Volunteer for Conserve Wildlife Foundation
Did you know that you can actually help spread the word to help protect the future of New Jersey's wildlife?
Zoom+ Volunteers stand in front of a new osprey platform that was installed in Fortescue, NJ. © Ben Wurst
Education and awareness are the key to the future of wildlife and our conservation efforts. While the Endangered and Nongame Program (ENSP) has been in existence for almost two decades few New Jersey citizens are aware of their long-term protection work.
Our Speakers Bureau offers groups an informative and entertaining 30-60 minute slide presentation on NJ's endangered and threatened wildlife and how Conserve Wildlife Foundation of NJ works to protect them.
We are always looking for bright and dedicated volunteers, like you, to join the Speakers Bureau and our Wildlife Conservation Corps (Volunteers/Citizen Science Program).
Not only will you meet other concerned and environmentally aware people like yourself, but you will have fun learning about such species as the bald eagle, peregrine falcon, osprey and others.
Volunteer Opportunities
Click on a project to get more information on ways you can help.
- Beach Nesting Bird Project
- Calling Amphibian Monitioring Project
- Delaware Bay Shorebird Stewards
- Kestrel Nestbox Monitoring Project
- Migratory Bird Surveys
- Osprey Platform Project
- Office Volunteer
- Breeding Bird Survey
- Special Event Volunteers
- Summer Bat Count
 | Volunteer ProfilesVolunteers are a very important part of wildlife conservation and management in New Jersey. Here some of our volunteers will be featured. |
Volunteer Projects
Zoom+ A Piping plover. © Robert Lin
BEACH NESTING BIRD PROJECT
Geographic Area: Various Sites in 4 Coastal Counties – Monmouth, Ocean, Atlantic, Cape May
Time of year: March and April
Time commitment: One time on the weekend
Duties: Beach Nesting Bird Project needs volunteers to assist with erecting protective fence at coastal nesting sites for piping plover, least terns, and black skimmers. Fencing projects are usually done on weekends in late March and April (schedule usually available in February). The sites vary although there are some in all four coastal counties (Monmouth, Ocean, Atlantic, Cape May).
Contact: Todd Pover at 609.628.0401 (e-mail preferred).
Zoom+ Wood frog. © Robert Lin
CALLING AMPHIBIAN MONITORING PROJECT
Geographic Area: Statewide Project using pre-selected Driving Routes
Time of Year: Spring
Time Commitment: 3 pre-determined nights for 2-3 hours
Duties: Volunteers needed to participate in a statewide Calling Amphibian Monitoring Program (CAMP). The object of this program is to assess the distribution, abundance, and health of New Jersey's amphibians. This is part of a larger initiative called the North American Amphibian Monitoring Program (NAAMP) and the data collected in New Jersey will be submitted into the National database. Volunteers participating in this project will be asked to conduct roadside surveys for calling amphibians along designated routes throughout the state. Each 15-mile route will be surveyed three times during Spring 2008 and a structured protocol will be followed to determine which nights to survey, how long to survey, which species are calling, and how to estimate the total number of individuals calling at each site.
Contact: Larissa Smith at 609.628.0402
Zoom+ A red knot in breeding plumage along the Delaware Bay. © Bill Dalton
DELAWARE BAY SHOREBIRD STEWARDS
Geographic Area: Various Sites in Cape May and Cumberland County
Time of year: 3-week period in May through early June
Time commitment: 2-day minimum plus training
Duties: Part-time assistants needed to protect critical shorebird beaches along the Delaware Bayshore.
Shorebird stewards support beach closures by being present at the closed beaches during a three week period in May through early June. Stewards patrol nine beaches along the Delaware Bay in Cape May and Cumberland Counties. They do this to ensure that resting and foraging shorebirds are not disturbed. The job includes educating beach visitors as to the importance of the beaches to horseshoe crabs and migrating shorebirds, by handing out literature, answering questions and showing people the shorebirds and horseshoe crabs. Click here for more information.
Contact: Larissa Smith at 609.628.0402
KESTREL NESTBOX MONITORING PROJECT
Geographic Area: 3 Project Areas – Clinton Area (Hunterdon, Somerset Counties); Amwell Valley Area (Hunterdon, Mercer, Somerset Counties); Assunpink Area (Mercer, Monmouth Counties)
Time of Year: Spring (April, May, June, July)
Time Commitment: 3-5 hours every 2 weeks during the breeding season
Duties: Monitor a set of nestboxes to determine use and productivity by American kestrels. Volunteers will be assigned a group of boxes (between 12 and 20) to monitor every 12-15 days. Boxes are affixed to utility poles, trees, or buildings approximately 10-15 feet off the ground. Volunteers will need to have access to a vehicle capable of carrying a 16-foot aluminum ladder. Volunteers will climb ladder and observe boxes to determine occupancy of box by kestrels (or other wildlife species). Volunteers may need to add bedding, remove bedding, and/or destroy starling eggs. Data must be submitted online within 48 hours of nestbox checks.
Contact: Peter Winkler at 609.292.1231
Zoom+ An 8 ft. high deer exclusion fence allows Atlantic white-cedar seedlings grow in Bass River State Forest, Bass River Township, NJ. © Ben Wurst
MIGRATORY BIRD SURVEYS
Geographic Area: Southern Coastal New Jersey
Time of Year: March-May and September-November
Time Commitment: One (1 hour) survey performed once every 7-10 days until 6 surveys are completed.
Duties: Two volunteers (for each site) are needed to help survey habitat restoration sites. Volunteers will be responsible for field identifying birds and other wildlife. Volunteers should have experience with identifying birds with binoculars. Volunteers will need to provide their own transportation and survey equipment (binoculars and field guides). Spring surveys start between March 1-15 and continue until a total of 6 surveys are conducted once every 7-10 days. Fall surveys start between September 1-15 and continue until a total of 6 surveys are conducted once every 7-10 days.
Contact: Ben Wurst at 609.628.2103
Zoom+ CWF volunteer erect an Osprey platform in a marsh.
OSPREY PLATFORM PROJECT
Geographic Area: Southern Coastal New Jersey
Time of Year: Year-round, especially from August - April
Time Commitment: No commitment. Volunteer for as much time as you can.
Duties: Assist biologists with the construction, repairs, and installation of Osprey nesting platforms.
Contact: Ben Wurst at 609.628.2103
OFFICE VOLUNTEER
Geographic Area: Trenton, NJ
Time of Year: Year-round
Time Commitment: 1 day a week for at least 4 hours
Duties: We always need help in our office. We seek a volunteer who can commit 1-day a week to help with light office work: mailings, administration, merchandise fulfillment etc. We can offer flexible hours within the regular workday. Computer skills are necessary. Our main office is located in Trenton. Parking privileges included.
Contact:Maria Grace at 609.984.0621
Zoom+ Magnolia warbler. © Bill Dalton
NORTH AMERICAN BREEDING BIRD SURVEY
The North American Breeding Bird Survey (BBS) is a long-term, large-scale, international avian monitoring program to track the status and trends of North American bird populations. The New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife, Endangered and Nongame Species Program provides coordination for the BBS in New Jersey. Each survey route is 24.5 miles long with stops at 0.5-mile intervals. Surveys are conducted on a single day, usually during the first half of June. At each stop, a 3-minute point count of all birds seen and heard is conducted. Once analyzed, BBS data provide an index of population abundance that can be used to estimate population trends and relative abundances at various geographic scales.
What are the requirements for participation?
- Access to suitable transportation to complete a survey.
- Good hearing and eyesight.
- The ability to identify all breeding birds in the area by sight and sound. Knowledge of bird songs is extremely important, because most birds counted on these surveys are singing males.
- New BBS participants must also successfully complete the BBS Methodology Training Program before their data will be used in any BBS analyses.
Although scouting the route before the run is usually a good idea, it is not a requirement, so becoming an observer requires that you commit to only one morning each June. The data are most useful when the same observer runs the route for several years, so we encourage people to make a commitment to run their routes for at least the three consecutive years, preferably longer. Most observers in New Jersey, except those with very rural routes find that the routes are best run on weekends to avoid excess traffic noise and Sunday is usually best.
For more information on the North American BBS, go to: http://www.pwrc.usgs.gov/bbs/
Currently the following New Jersey routes are in need of observers: 011 Holmansville (N. Ocean Co to Somerset Co), 018 Midvale (Passaic Co), 022 Dover (Morris Co), 023 Pottersville (Border of Hunterdon & Somerset Co), 026 Cranbury (W Middlesec & Monmouth Co), and 132 Spraguetown (S. Ocean and Burlington Co). Click here to view a map of general route locations.
If you are interested in becoming an observer, please contact:
Sharon Petzinger, N.J. Division of Fish and Wildlife
Endangered and Nongame Species Program
1 Van Syckels Rd.
Clinton, NJ 08809
Phone: 908.638.5102
Fax: 908.638.6639
Email
Zoom+ Ben Wurst mans a CWF table at an event at Forsythe NWR in Oceanville. © Kevin Holcomb
SPECIAL EVENT VOLUNTEERS
Geographic Area: Hunterdon County area
Time of Year: Women & Wildlife event in March; Golf event in May
Time Commitment: Minimum of one half day for an event
Duties: Volunteers needed to help in the execution of our two main fundraising events: Women and Wildlife Awards and Art Show and our Annual Golf Outing. Special event volunteers serve on an "event-by-event" basis. Volunteer duties include set-up, breakdown, registration, and other event duties.
Contact:Maria Grace at 609.984.0621
Zoom+ A bat emerges from its summer roost site. © MacKenzie Hall
SUMMER BAT COUNT
Geographic Area: Statewide
Time of Year: June through August 1st
Time Commitment: twice during the summer for an hour or two
Duties: The Summer Bat Count seeks to identify the number and distribution of NJ’s bat populations. We need information from residents who know of roosts in their communities. Roosts could be in attics, outbuildings, bat houses, or trees. If you know of a roost, help to protect it by participating in the Summer Bat Count. Visit your roost twice between June and August 1st. At dusk, count the bats as they leave the roost and record the information on a provided data sheet.
Contact: Maria Grace at 609.984.0621
For More Information:
- To Volunteer for the Citizen Science Program - Larissa Smith or 609.628.0402
- For Speakers Bureau - Maria Grace at 609.984.0621
Our exclusive member newsletter.
Help Conserve Bats!
Do you know a place where bats roost in the summer - like an attic, barn, church, or bat house - then the Summer Bat Count wants you! Participants perform counts and report emergence count data to us. This data helps us monitor the population of bats in New Jersey.