adults alike enjoyed dissecting owl pellets, creating owl masks, making adorable pinecone owls, and participating in three rounds of owl-themed trivia. Many attendees even came dressed in owl costumes!
Activities were designed to be fun and to teach attendees about owl adaptations. Owl pellet dissection was one of the most popular things to do. Children and their parents often worked together to extract all the bones found within a pellet and figure out what the owl had consumed.
Kids also made special owl masks with tubes around the eyes to mimic the oblong shape of an owl’s eye. Owl eyes are fixed in place and shaped more like a doorknob or tube than a sphere. When the mask is on, kids discover that they can only see in front of them and must rotate their heads around to look from side to side- just like an owl. Because owls cannot move their eyes, they are adapted to turn their head about 270 degrees around!
“Howls for Owls” had activities for everyone! Crafts, trivia, owl pellet dissection, and other activities kept visitors busy.
CWF had a busy summer at the Long Beach Island Foundation of the Arts and Sciences (LBIF), having launched a new partnership this year to help strengthen their science programming through a grant from the Osprey Foundation. A number of offerings targeting both adults and kids, highlighted by three week-long science camps for ages 7-9 and 10-12, were developed and led by CWF’s staff. The LBIF facility, with its close proximity to both the ocean and bay, is an ideal location to feature New Jersey’s coastal species and their unique conservation challenges.
Campers watch as summer intern Victoria Rosikiewicz moves a clutch of terrapin eggs to a safe new nest.
The Duke Farms eagle cam is extremely popular and just this week viewers watched as two chicks hatched. These two chicks will be watched by a multitude of viewers over the next few months as they grow to become juveniles and leave the nest. As with anything in Nature, this pair has had it’s ups and downs. I wanted to summarize the history of this pair and nest. The male is a NJ banded bird (A/59) and has been in the pair from the beginning, he is 23 years old. Interestingly, there have been several females in the pair over the years. Thank you to Duke Farms for hosting the cam and their tech team that keeps it running smoothly when issues arise. The cam location has changed as well as the cam itself over the years and the quality of the picture has improved.
Educators and biologists at Conserve Wildlife Foundation of New Jersey are leading educational programs at Ridge Street Elementary School in Newark, New Jersey, for the eighth consecutive year. Comprehensive STEAM curricula that follow New Jersey State Learning Standards for Science were developed by CWF staff for grades K, 3, 5 and 6. These curricula provide a series of classroom lessons, projects, and field trips focused on New Jersey’s wildlife.
While delivery of this program, entitled “Soaring With STEAM,” was adapted to a virtual learning environment during the pandemic, this 2022-23 school year has been presented entirely in-person, allowing staff to meaningfully interact with students and teachers in the classroom.
Wildlife biologist Christine Healy teaches the scouts about CWF’s work to protect the federally threatened bog turtle. Credit: Jim Kasprzak.
The classic justification for conserving wildlife is, of course, to protect diversity for future generations. While that’s not my go-to motivation for pursuing this line of work (I believe in the intrinsic value of nature and feel we are obligated to serve as good planetary stewards), I always feel over the moon when kids demonstrate the passion and interest in getting involved in this critical mission early on. When I received a request from Scouts BSA Troop #276 for assistance in earning their environmental science merit badge, I was eager to comply.
Earning a merit badge is no easy feat. It takes time and hard work, which is why attaining the rank of eagle scout, requiring the acquisition of at least 21 merit badges in addition to demonstrating leadership and service to the community, is such an achievement. For the environmental science badge, scouts must 1) study the history of the environmental movement in the US; 2) understand vocabulary relevant to wildlife, pollution, and green energy; 3) complete an activity relevant to seven of the following categories: ecology, air pollution, water pollution, land pollution, endangered species, pollution prevention, pollination, and invasive species; 4) complete a comparative study between two distinct habitat types; 5) practice drafting an environmental impact statement; and 6) research three career opportunities available in the field. Like I said, no easy feat, but Sebastian, Aidan, and Josh are up to the task.
Hello! I would like to introduce myself as a new member of the Conserve Wildlife Foundation of New Jersey team. My name is Rachel McGovern, and I am joining CWF as the Education Director.
I am a lifelong NJ resident and have always been passionate about environmental issues in the state. After completing my undergraduate degree in Human Ecology at Rutgers University, I spent a year in the Americorps New Jersey Watershed Ambassador Program (NJWAP) where I first taught environmental education lessons. Since then, I have had wonderful experiences teaching at nature-based organizations across the state.
Most recently, I was the Program Director at Flat Rock Brook Nature Center in Englewood, NJ. This center is located on a 150-acre forested preserve surrounded by dense development just minutes from the George Washington Bridge. At Flat Rock Brook, I led the education team in developing and delivering school programming, community events, and summer camp. I was also fortunate to take on the care of five non-releasable raptors—a job that deepened my admiration for all raptors in NJ (particularly falcons).
Josephine is a great-horned owl. She is an imprint, meaning she was raised by humans and now “identifies” with humans.
The Kindergarteners at Ridge Street School in Newark, New Jersey, have been utilizing Conserve Wildlife Foundation’s Soaring with STEAM curriculum in their classrooms. From snakes and turtles to whales and woodpeckers, the students are learning all about the endangered species that call New Jersey home as well as the unique habitats in which they reside. Each lesson includes hands-on activities to drive home what they have learned, with all materials provided by CWF. Students have enjoyed using their creativity to make each lesson activity their own! They have been given the opportunity to build snake dens, design a habitat for their favorite animals, and practice breathing like humpback whales. Kindergarten teacher Aracelys Muniz says students look forward to these lessons each week and call their CWF lesson days the “Best day ever!”. By providing positive experiences for students at such a young age in the realm of wildlife sciences, we hope to engage with and inspire the next generation of environmental stewards. Our goal is for students to remember our lessons beyond the classroom, becoming excited to continue learning on their own and sharing their knowledge with their friends, families, and communities. CWF thanks PSEG Foundation, Victoria Foundation, The Merrill G. and Emita E. Hastings Foundation, David A. and Carol B. Lackland Family Foundation, and the Zoological Society of New Jersey for their generous support for our work with Newark Public Schools.
Since 2003 Conserve Wildlife Foundation has been coordinating the Delaware Bay Shorebird Stewards. Shorebird Stewards are posted at the beaches with restricted access during the shorebird season. This is done so that the shorebirds can feed undisturbed on horseshoe crab eggs. The beach restrictions are from May 7th to June 7th. The Delaware Bay is an important stopover for these birds on their way north to their breeding grounds. Stewards educate the public about the need for the beach restrictions. Once most people learn about the connection between the horseshoe crabs and shorebirds, they are more than happy to accept the restrictions. This season there were thirty-one stewards on 10 beaches in Cape May and Cumberland Counties. They are dedicated and on the beaches despite the weather, bugs and sometimes lack of shorebirds. Stewards are on beaches through Monday, so stop by and say “hello”.
Thank you Shorebird Stewards
Shorebirds on Thompson’s Beach, photo by: Matt Tribulski
Another season of growth and new life is here! As many species are beginning their annual life cycle to reproduce, some peregrine falcon pairs already have young. The eyases (young falcons) at the Union County Falcon Cam are a prime example. They are now a little over a week old and have been examined and treated for a pigeon borne disease, called trichomoniasis, which adult falcons can transfer to their young. If young falcons would get trich., then they could perish. Kathy Clark, NJDEP Fish & Wildlife Supervisory Zoologist, UC staff and colleague Cathy Malok, w/ The Raptor Trust visited the site to ensure the survival of this brood.
Dryophytes “Pine Barrens Treefrog” andersonii, State Threatened, #10 seed, hailing from the Atlantic white cedar swamps of the Pine Barrens vs. Scaphiopus “Eastern Spadefoot Toad” holbrookii, Species of Concern, #7 seed, straight from the Pygmy Pine Plains, also of the Pine Barrens. Who will reign supreme?!
If this query has you thinking, please read on…
Introducing Critter Chaos! The CWF team got together and selected 40 species that spend at least part of their lives in New Jersey to compete in a series of simulated battles to determine the most adapted (or luckiest) of the bunch. Call it a game of natural selection or simply of chance- contestants each represent one of four divisions; Shorebirds & Raptors, Mammals, Reptiles & Amphibians, and Grassland Birds & Invertebrates. We’ve given each contestant a rank within their division, based on their defense mechanisms, predatory techniques, camouflage, parenting style- anything that we felt would be relevant in fictional combat. The top competitor from each face-off will advance until we discover the worthy winner of the symbolic 2022 CWF Darwin Award.
If this is sounding a bit familiar, then yes- this competition is based on the NCAA basketball tournament “March Madness” and inspired by March Mammal Madness, a fun and educational alternative for those who are more (or equally) interested in springboks than sports. And if you’re most interested in spadefoots, then I’m pleased to tell you that the Eastern spadefoot toad is making an appearance as the #7 seed in our Reptiles & Amphibians division.
