New friends and familiar faces gathered at the Cape May Point Science Center (CMPSC) earlier this month to learn about our American oystercatcher project in Delaware Bay, while enjoying a stunning exhibition of wildlife watercolors by artist James Fiorentino. Guests were warmly welcomed by the staff of Conserve Wildlife Foundation (CWF) and CMPSC, and they enjoyed beautiful weather, delicious food, and engaging conversations. Each visitor received a complimentary set of twenty-five wildlife trading cards, showcasing Fiorentino’s realistic paintings of at-risk species alongside informative descriptions. These cards can be purchased at Wildlife Trading Cards / Rare Wildlife Revealed Collection | Conserve Wildlife Foundation of NJ.
A special thank you goes to the Cape May Point Science Center, James Fiorentino, and our event sponsors, Pure Insurance and the Merrill G. and Emita E. Hastings Foundation.
The Cape May Point Science Center is a valued supporter of CWF’s American oystercatcher monitoring on the Delaware Bay and has provided funding for five GPS transmitters to study oystercatcher movements and habitat use. Thanks to this partnership, CWF and our colleagues at the Wetlands Institute deployed transmitters on two Delaware Bay oystercatchers this past season, marking the first time these birds have been geo-tagged in New Jersey. During the event, CWF biologist Emmy Casper highlighted this collaboration and shared initial movement data collected from the tagged birds.
CWF’s partnership with James began in 2016 with the successful “Rare Wildlife Revealed: The James Fiorentino Traveling Art Exhibition,” which featured twenty-five original watercolor paintings of some of New Jersey’s most endangered and vulnerable wildlife species. This exhibition captivated thousands at various venues, from museums and universities to breweries and ballparks.
James Fiorentino’s evocative artwork inspires viewers through lifelike depictions of rare wildlife in their natural habitats. His watercolor paintings truly bring these species to life on paper, educating and engaging the public about the significant declines many of them face. By highlighting these charismatic yet often-overlooked animals, our partnership aims to raise awareness about actionable steps individuals can take to support wildlife conservation.
The new wildlife trading card set represents the next phase of our collaboration with James to promote wildlife conservation through art. While James has previously created top-selling sports trading cards for brands like Topps and Upper Deck, this marks his first foray into wildlife art on trading cards. This exciting project merges his artistic talent with educational outreach, furthering our efforts to raise awareness and support for the vulnerable species that CWF is dedicated to protecting.
Stay tuned for future exhibitions featuring James Fiorentino’s wildlife watercolors and the new wildlife trading card set!
2024 Eagle Project Get-together; photo by: Kathy Clark
We can never thank the NJ Eagle Project volunteers enough for all they do to monitor and protect eagles in New Jersey. Conserve Wildlife Foundation hosted a get-together at the Assunpink Conservation Center this August as a way to say, “thank you”. There are 162 eagle project volunteers currently monitoring eagle nests statewide and it’s not always easy to get everyone together at one time due to distance and obligations. The volunteers who were able to attend shared stories with other volunteers about the nesting season, received an update on the proposed eagle delisting from ENSP Chief, Kathy Clark and hopefully felt very appreciated. This is down time for the eagle project volunteers, though some eagles are already back and working on their nests. THANK YOU to all the Eagle Project Volunteers.
photo by Don TorinoPhoto by Susan Harrisonphoto by Susan Harrison
The Bald Eagle project would not be possible without our corporate partners. We would like to thank PSE&G, Wakefern/ShopRite Stores, Wells Fargo Advisors, and the Cape May County Zoo (AAZK) for providing crucial financial and outreach resources to help keep bald eagles soaring above New Jersey.
Conserve Wildlife Foundation has successfully completed the restoration of the Certified Wildlife Habitat behind the Trailside Nature and Science Center at Watchung Reservation. The project was initiated last fall with a major clean up of the overgrown and neglected garden. The cleanup included pulling weeds, digging up unwanted and overgrown plants, trimming shrubs and trees, clearing vines from trees, and raking and blowing leaves. As a result, sunlight was let into the garden so that new wildlife-friendly plants could be added. After the cleanup, new native shrubs were planted that attract bees, butterflies, hummingbirds, and other birds. A new deer fence was also installed to protect the plantings from deer browse.
CWF biologist Sherry Tirgrath prepares a river birch sapling for planting
As the coordinator for CWF’s Amphibian Crossing Project, I think it’s safe to say I spend more time than the average person hoping for rain to pop up in springtime forecasts. April 22, however, is always an exception. What could be better than warm and sunny conditions to inspire folks to get outside and celebrate Earth Day by giving back to the planet that gives us, well, everything? Mother Nature certainly came through with the weather last week, handing us one of the most glorious days of the season thus far, while the Elizabeth Mayor Chris Bollwage, Union County Board of County Commissioners, Groundwork Elizabeth, and their partners offered a destination for all the aspiring wildlife warriors: Phil Rizzuto Park.
Due to overwhelming demand, our first screening of the film about Monty and Rose, Chicago’s famous piping plovers, has REACHED CAPACITY.
In light of this, a second virtual showing has been added on Thursday March 25 from 7:00-8:15 pm EST.
Once again, the short film will be followed by a Q&A with Todd Pover, CWF’s Senior Wildlife Biologist and Bob Dolgan, the film’s creator. And just like the first showing, one lucky participant will also be chosen at random to win a Piping Plover Prize Pack! Prizes include a newly designed CWF PIPL hat and other assorted beach nesting bird goodies to be shipped right to your home.
Admission is free, but you’ll need to register at the link below.
Written and directed by Bob Dolgan, “Monty and Rose” tells the story of a pair of endangered piping plovers that nested at Chicago’s Montrose Beach in the summer of 2019, becoming the first of the species to nest in the city since 1955. With a music festival scheduled to take place within feet of the plovers’ nest site, volunteers, advocates, and biologists get to work in order to protect the vulnerable pair. The documentary follows these efforts, including interviews with those there to help this special pair nesting on one of the busiest beaches in Chicago.
About the Hosts:
Bob Dolgan is a life long birder and filmmaker from Chicago. He’s the founder of Turnstone Strategies, author of the This Week in Birding newsletter, and a past Board Member of Chicago Ornithological Society.
Todd Pover has been involved in research, monitoring, and management of beach nesting birds for over 25 years in New Jersey and other portions of the flyway. He heads up the CWF beach nesting bird project and leads our Bahamas piping plover wintering grounds initiative.
Join us onMarch 18, 2021 at 7pm,for a virtual presentation of the 23-minute documentary hosted by “Monty and Rose” director Bob Dolgan and CWF Senior Biologist Todd Pover. This will mark the film’s first screening on the East Coast!
Written and directed by Bob Dolgan, “Monty and Rose” tells the story of a pair of endangered piping plovers that nested at Chicago’s Montrose Beach in the summer of 2019, becoming the first of the species to nest in the city since 1955. With a music festival scheduled to take place within feet of the plovers’ nest site, volunteers, advocates, and biologists get to work in order to protect the vulnerable pair. The documentary follows these efforts, including interviews with those there to help this special pair nesting on one of the busiest beaches in Chicago.
The screening will include an introduction to “Monty and Rose” provided by the director prior to the film screening. After the film, Bob Dolgan and Todd Pover will host an audience Q&A and conversation about the film, piping plovers, and beach nesting birds!
One lucky participant will also be chosen at random to win a Piping Plover Prize Pack! Prizes include a newly designed CWF PIPL hat and other assorted beach nesting bird goodies to be shipped right to your home.
We hope you’ll join us for an evening celebrating piping plovers and those who work to protect them.
Bob Dolgan is a life long birder and filmmaker from Chicago. He’s the founder of Turnstone Strategies, author of the This Week in Birding newsletter, and a past Board Member of Chicago Ornithological Society.
Todd Pover has been involved in research, monitoring, and management of beach nesting birds for over 25 years in New Jersey and other portions of the flyway. He heads up the CWF beach nesting bird project and leads our Bahamas piping plover wintering grounds initiative.
On November 12, 2020, Conserve Wildlife
Foundation proudly celebrated the 44 Women & Wildlife honorees who have
taken a valuable role in protecting wildlife in New Jersey and now serve as
role models and mentors for countless young wildlife leaders, male and female
alike.
The Women & Wildlife
Awards event always
brings together a great group of people who care deeply about wildlife
conservation in New Jersey. They join us to honor women – biologists and land
stewards, policy advocates and conservation officers, rehabilitators and
educators – whose exemplary work has meant irreplaceable strides in so many
fields of conservation. Unwilling to let Covid-19 stand in the way of our
revelry, we decided to make this year’s celebration virtual. While we missed
seeing everyone in person, the shift to an online celebration allowed us to
open the event to everyone free of charge and eschew our usual awards for a
celebration of our past Women & Wildlife honorees and their remarkable
accomplishments.
Past honoree and CWF founder Linda Tesauro narrated a film exploring Women & Wildlife and the unique role of New Jersey in setting a pioneering model for other states to follow which premiered during the event. From inaugural honorees, Dr. Joanna Burger and Hannah Bonsey Suthers, to the five honorees celebrated at last year’s event at Duke Farms, the video details the struggles faced by women early on and how their leadership and legacies continue to inspire us all. This six-minute video can be found below and on the Conserve Wildlife YouTube page.
We thank Linda Tesauro, Amy Greene,
and Diane Nickerson for sharing their heartfelt reflections on receiving their
awards, and current CWF biologists Larissa Smith, Allegra Mitchell, and Nicole
Porter for speaking about the great women who have influenced them.
We owe a special thank you to our lead sponsor PSE&G, as well as Weeks Marine and Hudson Farm Foundation, and Amy Greene, whose sponsorship honored her late husband John Belle. These along with our other generous sponsors and auction contributors made this year’s virtual Women & Wildlife Celebration a tremendous success!
Virtual award ceremony participants from left to right: (top row) CWF Executive Director David Wheeler, PSEG Foundation Chairman Rick Thigpen, CWF Director of Education Stephanie DAlessio, Third Place Winner Lauren Johnson, First Place Winner Virginia Higgins, and Second Place Winner Rory Leadbeater
If you browse through social media, you will find some incredibly creative and effective ways to help imperiled wildlife. You might be compelled by calls-to-action, experience stunning photographs, or may even discover posts about New Jersey’s vulnerable species that—thanks to talented New Jersey high schoolers—got their share of screen time, likes, and retweets during the Conserve Wildlife Foundation’s (CWF) fifth annual Species on the Edge 2.0 Social Media contest.
One of the winning Instagram posts by Virginia Higgins, highlighting the diets of Piping Plovers.
Over the course of 8 days, hundreds of students from across the state created Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook posts about animals that the CWF protects. Through campaigns that featured original artwork, photos, and infographics, contestants took the internet by storm, rose awareness about their chosen species, and garnered nearly 12,000 likes.
The three finalists were celebrated on June 18 in a Facebook Live virtual awards ceremony. The PSEG Foundation sponsored the contest and provided scholarships to the winners.
Wildlife takes center stage this summer in a series of virtual presentations.
Conserve Wildlife Foundation and Mercer County Park Commission will present four one-hour webinars this summer, focusing on wildlife that affects our lives, even in an urbanized environment.
Each year on the third Friday in May, the United States celebrates National Endangered Species Day. It is a chance for people of all ages to celebrate and learn about endangered species and how to protect them. Here are 5 ways you can celebrate New Jersey’s wildlife virtually, individually, and locally to stay safe during the corona virus crisis. Without the Endangered Species Act there wouldn’t be as many species in New Jersey to celebrate.
