New Jersey Audubon Society

US non-profit organization

New Jersey AudubonFormation| 1897; 128 years ago (1897)

|

Type| Nonprofit

Tax ID no.

| 22-1539642
Legal status| 501(c)(3)
Headquarters| 11 Hardscrabble Road
Bernardsville, New Jersey
Coordinates| 40°44′38″N 74°33′09″W﻿ / ﻿40.743855°N 74.552368°W﻿ / 40.743855; -74.552368

Region

| New Jersey

Board Chair

| Richard Kauffeld

President and CEO

| Alex Ireland, Ph.D.

Board of directors

| Richard Kauffeld; Merideth S. Mueller, DMin; David H. Hall, PhD; Dana Pogorzelski; Kathy Horn; Joseph L. Basralian, Esq.; Jason Bigler; Dorothy Clair; Cinnamon Dornsife; Gordon L. Keen, Jr.; Ann Lawrence; Nelson Martinez; Angela Ortiz; Veda Truesdale; Michael J. Van Wagner; Paula Vuksic; Elizabeth Wendy Wilkes; Philip H. Witt, PhD, ABPP

Main organ

| Board of Directors
Website| njaudubon.org

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|

The New Jersey Audubon is an environmental education and conservation advocacy organization. Founded in 1897, it is one of New Jersey's largest environmental organizations, with several staffed nature centers, dozens of unstaffed sanctuaries, and thousands of members throughout New Jersey and beyond. New Jersey Audubon is an independent organization and is not affiliated with the National Audubon Society.

## Activities

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According to its website, the New Jersey Audubon Society, "fosters environmental awareness and a conservation ethic among New Jersey's citizens; protects New Jersey's birds, mammals, other animals, and plants, especially endangered and threatened species; and promotes preservation of New Jersey's valuable natural habitats."[1]

New Jersey Audubon carries out this mission in a number of ways. Some of its recent conservation efforts have included working together with state and federal legislators to secure funding for wildlife conservation, trying to get a moratorium passed for horseshoe crab fishing in Delaware Bay in order to reverse the recent drastic decline in red knot populations, inaugurating a network of birding and wildlife trails, and working together with sportsmen and property owners to preserve grassland habitats.

In addition to its conservation efforts, New Jersey Audubon aims to educate people about New Jersey's environment. Scout groups, school groups, and children in summer day camps all have the possibility to learn more about environmental issues and wildlife native to New Jersey through programs offered at New Jersey Audubon nature centers. Meanwhile, New Jersey Audubon also offers numerous lectures, tours, and programs to help increase awareness of the natural world for adults as well. Teachers can also benefit from professional development programs sponsored by New Jersey Audubon, as well as through publications such as "Bridges to the Natural World" intended to help introduce their students to New Jersey's natural heritage.

A third major focus of New Jersey Audubon's efforts lies in sponsoring research on New Jersey's environment and wildlife. Such research includes hawk watches at Montclair, Sandy Hook, and Cape May to monitor long-term trends in raptor populations, using radar and other tools to identify crucial habitat for migrating songbirds under the "Oases Along the Flyway" program, and monitoring populations of breeding bird species in the Hackensack Meadowlands.

Finally, New Jersey Audubon also sponsors numerous field trips to various sites of environmental importance throughout New Jersey and beyond. Many of these trips are aimed primarily at birders, although trips focused on butterflies, dragonflies, reptiles and amphibians, hiking, canoeing, and caving, among other topics, are also offered on a regular basis. New Jersey Audubon also sponsors the annual World Series of Birding, perhaps the world's most famous birdwatching competition. Competing teams seek to find as many bird species as they can in the state of New Jersey, or a section thereof, on a Saturday in mid-May. The event also functions as a major fundraiser for New Jersey Audubon since competitors raise pledges for each bird species seen.

Due to its many successes in helping preserve New Jersey's environment, as well as its efficient and effective management, New Jersey Audubon Society currently enjoys a four-star rating (the highest possible) by Charity Navigator.[2]

## Nature Centers

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Cape May Bird Observatory: The Northwood Center Nature Center of Cape May

The New Jersey Audubon Society operates staffed nature centers throughout New Jersey. Each of them offers an array of field trips, programs, lectures, exhibits on the natural world, a small bookstore and gift shop, and most have an attached wildlife sanctuary. The centers include:

* Cape May Bird Observatory: The Center for Research and Education, Cape May Court House, Cape May County
* Cape May Bird Observatory: The Northwood Center, Cape May Point, Cape May County
* Hawk Rise Sanctuary, Linden, Union County
* Lorrimer Sanctuary, Franklin Lakes, Bergen County
* Nature Center of Cape May, Cape May, Cape May County
* Scherman-Hoffman Wildlife Sanctuary, Bernardsville, Somerset County \- headquarters

## References

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* New Jersey portal

1. ^ NJAS: Who We Are and What We Do
2. ^ Charity Navigator Rating – New Jersey Audubon Society

## External links

[edit]

Media related to New Jersey Audubon Society at Wikimedia Commons

* Official website

* v
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Nature centers in New Jersey

Atlantic County|

* Warren E. Fox Nature Center

Bergen County|

* Closter Nature Center
* Demarest Nature Center
* Flat Rock Brook Nature Center
* James A. McFaul Environmental Center
* Lorrimer Sanctuary
* Meadowlands Environment Center
* Ridgefield Nature Center
* Tenafly Nature Center

Burlington County|

* Palmyra Cove Nature Park
* Paws Farm Nature Center
* Rancocas Nature Center
* Woodford Cedar Run Wildlife Refuge
* Fernbrook Farms Environmental Education Center

Cape May County|

* Belleplain State Forest
* Cape May Bird Observatory
* Nature Center of Cape May
* Wetlands Institute

Essex County|

* Cora Hartshorn Arboretum and Bird Sanctuary
* Essex County Environmental Center
* Greater Newark Conservancy

Gloucester County|

* Scotland Run Park Nature Center

Hudson County|

* Liberty State Park Nature Center

Hunterdon County|

* Whittemore Wildlife Sanctuary

Mercer County|

* Lawrence Nature Center
* The Watershed Institute
* Washington Crossing State Park

Middlesex County|

* Plainsboro Preserve

Monmouth County|

* Allaire State Park
* Huber Woods Environmental Center
* Manasquan Reservoir Environmental Center
* Poricy Park Nature Center

Morris County|

* Bamboo Brook Outdoor Education Center
* Great Swamp Outdoor Education Center
* Elizabeth D. Kay Environmental Center
* Pyramid Mountain Natural Historic Area
* Schiff Nature Preserve
* Willowwood Arboretum

Ocean County|

* Cooper Environmental Center - Cattus Island Park
* Forest Resource Education Center
* Island Beach State Park
* Jakes Branch County Park
* Lighthouse Center for Natural Resource Education
* Wells Mills Nature Center

Passaic County|

* Rifle Camp Park

Somerset County|

* Duke Farms
* Scherman Hoffman Wildlife Sanctuary
* Somerset County Environmental Education Center

Union County|

* Reeves-Reed Arboretum
* Trailside Nature & Science Center - Watchung Reservation

Warren County|

* Merrill Creek Reservoir

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