Over the past two years, our team, with the help of funding from the Neotropical Migratory Bird Conservation Act, has worked to create critical habitat maps and detailed threat maps for at-risk shorebird species in Northern Brazil and in Tierra Del Fuego, Chile. These projects have established the foundation for conservation planning in these important wintering areas for migratory shorebirds like red knots.
Brazil:
Two years ago, our team began working in Northern, Brazil covering the Atlantic coastline of both Pará and Maranhão state between Belém and São Luís. Our team conducted two successful excursions to Brazil taking point count surveys of wading shorebirds collecting approximately 44,700 individual bird sightings to add to the database our team created for the critical habitat maps (Figures 1 & 2).
Figure 2. Results from the 2017 point count survey
Figure 1. Results from the 2016 point count survey
David Santos and Larry Niles conduct point sampling surveys in Maranhão Brazil.
We conducted surveys using point count methods using fixed radius plots positioned along transects, with all wading birds counted within the 250m radius. Transects were conducted by either walking or while in a boat across various tidal stages and a variety of habitat types including mangrove creeks, sand flats, mudflats and beaches.
Brazil Team: Carla Meneguin, Paulo Siqueira, Ana Paula Sousa, Larry Niles, Juliana Almeida, Carmem Fedrizzi Joe Smith, Stephanie Feigin, Yann Rochepault, Laura Reis and Christophe Buiden (photo by Juliana Almeida)
Our team then created threat maps of the region from coastal development, mining operations, offshore drilling, and shrimp farming to help inform future conservation planning and mitigate impacts of these activities to the critical shorebird habitat in the region.
Chile:
This year, with a second round of funding, our team conducted work in Tierra Del Fuego, Chile to create critical habitat and detailed threat maps for Bahia Lomas in Chile. Bahia Lomas is both a globally significant RAMSAR wetlands site and a Western Hemisphere shorebird site of hemispheric importance.
Shorebirds in Bahia Lomas
Historically, Bahía Lomas and nearby Rio Grande supported wintering populations of 67,000 red knots – the largest wintering area for knots in the Western Hemisphere. In the last 30 years, however, the population has declined to less than 15,000 knots in Bahía Lomas and the population in Rio Grande is functionally extinct (Morrison et al 1989).
Aerial Survey over Bahia Lomas
This January our team conducted surveys along the coast of Bahia Lomas to understand distribution of shorebird species within the region, using the same sampling methods, study key roosting and feeding habitats, and delineate critical habitat and threats to the region to inform future conservation and minimize impacts to shorebird populations.
Team in Chile including Ross Wood, Stu Mackenzie, Carmen Espoz, Larry Niles, Joe Smith, Yann Rochepault, Christophe Buidin, Antonio Larrea, Richard Lathrop, Stephanie Feigin and Amanda Dey.
Over two weeks our team of New Jerseyans and Canadians conducted point-count sampling surveys throughout the bay with large assistance from our partners from Universidad Santo Tomás in Chile to determine key habitats. Additionally, our team conducted four aerial surveys to get species distribution counts on a large scale of the whole bay at various tide stages, as well as a helicopter survey to continue the population counts of the region done by Dr. Guy Morrison. Finally, our partners with the Universidad Santo Tomás conducted marine invertebrate sampling surveys. These data will be combined to aid in the creation of a GIS mapping system that can identify the most important shorebird habitats in the region.
In the next few months our team will use these data and overlay them with threat mapping to determine the critical habitats undergoing the greatest threats. This project is designed set the stage for proactive conservation planning that will mitigate future threats and will hopefully uncover the source of ongoing declines to the shorebirds in this region.
Citation:
Morrison R.I.G. & Ross R.K. (1989) Atlas of Nearctic shorebirds on the coast of South America. Canadian Wildlife Service Ottawa (Canada).
In Part I of this series, I discussed the drastic loss of grasslands in New Jersey and the importance of preserving and restoring this disappearing habitat for grassland-dependent bird species. Due to this habitat loss, in much of the northeastern United States (including New Jersey) airports have become significant breeding grounds for many threatened and endangered grassland birds. In fact, airports are often the only suitable habitat available for New Jersey’s rarest grassland bird, the upland sandpiper. If these large expanses of open fields are managed properly, they can support nesting birds while still remaining safe for aircraft operation. This is the goal of CWF’s new restoration project at one of the most critical breeding sites in New Jersey.
Restoration site at Lakehurst breeding grounds, December 2017. Photo by Meghan Kolk.
The Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst (JBMDL) in central New Jersey hosts the largest known breeding colony of the endangered upland sandpiper (Bartramia longicauda), and the second-largest known breeding colony of the threatened grasshopper sparrow (Ammodramus savannarum) in the State. The bobolink (Dolichonyx oryzivorus), savannah sparrow (Passerculus sandwichensis), horned lark (Eremophila alpestris) (all threatened) and eastern meadowlark (Sturnella magna) (special concern) all make a home here as well during the nesting season. CWF has partnered with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to restore hundreds of acres of this vital land to increase suitability and to alter management practices to benefit both wildlife and airfield operations. Continue reading “Grassland Birds of New Jersey”
Boy Scout Dylan Green gives osprey nesting platform a needed upgrade
by Ben Wurst, Habitat Program Manager
Dylan and his father John pose for a quick portrait in front of one of the new platforms.
This past Sunday we assisted Dylan Green, along with his family and fellow Troop 65 scouts to install three new osprey nesting platforms. The project was done by Dylan as part of his Eagle Scout Service Project. He self funded the project using his own money to purchase the supplies needed to construct the platforms and built the platforms together with his fellow Boy Scouts. The platforms were used to replace two platforms that were in bad condition. The third was installed in a location where a platform used to be located. The osprey population at Cheesequake State Park is small, but it is good habitat for ospreys. Continue reading “Photos from the Field: Cheesequake Osprey Platform Replacement”
In the end of October, NJ Eagle Project volunteer Randy Lubischer spotted a banded adult bald eagle near his home in Monmouth County. He was able take good photos that showed the bird was banded with a blue (NY) band on the left leg and was able to get a very clear image of the letter and number code on the band. We reached out to the NY Division of Fish, Wildlife and Marine Resources to find out more information on the eagle.
In the fall of 2011, an injured hatch year bird was found on the side of the road in Onondaga County, NY. The bird was rehabbed, banded (NY Blue band W34) and released on October 7, 2011 at the Montezuma NWR. On 11/18/2016, W34 was sighted in Darlington, Maryland and then in in NE Maryland again on 3/1/2017.
W34& mate 11/7/17@Randy Lubischer
W34 looks to be staying in NJ to nest as he has found a mate, a sub-adult female, who still has dark feathers on her head. They have started to build a nest and have been copulating.
We can’t necessarily assume that W34 was hatched in NY. Since he was found injured and not banded he could well be a NJ bird. We have followed NJ recent fledges outfitted with transmitters, take long flights north after leaving their nest areas. We also know that many NJ banded eagles do return to NJ to nest. So we’ll never know the true origin of W34 but we can piece together some of his story and hopefully have more news about him and his mate in the upcoming nesting season.
“Chimney swifts, which migrate through northern New Jersey by the thousands each September, have fallen on tough times as more and more large chimneys fall into disuse.
These small, insect-devouring birds have abandoned traditional migration roosts like the huge chimney at George Washington Middle School in Ridgewood in recent years. Another popular roost for these fast-flying, bug-eating birds — a chimney at the Berkeley Elementary School in Westwood — may get capped in 2018.”
NJ Osprey Project Volunteers Wayne Russell, Matt Tribulski and John King repair an osprey platform.
New Jersey ospreys have headed for warmer climates until their return in the spring. NJ osprey project volunteers are busy repairing and cleaning out nests, adding predator guards and perches in preparation for the nesting season. It’s an endless job as there are 100’s of nesting platforms throughout the state and maintenance is always needed. These repairs keep the nests as safe as possible for the nesting ospreys.
Former Gov. Kean delivers stirring keynote speech before 200 people at Duke Farms event
Kelly Mooij, Jeannie Geremia, CWF Executive Director David Wheeler, Hazel England, Amy S. Greene, Honorable Kip Bateman, and Honorable Tom Kean.
Hillsborough, NJ – The nonprofit Conserve Wildlife Foundation of New Jersey (CWF) celebrated their 12th annual Women & Wildlife Awards on November 1 before over 200 people at Duke Farms in Hillsborough, New Jersey.
The 2017 honorees include Hazel England of the Great Swamp Watershed Association, Jeannie Geremia of the Garden Club of New Jersey, Kelly Mooij of New Jersey Audubon, and Kris Schantz of the New Jersey Endangered and Nongame Species Program.
CWF Development Director Liz Silvernail, The Honorable Tom Kean, Yasmine Pessar from Dewberry, and Betty Ann Kelly from Union County Dept. of Parks and Recreation.
“Tonight we are recognizing four great women who have accomplished wonderful things and who have worked in their own way to make this world and this state a better place,” said former New Jersey Governor Tom Kean in his keynote speech. “They have worked to do what is necessary to make sure that when we pass this planet down to our children and our grandchildren, it is not worse than what we received. These four women show us what great things an individual can do for all of us.”
Since 2006, CWF’s Women & Wildlife Awards have recognized special individuals for their achievements on behalf of New Jersey’s wildlife and the advances they have made in professions in which women have long been underrepresented.
“All too often, young girls are turned away from promising careers in the STEM fields – Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics,” said David Wheeler, CWF Executive Director. “Yet here in New Jersey, wildlife conservation efforts benefit from a strong and inspiring core of female scientists, educators, advocates, researchers, and rehabilitators who serve as role models for the next generation. Thanks to our Women & Wildlife honorees, today’s young girls can feel confident in pursuing science and conservation as careers with limitless and exciting possibilities.”
Hazel England, Great Swamp Watershed Association Director of Outreachand Education, was honored for bringing environmental education programs about our local ecosystems and habitats to students and teachers of all ages.
“I am honored to have received the Educator Women & Wildlife Award from Conserve Wildlife Foundation. It was truly humbling to be in the company of such inspirational women who are working in the field of conservation,” said England. “I’m thrilled that my two daughters got to experience this event with me; learning about the great work these other remarkable women are doing, and gaining some very direct political insight from Governor Tom Kean. It was a real privilege to hear him speak and a highlight of the night for me.”
Jeannie Geremia, Great Swamp Watershed Association Director of Outreachand Education, was honored for bringing environmental education programs about our local ecosystems and habitats to students and teachers of all ages.
Service honoree Jeannie Geremia with friends and family.
“Receiving the Conserve Wildlife Foundation’s Women in Wildlife 2017 Award for Service is one of the highlights of my life and I am humbled by the august company of outstanding women who were similarly honored,” said Geremia. “Nature is our passion and working to ensure that our imperiled wildlife species, including our pollinators, survive and thrive is the common goal. Joining dedicated individuals and organizations in a united effort of educating and inspiring people to action will accomplish these mutual goals of a healthy environment for all living creatures. Governor Kean said it all so eloquently as he invoked the spirits of Rachel Carson and Helen Fenske in his heartfelt keynote speech, setting the tone for this memorable event.”
State Senator Kip Bateman presented Jeannie Geremia with her award.
“Jeannie, you really have dedicated your life to making a difference, and it’s so important what you’ve done,” said Senator Bateman. “It’s a real pleasure to be here to honor four outstanding women who have truly made a difference in New Jersey. Each of you is so deserving of this award.”
Kelly Mooij, New Jersey Audubon Vice President of Government Relations, was honored for her strong leadership on a number of successful watershed protection, open space preservation, and wildlife funding campaigns.
“I’m honored to have received this recognition from the Conserve Wildlife Foundation, a wonderful partner in protecting our amazing wildlife throughout the State,” said Mooij. “Educating decision-makers and supporting science-based policy is one of the most effective and efficient ways to protect wildlife and preserve habitat and I’ve been so fortunate in my career to be able to work with amazing non-profit colleagues and to use the powerful tool of advocacy to make NJ a better place for people and wildlife.”
Kris Schantz, principal zoologist with the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection’s Endangered and Nongame Species Program, was honored for her work protecting the endangered timber rattlesnake and other at-risk reptiles.
Inspiration honoree Kris Schantz with NJDEP supporters with CWF Executive Director David Wheeler.
“I am truly honored to have received this award from the Conserve Wildlife Foundation, as there are so many deserving women doing invaluable conservation work within New Jersey,” said Schantz. “We must all – women, men, children – continue to strive to make NJ a better place for our citizens and future generations through the protection and nurturing of our natural resources.”
Event sponsors included PSE&G, Eric Sambol, The Danberry and DeLucia Family, Dr. Barbara Brummer, Dewberry, James Fiorentino, Amy S. Greene Environmental Consultants, Inc., Lackland Associates, Inc., Merrill G. & Emita E. Hastings Foundation, Dr. Kumar Patel.
Patrons included Bountiful Gardens, Bob and Maureen Coleman, Glenn Insurance, Inc., Elwood and Ruth Kerkeslager, Mercer County Wildlife Center, New Jersey Audubon, Renzi Bernardi Suarez & Co., Rick Weiman, Your Part-Time Controlled, and Zoological Society of New Jersey.
Conserve Wildlife Foundation staff with former New Jersey Governor Tom Kean.
Hazel England has spent 24 years as an enthusiastic environmental educator and naturalist in New Jersey, bringing education programs about our local ecosystems and habitats to students and teachers of all ages. Since 2004, Ms. England has led educational and stewardship programs at the Great Swamp Watershed Association as the Director of Outreach and Education. She is a state-certified facilitator for many nationally acclaimed environmental education curriculums, including Project WILD, WET, WOW, PLT HWHP, and Bridges to the Natural World.
Ms. England has a Bachelor of Science in Zoology and Botany from the University of Dundee, as well as a Master’s degree in Ecology and Environmental Management from the University of Aberdeen in Scotland. She sets an excellent model for other women to follow by being an accomplished natural scientist who brings her passion to life for people of all ages.
JEANNIE GEREMIA: SERVICE
For the past decade as the Vice President for the Garden Club of New Jersey, Jeannie Geremia has followed her passion for protecting pollinators by leading, inspiring, and educating others on the importance of pollination and wildlife habitat gardens. Ms. Geremia championed the designation of the Black Swallowtail Butterfly as the New Jersey State Butterfly. Her action earned her recognition from both the New Jersey Senate and the General Assembly.
Ms. Geremia created attractive Pollinator Education Signs that are displayed statewide at local plant nurseries, horticulture garden visitor centers, and a variety of education centers. She has also created and presented over 75 Pollinator Education programs, and has written 89 articles – and counting – for Gardener News on wildlife preservation, conservation, and growing our decimated pollinator population.
KELLY MOOIJ: LEADERSHIP
Since 2008, Kelly Mooij has dedicated herself to utilizing the tools of law, policy, and government affairs to protect our state’s wildlife as Vice President of Government Relations at the NJ Audubon.
Ms. Mooij helped lead the formation of the multi-state Coalition for the Delaware River Watershed to protect the watershed that provides drinking water for 16 million people and support hundreds of miles of vital fish and wildlife habitat. In coordinating the Keep It Green Coalition for open space preservation, Ms. Mooij helped lead the passage of two state-wide bond measures totaling $600 million dollars. The 2014 permanent source of open space funding will bring $1 billion to the state every ten years.
Ms. Mooij also leads the annual lobbying efforts of New Jersey’s environmental organizations for the State and Tribal Wildlife Grant Program, which provide an average of $1 million dollars in federal grant funds to state fish and wildlife agencies. Ms. Mooij earned her Juris Doctorate and Master of Studies in Environmental Law, focusing on marine biodiversity and land and water use issues.
KRIS SCHANTZ: INSPIRATION
Kris Schantz works with one of New Jersey’s most underappreciated and persecuted species: the timber rattlesnake. Ms. Schantz developed the Venomous Snake Response team of volunteers and professionals in law enforcement, animal control, and parks management who safely remove venomous snakes from areas where they pose a risk – while also protecting these endangered reptiles.
Her field studies have expanded to include other vulnerable snake species, such as the corn snake, northern pine snake, and scarlet snake. Ms. Schantz has also led the development of the department’s Wildlife Action Plan, transforming and bettering the wildlife conservation agency’s work. She earned her Masters of Science degree from Rutgers University. Ms. Schantz has gained the deep respect of the nearly everyone who works with imperiled snakes in New Jersey, and she serves as an example of passion, enthusiasm, and commitment in her field.
A new pollinator habitat is created in Middle Township
By: Larissa Smith; CWF Wildlife Biologist
The Middle Township Environmental Commission in cooperation with the Conserve Wildlife Foundation of NJ worked to create a pollinator habitat at a recreation site in the township which is located in Cape May County. Commission members had been working to obtain permission to plant a pollinator garden on a township site. The Ockie Wisting Recreation Complex was just officially opened in the end of October. This recreation site will have playing fields, a playground and a wooded trail that leads to a lake and fishing pier.
With funding from Atlantic City Electric volunteers with the Middle Township Environmental Commission and Conserve Wildlife Foundation of NJ planted 138 native perennials . While it doesn’t look like much right now, come next spring and summer there will be plants for bees, butterflies and birds to use for food and habitat. Not only will this pollinator meadow be great for wildlife, it won’t have to be mowed. The Environmental Commission will be in charge of maintenance and plans another work day in the spring to remove any non-native plants and trees in the area. We also plan to use this site as a demonstration garden for others interested in planting for pollinators.
Ockie Wisting Pollinator Habitat: List of Plantings – Fall 2017
Figure 1. Results from the 2016 point count survey
