Eric Stiles
Vice President for Conservation & Stewardship

June 2, 2002

The Big Picture

NJ Audubon Society's Conservation Department will be launching the NJ Important Bird and Birding Areas project in late fall 2002. The Important Bird Area (IBA) program was initiated in Europe during the 1980's to identify and protect critical areas to breeding, migrating and wintering birds. The American Bird Conservancy recently completed identifying national IBAs. In recognition of NJ Audubon's strong conservation programs, National Audubon Society, which is directing state-based IBA programs, asked us to oversee this project in New Jersey. David Mizrahi (Vice President for Research), who will be helping guide the project, attended a national meeting in Big Sur, CA on implementing a state-based IBA initiative. NJ Audubon will begin a two-year venture to identify Important Bird and Birding areas in New Jersey. The Conservation Department will work with NJAS staff, National Audubon chapters, the state's endangered species program and other bird clubs to map these areas. Site nominations will be based upon data from our Breeding Bird Atlas, Records of New Jersey Birds, Christmas Bird Counts, NJ Endangered Species Program's Landscape Project and notes from birdwatchers. Once identified, the sites will be characterized, including relevant bird species, habitat and threats. The work will result in a book discussing each Important Bird and Birding Area including conservation, education and research needs. We will then launch the second phase of site protection through acquisition, stewardship, education and research.

A New Jersey Audubon member recently asked me if the "Shorebird-Horseshoe Crab problem had been solved". NJ Audubon has been working hard to protect shorebirds and horseshoe crabs for over a decade. Despite significant conservation steps in recent years, we are on the verge of an ecological collapse on the Delaware Bayshore. Close to 1 million shorebirds from nine species, including the state threatened Red Knot, arrive on the Delaware Bay from South American each spring to feast on horseshoe crab eggs. The fat rich diet is needed to fuel their long flight to the Arctic breeding grounds. Shorebirds rely on a superabundance of reproductive age class horseshoe crabs to produce and excavate enough eggs for this weight gain.

Recent research results are alarming.

1. There has been a 54% decline in the number of wintering Red Knots in Tierra del Fuego, South America since 2000. In 2002, researchers counted 20,755 Red Knots; this is a 30% decline from the 2001 count of 29,335 and a 54% decline since 2000 (45,150 individuals).

2. Similarly, many shorebird species have shown a significant decline. The number of Red Knots counted on the Delaware Bay is decreasing by 17.9% per year.

3. Studies show daily weight gains of Red Knot and Semipalmated Sandpipers have dropped precipitously. The disappearance of horseshoe crabs is the culprit. In fact, many birds leave the Delaware Bay without enough fat reserves to reach the Arctic breeding grounds.

4. Horseshoe crab egg counts on the Delaware Bay show an alarming decline in the amount of Horseshoe crab eggs available to foraging shorebirds. This is consistent with Delaware survey trawl data showing a 75% decline in horseshoe crabs in 11 years.

5. Horseshoe crabs are a long-lived species, not reaching sexual maturation until 9 years of age. Harvesting is allowed to occur even though no stock assessment has been completed for this species. We are harvesting in the absence of sound science.

The Conservation Department has testified at the NJ Marine Fisheries Council and Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission asking for an interim moratorium on the harvest of horseshoe crabs until a stock assessment has been completed and a fisheries management plan drafted ensuring an adequate food supply for shorebirds. We have also launched a letter writing campaign to Governor McGreevey asking for a moratorium. NJ Audubon is partnering with Sierra Club, American Bird Conservancy, National Audubon Society, Defenders of Wildlife and other organizations on this issue. Since this is a regional issue, Delaware and other mid-Atlantic states need to be part of the solution.

We will need help from NJ Audubon members to make this campaign a success. Please click here for a sample letter, and continue to visit this website for issue updates. If you are interested in helping, please send an e-mail to conservation@njaudubon.org or write to the Conservation Department at PO Box 693, Bernardsville NJ 07924.

Amid the urban northeast, lies a patchwork of world-class bird and wildlife habitat. The rich wetlands complexes of Glacial Lake Passaic, including Great Swamp, Troy Meadows and Great Piece Meadows, comprise oases for a large diversity of breeding, migrant and wintering birds. It is home to state endangered birds and amphibians. These wetlands complexes, surrounded by interstates and dense suburbia, continue to thrive. It is time to expand the acquisition area of the Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge to include these and other gems. The wetlands surrounding the Passaic River are also important for flood control. These basins help buffer massive run-off from the surrounding asphalt blanket. Expanding the federal acquisition area will bring funds for acquisition, management and recreation. Too often New Jersey does not get its fair share of federal acquisition money through the Land and Water Conservation Fund. Making these areas part of the National Wildlife Refuge system would help celebrate the 100th anniversary for the nation's terrific refuge complex.

Moving Good Ideas Forward

New Jersey Audubon joined other Highlands Coalition members in Washington D.C. to advocate for additional federal land acquisition funds through Forest Legacy and Land and Water Conservation Funds. Special thanks goes to Congresswoman Roukema and Congressmen Pallone for initiating a letter in support of these funds. Congressmen Andrews, Ferguson, Holt, Pascrell, Rothman, Saxton, and Smith also signed the letter. We also participated on a committee with Congressman Gilman to draft the Highlands Stewardship Act. The bill, recognizing the national importance of the Highlands, would authorize spending $250 million over ten years for land acquisition and $49 million over 7 years for stewardship assistance. The importance of this work was highlighted by the spring completion of the US Forest Service's NY/NJ Highlands Regional Study draft report (http://www.fs.fed.us/na/highlands). Special thanks goes to Congressman Frelinghuysen and Senator Torricelli for securing funds for this important study. The report documents the region's critical natural resources, including water, wildlife, forest, and recreation. The study concludes that these resources will be severely compromised or destroyed by development. Close to 100,000 acres critical to these resources are immediately threatened by largely unregulated growth. Acquisition funds and regional planning are needed to help safeguard this resource.

As reported in the last issue, NJ Audubon continues to advocate in Washington D.C. for a stable source of wildlife conservation funding. While the Conservation and Reinvestment Act (CARA) remains the best legislation for permanent funding, State Wildlife Grants are part of an annual appropriations process to provide state wildlife agencies with desperately needed money. NJ Audubon urged our Congressional delegation to support increasing State Wildlife Grant funds to $150 million for fiscal year 2003. This is far short of the $300+ million which would be available through CARA, but it is a step in the right direction. Congressman Saxton took a strong leadership role in authoring a letter asking for this increase. This letter was co-signed by Congressmen Ferguson, LoBiondo, Pallone and Pascrell. A similar letter was signed by Senators Corzine and Torricelli. We would like to thank our entire Congress and Senate delegation for being CARA co-sponsors.

NJ Audubon completed a road-side survey of fall migrant birds in West Cape May, New Jersey. The work, conducted by world-famous author and biologist Clay Sutton, was given to the NJ Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) and local citizen groups to help protect critical habitat on the Cape May peninsula. During the bird survey, Clay Sutton heard Southern Gray Treefrogs, which are a state endangered species. NJ Audubon launched a second study in spring 2002 with Herpetological Associates to survey for these endangered treefrogs in West Cape May. The information will be provided NJDEP and the Borough of West Cape to help protect wetlands critical to this rare species. Special thanks goes to local citizens and the Borough of West Cape May for helping fund this study.

New Jersey Audubon would like to thank Governor McGreevey and Commissioner Campbell for investigating the role of the Liberty State Park Development Corporation. Many feel this entity is inconsistent with the mission of Liberty State Park. The Conservation Department worked closely with the Division of Parks and Forestry to nominate Restoration Ecologists and Landscape Architects to help guide the restoration of the 251-acre park interior. We are excited to participate in the ongoing process to enhance the park's value for birds and visitors.

Stopping Bad Ideas

New Jersey Audubon Society worked to ensure that NJ DEP volunteers reporting threatened and endangered species would be protected from nuisance lawsuits. Scott Angus, a NJ DEP Herp Atlas volunteer, reported a Wood Turtle (state threatened) sighting in August 2001. The Herp Atlas is comprised of trained volunteers who are surveying for reptiles and amphibians statewide. NJ DEP relies upon residents to report threatened and endangered species. Absent this information, the state could not protect these sensitive species. Mr. Angus observed the Wood Turtle while waiting in a parking lot at the Land of Make Believe. The owner of the Land of Make Believe is suing both Scott Angus and NJ DEP. NJ Audubon worked with the Rutgers Environmental Law Clinic and Columbia Law Clinic to ensure Scott Angus was afforded protection by the state's Attorney General office. We would like to thank NJ DEP Commissioner Campbell and the Attorney General's office for their decision. It is critical that a citizen's right to report a threatened and endangered species is protected.

In a victory for conservation, the Lebanon Township Planning Board denied a Toll Brothers application for the Mt. Lebanon Estates development which could have harmed a Bog Turtle (federally threatened and state endangered) population. Ed Post, an active NJ Audubon member who founded the Lebanon Township Land Coalition, led the local opposition. The coalition hired a lawyer and an environmental consulting firm and orchestrated participation from state conservation groups. Their efforts serve as a model of how local citizens can and should play a crucial role in backyard conservation. We would like to thank Ed Post, the Lebanon Township Planning Board and the Lebanon Township Land Coalition for their outstanding work.

New Jersey Audubon Society is involved in litigation opposing a general permit to convert 300 acres of wetlands (including pristine Atlantic White Cedar Swamps) to cranberry bogs. We and other conservation groups have been opposing this proposal since 1999 (see NJAS Opinions). A consortium of conservation groups represented by Rutgers Environmental Law Clinic (RELC) was dealt a blow by a recent Appelate Court decision (http://lawlibrary.rutgers.edu/decisions/appellate/a1432-99.opn.html). According to Thomas Borden with RELC, "The decision basically holds that a Freshwater Wetlands Protection Act permit is not required in the Pinelands and the mitigation, acreage, species protection, and antidegradation elements of the permit are acceptable. The decision is particularly disturbing given the heightened legal and regulatory protections that are in place to protect the Pinelands and its water quality." NJ Audubon has signed onto RELC's initiative to appeal to the Supreme Court. New laws or regulations will be needed if the Supreme Court does not repeal the Appellate Court's decision.