About the Refuge
Table of Contents
Cape May National Refuge Home Page
The Delaware Bay Division is
located in Middle Township near Cape May Court House, along the western portion
of the New Jersey peninsula along the Delaware Bay. This area protects many habitat types such as
salt marsh, forested uplands, forested wetlands and vernal pools, shrub/scrub,
and grasslands. Each spring, the
Delaware Bay hosts the second largest concentration of migrating shorebirds in
North America. The Delaware Bay Division
remains an extremely important area for horseshoe crab spawning and
consequently, shorebird feeding and roosting.
Shorebird species, including the red knot, sanderling and ruddy
turnstone need to feed on these horseshoe crab eggs to gain sufficient weight
to continue their migration to their summer breeding grounds. The Delaware Bay Division also attracts large
numbers of waterfowl, marsh birds, raptors songbirds, reptiles and
amphibians. The state listed southern
gray tree frog and Eastern tiger salamander occur here.
Great Cedar Swamp
The Great Cedar Swamp Division is located in Upper
and Dennis Townships near the towns of Woodbine and Dennisville. This area has the largest contiguous forest on
the refuge and is part of the Pinelands National Reserve and the Great Egg
Harbor National Scenic and Recreational River.
This division protects mostly hardwood swamp, salt marsh, and bog
habitat along with some forested uplands and grassland areas. Unique viewing opportunities exist for
Atlantic white cedar stands, a variety of warblers, including prothonotary and
pine warblers, wood thrush, bald eagles, wintering short-eared, long-eared and
northern saw-whet owls, and northern diamondback terrapin. The Great Cedar Swamp Division also supports
large numbers of marsh and water birds, songbirds, raptors, reptiles, and
amphibians.
Two Mile Beach
The Two Mile Beach Unit is located in Lower Township
near Wildwood Crest, along the Atlantic Ocean.
This unit offers opportunities to view barrier island habitat, maritime
forest, tidal ponds, and beachfront. The
unit offers views of undisturbed beach habitat which is used by beach-nesting
birds and thousands of migrating shorebirds.
The Federally threatened piping plover, State endangered least tern, and
American oystercatchers nest on adjacent property and feed and rest on the Two
Mile Beach Unit during the seasonal beach closure from April 1- September 30. This unit also offers opportunities to see
wintering waterfowl such as American black duck and northern pintail, wading
birds such as black-crowned night-heron and snowy egret, and shorebird species
such as dunlin, sanderling, and semipalmated plover.
WILDLIFE
Cape May National Wildlife
Refuge provides critical habitat to a wide variety of migratory birds and other
wildlife. It supports 317 bird species, 42 mammal species, 55 reptile and
amphibian species, and numerous fish, shellfish and other invertebrates. Its
value for the protection of migratory birds and their habitat will continue to
grow as wildlife habitat along the
SHOREBIRDS
The Refuge's five-mile
stretch along the
The arrival at
Because of the Delaware Bay Estuary's value to migrating shorebirds and wading birds, in 1992 it was designated a Wetland of International Importance under the The Convention on Wetlands of International Importance--otherwise known as the Ramsar Convention.
SONGBIRDS / NEOTROPICAL MIGRANTS
Neotropical migrants--birds
that spend their summers in Canada and the U.S. and their winters in Mexico,
the Caribbean, Central America and South America--use Cape May Peninsula's
varied habitats in great abundance during their long and difficult migrations.
Due to loss of habitat throughout much of their range many of these species are
in decline. Almost 100 neotropical songbird species stop to rest and feed along
the
RAPTORS
All raptor species found in southern New Jersey occur on the Refuge. Some, like the red-tailed hawk, frequent the Refuge year 'round. After a population decline in the 1970's, bald eagles once again nest on Refuge land. Owl populations make extensive use of Cape May's woodland habitats in winter, and several species--such as the barred owl--also nest here.
AMERICAN WOODCOCK
During fall migration these
unique upland shorebirds concentrate in massive numbers in
ENDANGERED / THREATENED
Peregrine falcons, found on the Federal List of endangered and Threatened Plants and Animals, use the Refuge's protected habitats and are commonly seen during migration. The threatened Piping Plover uses Two Mile Beach Unit for feeding and roosting. New Jersey State-listed species confirmed within the Refuge boundary include ospreys, short-eared owls, barred owls, red-shouldered hawks, grasshopper sparrows, great and little blue herons, red-headed woodpeckers, sedge wrens, yellow-crowned night-herons, northern harriers, black rails, southern gray tree frogs, Eastern tiger and mud salamanders, corn snakes and northern pine snakes.
Swamp pink--a unique lily family member which is on the Federal List of Endangered and Threatened Plants and Animals--also occurs on the Refuge, as do 34 State-listed plant species.
FISHERY RESOURCES
Cape May National Wildlife Refuge's marshes and tidal creeks provide important nursery areas and nutrient resources for many popular species of finfish and shellfish including summer flounder, weakfish, striped bass, blue crabs and lady crabs. These fisheries provide abundant resources for wildlife as well as for people. Seventy percent of the species sought by recreational and commercial fishermen depend on shallow water habitats such as those found on the Refuge for at least part of their life cycle.
REFUGE WETLAND VALUES
While more than half the wetlands in the United States have been destroyed many people still wonder why we should protect our wetland resources. The Refuge's protected wetlands not only provide critical resources for fish, wildlife and plants, they also provide many benefits for people. They hold up storm surge and flood waters thus protecting the communities behind them; they discharge ground water supplies even during the drier times, when we most need it; they protect our water quality by filtering out impurities. The aesthetic and recreational pleasures, and the educational benefits these dwindling unique habitats provide for us are very important.