Monitoring, Population enhancement, Research

Endangered species are a key emphasis of our monitoring program, particularly where refuge habitats serve a key role a species’ life cycle.  For example, both piping plover and red knot depend on the refuge’s barrier islands of Holgate and Little Beach.  These Federally-designated wilderness areas are part of a vast area of undeveloped beaches, dunes, saltmarsh and tidal flats that serve as a true refuge for numerous plant and animal species that are dependent on coastal habitats along a coastline where human development otherwise predominates.  A robust monitoring and management program focused on piping plover and other coastal birds helps ensure that the refuge continues to offer these species high-quality habitat along the coast of New Jersey. 

Black Rail

The Eastern black rail remains one of the most enigmatic bird species in North America due to its extremely secretive nature and its tendency to occupy remote and rarely-visited tidal marshes.  Few people ever get to see the black rail and it has been the subject of very few field studies.  As a result, we only know the broad outlines of this species’ natural history.  Refuge biologists are working with partners to optimize our approach to surveying for this species so that we can better understand its status and distribution on the refuge. 

The upper salt marsh salt marsh
Salt marshes are found in tidal areas near the coast, where freshwater mixes with saltwater.

Learn more about salt marsh
habitat of the eastern black rail, composed of undulating waves of salt hay (Spartina patens).
Piping Plover

The piping plover is an iconic species of Atlantic Coast beaches where widespread development and human use of these beaches led to its decline.   Dedicated, long-term efforts throughout its range have ensured that key sites continue to be managed to support the recovery of piping plover and a wide range of species that depend on coastal habitats.  Nearly 40% of New Jersey’s piping plover population nests on the refuge and intensive monitoring, management and outreach efforts are helping to reduce conservation threats to help ensure steady progress toward recovery of this species.

A banded piping plover feeds upon invertebrates in the intertidal zone.
Red Knot

While the Delaware Bay is famous as a critical northbound stopover for red knots and other migratory shorebirds that nest in the Arctic, New Jersey’s Atlantic coast is being increasingly recognized as an important stopover site for these species on their southbound migration from late summer through fall.  They use the refuge’s beaches along with the adjacent tidal marshes, mudflats and shoals for feeding and roosting where they spend several weeks refueling before proceeding to stopover and wintering sites as far south as the southern tip of South America.

A group of red knot forage along the shoreline's edge.
Salt Marsh Sparrow

The saltmarsh sparrow has a limited breeding distribution that spans a narrow ribbon of coastal marshes from Maine to Virginia.  New Jersey harbors nearly 40% of the entire species’ population and E.B. Forsythe’s complex of nearly 40,000 acres of tidal marsh encompasses a core area of the sparrow’s range in New Jersey.  Ongoing efforts by partners are documenting the status and distribution of the species on the refuge and beyond while efforts are underway to develop habitat management strategies to benefit the sparrow, which is declining as a result of progressive loss of high-quality high marsh habitat throughout its range. 

A saltmarsh sparrow (Ammospiza caudacuta) perches above the marsh.

Facilities

Sea lavender (Limonium carolinianum) growing on the salt marsh.
Edwin B. Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge protects more than 48,000 acres of southern New Jersey coastal habitats. More than 82 percent of Forsythe refuge is wetlands, of which 78 percent is salt marsh, interspersed with shallow coves and bays. The refuge’s location in one of the Atlantic Flyway’...

News

A grass-like pool surrounded by rock.
Habitat enhancement? Playing God? Johnny Appleseed-ing? Guerilla botany? No matter what it's called, the rare plants atop a stone mountain need all the help they can get.
Spectacled eider
Plunging into the icy waters of North America's coasts, sea ducks navigate a world unseen by most. Despite representing a significant portion of the continent’s duck species, these unique marine birds are among the least understood. Yet, unlike other waterfowl, many sea duck populations have...
adult female broad-tailed hummingbird nectars on Rocky Mountain beeplant at Seedskadee NWR
From the charismatic hummingbirds of the continental United States to honeycreepers of the Hawaiian Islands and doves in the desert, a diverse array of bird species play an important role in pollination.
A rust colored crayfish at the bottom of an aquarium tank
Thanks to the Endangered Species Act, even small threatened and endangered species with narrow ranges can trigger great change in the world of conservation.
a fisher climbing a tree
Fires have swept through large portions of habitat used by the southern Sierra Nevada distinct population segment of fisher over the past several years. By examining how fisher are using post-burn forest, the Service hopes to learn more about the needs and habits of this elusive endangered species.

Programs

Close up of a California condor. Its pink featherless head contrasts with its black feathers.
We provide national leadership in the recovery and conservation of our nation's imperiled plant and animal species, working with experts in the scientific community to identify species on the verge of extinction and to build the road to recovery to bring them back. We work with a range of public...