Tag: Conserve Wildlife Foundation of New Jersey

Story and photos by Meredith Wray, CWF Biological Technician

Conserve Wildlife Foundation (CWF) joined New Jersey Fish and Wildlife (NJFW), The Wetlands Institute, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to band royal terns for the third consecutive year in the Garden State this summer. Nesting on the protected shores of Horseshoe Island just outside Little Egg Inlet, these royal terns represent the northernmost colony in the Western Hemisphere for the species. During the 2025 nesting season, the island supported nearly 1,500 breeding adults and successfully fledged 405 chicks. Today, Horseshoe Island remains one of New Jersey’s most important coastal bird nesting sites and is on track to surpass last year’s totals as we begin to finalize data for the 2026 season. Continued management of the island is made possible thanks to the pivotal management rights agreement established in 2022 between the Tidelands Resource Council and NJFW.

Led by NJFW, this year’s banding initiative was a true team effort. Scientists, biologists, conservationists, and technicians from each organization brought their expertise and passion to every step of the process: transporting supplies to the island, orchestrating the safe handling of all birds, keeping watch over chicks, measuring weight, bill length, and wingspan, and carefully recording data.

Royal Tern Quick Facts:

1. Royal terns are seabirds in the Laridae family — which also includes gulls and skimmers — sporting a bright orange bill and shaggy black crest. Highly social by nature, they nest in dense colonies on sandy beaches and isolated islands.
2. Flightless chicks gather into large groups called crèches, almost like a bird daycare, where safety in numbers helps protect them from predators while adults forage. Even in a noisy crowd of thousands, each parent has the special ability to recognize its own chick’s voice when returning with food.

   

3. Royal terns primarily feed on small fish and are known for their precise diving abilities, soaring 20–30 feet before plunging into the water to snag a meal. They can be seen foraging in coastal waters, estuaries, and marshes.
4. Because their breeding range in New Jersey is limited, royal terns are especially vulnerable to habitat loss, human disturbance, and severe coastal storms — which is why their population is closely tracked through ongoing monitoring and banding efforts like this one.
5. Royal terns are typically banded as chicks, shortly before they’re able to fly. At this stage, they have left the nest but have not fledged yet, making it the safest time to handle, process, and release them.

But why is this work so important? And what exactly is bird banding?

What it is: Bird banding is a long-term research tool that helps scientists map migration routes, estimate survival, monitor population health, and better understand how birds respond to changing environmental conditions. By giving each bird a unique identifier, researchers can follow an individual throughout its lifetime, sometimes for more than 30 years!

The bands: Each chick receives two bands: a numbered aluminum band from the federal Bird Banding Laboratory on one leg and a colored plastic band with a unique alphanumeric code on the other. The metal band serves as the bird’s permanent identification number, while the colored band can be read from a distance with binoculars or a spotting scope. The colored band allows researchers and birders alike to identify individual birds from a safe distance without having to capture them again.

How it helps: Every reported sighting throughout a bird’s lifetime provides critical information, even if it might seem insignificant. Data collected helps biologists identify important breeding sites, determine seasonal beach closures, implement habitat protections, and track ongoing population trends.

Conservation success stories like this depend on a network of dedicated partners working toward a common goal, so we look forward to gaining more valuable insights about the New Jersey royal tern population as a result of this collaborative effort. We encourage birders of all ages and levels to keep their eyes peeled for royal terns and their little blue bands! You can make a positive impact by reporting your sightings to NJFW Senior Zoologist Emily Heiser at Emily.Heiser@dep.nj.gov.

Special thanks to Rutgers University Marine Field Station for assisting in the safe transportation of staff to Horseshoe Island.

All handling and banding of birds was completed for research purposes and under appropriate state and federal permits.

Each bald eagle nesting season volunteers monitor eagle nests throughout New Jersey.  Volunteers are the reason that NJ’s bald eagle population continues to thrive. Nest monitors not only keep track of important data, they alert us to any disturbance at the nests and educate the public.  Conserve Wildlife Foundation and NJ Endangered and Nongame Species Program welcomed 46 dedicated volunteers to Assunpink Wildlife Management Area for the annual Eagle Project Appreciation Picnic. Continue reading “Celebrating NJ Eagle Project Nest Monitors”

by: CWF Senior Biologist, Larissa Smith

Eagle nest monitors kept watch over bald eagle nests throughout New Jersey during the 2026 nesting season. As with every nesting season there were ups and downs as some pairs failed to hatch eggs or their young didn’t survive, while other pairs successfully raised young. I asked the nest monitors to send me two of their favorite photos from the season. Below is the collection of their excellent photos.

All photos were taken by the trained volunteers at safe distance so as not to disturb the eagles.

Thank you to the nest monitors for providing the photos. Thank you to all the eagle project volunteers for their efforts to protect New Jersey’s eagle population. Continue reading “The 2026 NJ Bald Eagle Nesting Season in Photos”

by NJ Eagle Project nest monitor, Barb McKee

In central Jersey, where I live, the banding of eaglets has taken place at several nests. The nest monitor reports on the chicks growth, so that the eaglets can be safely banded around six weeks of age.  E83 a male, was banded in 2019 at the Three Bridges tower nest with at least four of my fellow central Jersey Eagle Project Volunteers present.

In central New Jersey a group of  six Eagle Project volunteers will support, cooperate and share nest news with each other. Occasionally, we spot a banded sub-adult from a local nest, and that is cause for great jubilation. H/22, banded at the Mt Airy nest in 2022 was spotted along the South Branch of the Raritan near the Three Bridges tower nest in May of 2025. Another eagle E88, “Duke” was banded in 2019 at Duke Farms and fitted with a solar tracker. Being able to follow his movements taught us that sub adults spend considerable time within 50 miles or so, of their natal nest, even landing in the nest tree. The parents seem to tolerate such visits until a new season produces eggs and tiny chicks. I have seen sub adults at or perched near nests that I observe while the adult pair was quite tolerant. I have wondered if the “visitor” was an offspring of the pair.

My fellow central NJ volunteers and I hoped to find a new nest with a locally banded adult and its mate. For as long as I have been an Eagle Project volunteer, I have watched and reported on the nest at Bulls Island State Park. So, I was absolutely thrilled in early 2026 when I was able to read the band of the new male at the Bulls Island nest: E/83.

The distance, from the Three Bridges nest to Bulls Island nest is 14 miles.

Even more exciting, E/83 and his mate successfully fledged triplets this season! It will be interesting to see what happens at the Bulls Island nest next season.

Photos and/or history and encouragement by Diane Cook, Joe Mish, Dan Kroon and Mary Ellen Hill

by: Larissa Smith, Senior Biologist

This shorebird season 43 stewards worked a total of 1,374 hours over a two week period from May 9th thru May 25th.  Stewards were posted at restricted access beaches in Cape May and  Cumberland Counties.  Stewards help to protect the migrating shorebirds that stop over on the Delaware Bay to feed on the horseshoe crab eggs.  They keep people off of the restricted beaches by educating them about the importance of letting the shorebirds feed undisturbed so that they can gain the weight needed to continue their journey north to their breeding ground’s. Continue reading “NJ Delaware Bay Shorebird Stewards: Protectors and Educators”

by: Senior biologist, Larissa Smith

The 2025 NJ Bald Eagle Project report developed by the NJDEP Division of Fish and Wildlife and the Conserve Wildlife Foundation of New Jersey , has been released.  In 2025 the NJ eagle population had a decline in the number of active (laid eggs) nest from 264 active nests in 2024 to 251 in 2025.  The decline is partly due to the Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI). Testing confirmed that 28 of 56 bald eagle mortalities last year (for which testing was completed) were the result of HPAI.

Continue reading “2025 New Jersey Bald Eagle Report”

by: Larissa Smith, CWF Senior Biologist

This time of year most wildlife is hunkering down for the winter either in New Jersey or migrating to southern destinations until  the next breeding season.  One New Jersey salamander is just getting started, The Eastern Tiger Salamander(ETS) is the largest salamander species found in New Jersey and a state Endangered species.  ETS are found in only a few locations in southern NJ.  Conserve Wildlife Foundation works with the NJ Endangered and Nongame Species program to monitor ETS breeding pools and populations.  ETS spend most of their adult lives in underground borrows they will emerge to breed on warm wet nights beginning in December through February.  The females lay egg masses in vernal pools and then return to their burrows.  CWF’s website has detailed information on the ETS lifecycle

These vernal breeding pools are a necessity for the ETS population to survive in New Jersey.  In 2025 due to low water levels from a drought, only a few of the deeper breeding pools had enough water for ETS breeding activity.  These breeding pools not only face threats from climate change but also from pollution, habitat loss and disturbance from off road vehicles.

It’s important to identify new ETS breeding pools so that they can be monitored and protected. Some exciting new projects are in the future for the ETS project including collecting habitat and water quality data, eDNA study and a VIE (visible implant elastomer) study.

You can help by reporting any Eastern Tiger Salamander Sighting to the NJ Wildlife Tracker

by CWF Senior Biologist, Larissa Smith

On September 28th a bald eagle with a green band was reported in the Princeton area and again on October 5th, by Susan VanderKam.  The code on the band was D99 an eagle who fledged from the 2014 Duke Farms nest.  In 2014 the Duke Farms pair raised and fledged three eaglets while being viewed by thousands of people on the eagle cam. The eaglets were banded by state biologists at six weeks of age.  D99 a male and the youngest, D98 a male and the second youngest and a female, EOO who was the oldest eaglet. They all fledged in June, 2014.

On August 25th, 2014,  D98 was found dead in Little Sebago, Maine. For more details on what occurred prior to his death see the blog post.  E00 the only female has been resighted once and that was on the Duke Farm eagle cam.  On February 20th, 2018 as a four year old eagle she returned to her natal nest, while the Duke Farms pair was incubating. The female eventually chased her away.

D99 has been resighted several times since fledging. He was seen in January 2019 at Mercer Lakes

In January 2021 he was seen feeding on a deer carcass in Monmouth County.

D99 is now 11 years old and is most likely in a breeding pair and nesting. On September 28th he was perched in a tree with another eagle.  Perhaps this is his mate? It would be very exciting to know that he is nesting and we’ll keep you updated.

by: Larissa Smith, CWF Senior Biologist

The New Jersey Bald Eagle nesting season is finished for the year, so both the eagles and volunteer nest monitors now get a few months rest.  Conserve Wildlife Foundation and the NJ ENSP hosted the annual eagle volunteer get-together at the Assunpink WMA this past Saturday.  Forty-five volunteers attended and enjoyed discussing the season with fellow nest monitors and NJ eagle project staff.

On behalf of the NJ Eagle Project we thank all the 160 nest monitors who are dedicated to monitoring and protecting the NJ bald eagle population.

Thank you to Barb & Rick McKee for providing sandwiches and everyone who generously brought delicious side dishes and desserts to share.

by Larissa Smith, CWF Senior Biologist

The 2025 New Jersey Bald Eagle nesting season is finished. We are still gathering up the data for the final numbers which will be published in the annual NJ Bald Eagle Project Report. The 160 eagle project nest monitors spend countless hours monitoring eagle nests through out New Jersey. I’ve asked the nest monitors to share two of their favorite photos from the 2025 nesting season. Enjoy.

Please click on the first photo to see the Slideshow: