Tag Archives: NJMC

SECAUCUS: Schmidt’s Woods

Img_05521

    

A lot of warblers are heading south again, and Schmidt’s Woods in Secaucus is a good Img_0562_2 place to see them.
   Last week, just beyond the park’s parking lot, we saw a black-and-white warbler (below) and a redstart high in a tree (right).
   Img_0554 The park is on the small side, but the woods provide a great rest stop for the warblers.
   The trails are nice and wide, with  an exercise circuit along the way.
   In years past, yellow-crowned night herons, a threatened species, have nested there.
   All in all, a nice oasis for birds and humans alike.

Img_0575

   

SALTMARSH BULRUSH

     The Meadowlands Commission is adding another weapon in its battle to increase Bulrush_2_img_6195biodiversity in the 30.4-square-mile district.
     This week, Commission naturalists  reintroduced saltmarsh bulrush, a valuable wetlands plant, at several sites in the Meadowlands.
    The sites included the the Mill Creek Marsh in Secaucus and Harrier Meadow in North Arlington, with more sites planned down the road.

   Click "Continue reading …"  for more  information and photos.

Continue reading →

Measuring sea-level rise

    Img_0542

    The New Jersey Meadowlands Commission is participating in a federal program to measure sea levels  as part of the commission’s efforts to assess the vitality of its marshes and to prepare for flooding that could result from global warming.
    Measurements using a nifty gizmo Img_0528_2 called a sediment elevation table (pictured to right) are being taken by  NJMC’s scientific arm, the Meadowlands Environmental Research Institute (MERI). 
     The Meadowlands Commission’s sea-level monitoring is one of the first of its kind in New Jersey.

   Click "Continue reading" to learn more about sea-level rise and why it is significant to the region’s marshes. 
   

Continue reading →

NORTH ARLINGTON: Harrier Meadow

Img_8530_2

Harrier Meadow is a 70-acre Meadowlands Commission marsh restoration site in North Arlington. (The link includes a nice aerial shot of the site.)

Harrier Meadow includes high marsh, meadows, tidal impoundment areas and mudflats.    

On a check of the site not too long ago, we saw many dragonflies, peeps by the thousands, a gadwall with ducklings, plus egrets and herons, pheasants and a northern flicker.

Yesterday, we saw peeps galore, dozens of great egrets and snowy egrets, great blue herons, laughing gulls and more.

Img_8541

Because of its location (you have to go through a landfill) and associated liability issues, the meadow is usually closed to the public.
   
Img_0195   

Img_0151

KEARNY MARSH

Img_8923
    A quick visit to the Kearny Marsh last week in hopes of seeing a harbor heron (great egret with a gray band on its right leg and small transmitter on its left) brought none of those special birds.
    But we did see several other great egrets, a bazillion dragonflies, some jewelweed, pennywort and foxtails.
   We also saw a least bittern (below) zip past — always a nice bird to spot. Read more about the least bittern here.

   Click "Continue reading…" below the photo for more photos.

Img_8933

Continue reading →

ENVIRONMENT CENTER: Space Camp (video)

 

   This week the Meadowlands Environment Center is holding a space camp for students entering the seventh grade.
   Tuesday’s session was about the sun, stars and planets, and students went outside to learn about the sun in whole new ways (see 1:45-minute video). Boy_at_scope_9688_2
   MEC’s Laura Venner talked to the 15 students abot the sun and SOHO, an international project involving NASA and other space agencies to study the sun.
  The space camp, one of a half-dozen offered by MEC, a partnership between NJMC and  Ramapo College, is designed to meet the New Jersey State Core Curriculum Content Standards.
   All MEC camps are held at the new Center for Environmental and Scientific Education (below), a “green” building that incorporates sustainable materials and alternative energy, in DeKorte Park in Lyndhurst.

Mcdowell

  Click "Continue reading…" for two more images.

Continue reading →

BIRDING: Harbor Herons video

     This two-minute video is about the Harbor Herons Project, a collaboration of NYC Audubon, NJ Audubon, the Meadowlands Commission and many volunteers. Img_0608
    It should be played with the "sound" on.
    Several great egrets and double-crested cormorant fledglings that were banded earlier this summer are now being spotted in the Meadowlands, confirmation that our marshes are pivotal to the success of herons in the entire metropolitan region.
 Here is a link to our previous post on the Harbor Herons Project, including a link to the project’s Web pages. 

   Click "Continue reading…" for more information and photos from this project.

Continue reading →