Stewardship Programs
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Stewardship and Passive Recreation on
New Jersey Audubon Society Sanctuaries NJAS maintains stewardship of 34 wildlife sanctuaries.
Following its own advice, NJAS is attempting to actively
increase management and habitat restoration on our properties.
All NJAS sanctuaries preserve important habitat for a variety of
wildlife species including a number of threatened, endangered
and special concern plants and animals. While some of NJAS
sanctuaries remain closed because of the existence of sensitive
habitats, most are accessible and offer visitors unique wildlife
viewing opportunities. Currently NJAS offers 49 miles of trails
split amongst 10 NJAS sanctuaries and we are developing a
passive recreation plan, including a network of trails for other
NJAS sanctuaries. NJAS's objective is to eventually have trail
maps, species lists and a unique features list for 21 of our
accessible sanctuaries. As trail maps are formalized, they will
be made available on the NJAS website. Until then, please feel
free to call 908-766-5787 extension 21 with any questions and
available trail maps.
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Franklin Township Restoration and
Passive Recreation Plan
Franklin Township is a remarkable region of New Jersey, with
picturesque vistas and a charming farming culture. Franklin's
remarkable open spaces and the long history of agricultural land
use have served to preserve one of the most significant
landscapes for farmland wildlife in the State. In 2003, Franklin
Township and the New Jersey Audubon Society (NJAS) entered into
a unique partnership to develop both habitat and passive
recreation plans for for two of largest open space tracts owned
by the township, the Negri-Nepote Native Grasslands Preserve,
part of the Middlebush Greenway, and the Griggstown Native
Grassland Preserve, part of the Ten Mile Run Greenway. More
recently NJAS began working on a third tract, the Bunker Hill
Natural Area, part of the Ten Mile Run Greenway. NJAS has
worked with Franklin Township and the USDA Natural Resources
Conservation Service to restore habitat by removing habitat
barriers, planting native grasses and wildflowers, and
constructing a 2.5 acre wetland. As part of the passive
recreation plan, NJAS developed interpretive signs for select
locations that provide a brief background of the surrounding
area. NJAS has mapped 11.92 miles of trails that meander
through grassland, successional and mature forest habitat and
along stream corridors. In addition, through the hard work of
Franklin Township Boy Scouts, NJAS has helped develop, organize
and coordinate Eagle Scout projects ranging from trail
construction and marking to the building of kiosks and a Barn
Swallow structure.
For more information about this project as well as trail maps
and checklists of the Negri-Nepote Native Grassland Preserve,
Griggstown Native Grassland Preserve and the Bunker Hill Natural
Area, click here.
Atlantic City Airport
From 2004 through early 2006, NJAS initially served as
advisor, then as project coordinator over a 290-acre grassland
restoration project at Atlantic City Airport. Over the past two
winters, the Grassland Conservation and Management Area at the
Atlantic City Airport has undergone shrub removal and native
grass restoration across about 200 acres of the 300 acres site.
This restoration is designed to enhance habitat for breeding
grassland birds. However, an equally important restoration will
commence at the airport this fall. This restoration will create
habitat for the frosted elfin butterfly (Callophrys irus).
The frosted elfin is a NJ state threatened butterfly
species. It is found in small populations from the eastern
seaboard to the Mississippi River. However, New Jersey is
globally important for this species because our state holds one
of the largest single populations. That population is at the
Atlantic City Airport. According to the NJ State Frosted Elfin
Management Plan, some entomologists consider this the best site
worldwide for frosted elfin butterflies.
Wild indigo (Baptisia tinctoria) is the host plant of frosted
elfin. As such, its presence is critical to the survival of the
species. Adults lay eggs on wild indigo and the hatched
caterpillars feed on the plant until metamorphosis. To help
create more breeding habitat for these butterflies,
approximately 11,000 indigo individuals will be planted at the
Atlantic City Airport over the next year. The wild indigo will
be interspersed with important nectar plants like lowbush
blueberry (Vaccinium vacillans) and staggerbush (Lyonia mariana).
The NJAS Conservation and Stewardship Program looks forward to
following the progress of this restoration and reporting on how
the frost elfin populations respond to this increase in host
plants.
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