Local Organizations, Businesses Unite To Produce The Great Swamp Scavenger Hunt

Far-ranging geography game promotes awareness of nature, culture, history in northern New Jersey.

Morristown, NJ—On May 11, starting at 9:00 a.m., 18 area organizations and businesses will work together to present The Great Swamp Scavenger Hunt—a free, outdoor event created by the Great Swamp Watershed Association, and designed to promote greater public awareness of some of the most significant natural, cultural, and historical locations found in northern New Jersey.

Part game and part celebration, The Great Swamp Scavenger Hunt takes participants on a 40-mile adventure through the state’s Great Swamp Watershed region. This is the place where the mighty Passaic River rises, where George Washington’s troops survived the coldest winter of the Revolutionary War, where the U.S. government created the first federally-designated wilderness area east of the Mississippi, and where many seriously injured wild birds have found sanctuary and healing.

Scavengers spend a fun-filled day hunting down special tokens from more than 15 sites of interest throughout the watershed.  Featured locations include the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge, the National Park Service’s Morristown National Historical Park, Morris County Park Commission’s Great Swamp Outdoor Education Center, Somerset County Park Commission’s Environmental Education Center at Lord Stirling Park, New Jersey Audubon’s Scherman Hoffman Wildlife Sanctuary, The Raptor Trust, Harding Land Trust’s Primrose Farms, the Great Swamp Watershed Association’s Conservation Management Area, the Friends of the Great Swamp’s Helen C. Fenske Visitor Center, Millington Gorge, Meyersville Café, and the Rolling Knolls Superfund site.

“What a great event,” said Jenny Gaus-Myers, superintendent of environmental education at the Morris County Park Commission.  “We love being part of the scavenger hunt and introducing lots of new visitors to our center and the wonders of the Great Swamp Watershed.”

Cathy Schrein, manager of Somerset County Park Commission’s Environmental Science Department, echoed Gaus-Myers’s sentiment, adding: “Events like The Great Swamp Scavenger Hunt and the Somerset County Environmental Education Center’s Swamp Search are such fun ways for the public to learn more about their immediate environment and to enjoy the outdoors.”

Geocaching enthusiasts will experience twice the fun at The Great Swamp Scavenger Hunt by logging special caches that have been carefully hidden at each location by members of Northern New Jersey Cachers (NNJC.org)—one of the nation’s most respected geocaching organizations.

“NNJC has partnered with GSWA for a number of years, from boardwalk construction and kiosk building, to presenting a spooky Halloween hike,” said John Neale, president of NNJC.  “Like geocaching, The Great Swamp Scavenger Hunt is another great example of getting folks together to enjoy the outdoors and learn about their local parks.”

At 4:00 p.m., scavengers will gather at Loantaka Brook Reservation’s Kitchell Pond Pavilion (Morris Township) where they will be treated to a free picnic barbeque and will be able to exchange the tokens they collect for an opportunity to win one of several top-notch prizes.

This year’s prizes include premium outdoor gear and gift certificates to notable area restaurants donated by event sponsors at Investors Bank of Madison, Morris Tap and Grill in Randolph, Meyersville Café in Long Hill Township, and Shanghai Jazz Restaurant and Bar in Madison.  Additional prizes and giveaways will be supplied by Blue Ridge Mountain Sports in Madison, Smarties Candy Company of Union Township, and other event partners.

“We want people to know that there is so much out there to see and learn in the Great Swamp,” said Liz Adinaro, head of marketing and media for Morris Tap and Grill.  “We believe in supporting our community, as the community gives back to us by visiting our restaurant.”

Food for the Great Swamp Scavenger Hunt Picnic will be donated by event sponsors at Whole Foods Market Rose City Madison, and Costco East Hanover.  Grills and buffet tables will be staffed by the Great Swamp Watershed Association and Northern New Jersey Cachers.

Scavenger hunters who choose to join the afternoon picnic are welcome to contribute a covered side dish to share with the rest of the group.  Drinks, hot dogs, hamburgers, and an additional healthy main dish will be offered free of charge while supplies last.

Visit GreatSwamp.org or call 973-538-3500 x22 for more complete information about The Great Swamp Scavenger Hunt, including start time and location, a basic description of rules, and picnic details.  Online registration is free and recommended.  Donations in support of the event are sincerely appreciated and may be made at time of registration or during the event at Kitchell Pond Pavilion.

Did You Know? ...An Owl Adventure

By Jim Northrop, GSWA Volunteer

It was a stormy night in September, a few hours after sunset, and I was feeling hungry. I would need to search for my dinner, so I set forth. This was farm country in northern New Jersey. I did not expect to find my dinner any time soon, but I noticed some lights, and movement to the right, and I went in that direction. Suddenly, I was stopped and fell to the ground ---- I had carelessly struck a glass picture window on the side of a farm house.

Oh, I forgot to tell you.  I am an owl ---- humans call me a great horned owl, and I guess I am bigger than other owls in New Jersey.  I stand about 22 inches tall and have a wingspan of about 55 inches (that's about 4 1/2 feet). I am a bird of prey, so when I look for my dinner, I catch, kill and eat other small animals in order to survive. An owl killing and eating another animal is no different from a robin eating a worm or a gull eating a fish.

Hunting at night, I use my extraordinary vision and excellent hearing to locate my prey. My wide wings, lightweight body and unusually soft, fluffy feathers allow me to fly silently. My eating habits might put you off, but when I seize a rodent or other small mammal, I kill it with my powerful feet. If the prey is small enough, I swallow it whole. Otherwise, I tear it apart with my hooked beak.

I am told that my amazing digestive system assimilates the nutritious portions of the prey. Then the undigested parts (hair, claws, teeth, etc.) are regurgitated in the form of pellets and scattered on the ground.

One blessing I have is that all owls are protected by state and Federal regulations. It is illegal to kill or capture an owl. It is also illegal to possess an owl, living or dead, without the proper permits from both the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the State of New Jersey.

I can say with confidence that owls pose no threat to humans. Adult owls will, of course, defend their territory and their young against any intruders, human or otherwise. However, humans do not always return the favor. Humans continue to pose a number of threats to owls:  we sometimes collide with their automobiles and their windows, or we consume the environmental contaminants they leave around.  They also destroy the critical habitat, the fields and forests, where we live and hunt.

But, let me take you back to that September night when I collided with the large glass window.  I fell to the ground because, it turned out, one of my wings was broken.  I felt so vulnerable, lying there helpless on the ground.  It was a very long and scary night for me.  But, at sunrise I heard footsteps. The farmer was outside and about to do his chores, when he noticed me and came over for a closer look.

The farmer, being experienced with animals, saw immediately that my wing was broken ---- perhaps it was the bone fragments poking through the skin of my wing. He knew what to do, and went to the barn to bring back a blanket.  He placed the blanket over me carefully, scooped me up and set me in a large cardboard box, which he placed in the cab of his pick-up truck.  Then he told his wife he was headed to The Raptor Trust in Millington, at the edge of the Great Swamp, to find some help for me.

Fortunately, The Raptor Trust staff were able to accommodate. They began their care by getting an X-ray of my broken wing.  Sure enough, there were breaks in two places, so they pinned the bone fragments back into place. I was encouraged by their kind manner ---- perhaps I would fly again, after all.  The staff also recognized the damage to the soft tissue of my wing (muscles, blood vessels, etc.). Circulation to the wing could well have been compromised, preventing it from healing. Only time would tell. I would need to be patient.

By mid-November the bones were starting to knit together.  It was time to remove the pins that had been put in to hold the bone fragments together.  The staff at The Raptor Trust seemed happy with my progress, but the injured wing was tight, unable to extend fully.  I knew I wouldn't be able to fly like that.

Progress was slow, but by February I was flying short distances. Then they decided to move me to a bigger flight cage to see what I could do. Even though I had flown a bit, it still took time to regain the strength and stamina I had lost while recuperating.  They put me in the largest flight cage at The Raptor Trust, and by mid-April I was flying like an eagle. I was ready to go home.

Before release, I was fitted with a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service band. The metal band will remain on my leg for the rest of my life. If humans ever encounter me again, it can easily be determined where and when I was banded. I overheard that banding birds is important because it allows for the study of bird movements, survival and life span.

The folks at The Raptor Trust didn't just open the cage and shoo me away. It was decided to transport me back to the farm where I had gotten into trouble because, after all, that is my home. After the drive, they removed me from my transport crate and released me into the air. It was great to take a few powerful flaps and soar over familiar territory. I think I even saw a farewell wave from my Raptor Trust friends as I soared away ----- home again.

Discover Nature’s Neighborhood at the Great Swamp Scavenger Hunt

Great Swamp Watershed Association’s far-ranging, day-long game spotlights 15 northern New Jersey landmarks.

It’s back! The Great Swamp Scavenger Hunt returns on May 11, 2013. Are you ready for another fun-filled day of exploration and discovery?

Last year’s hunt was a real hit. Take it from Florham Park resident Liz Adinaro who said, “It was awesome!...I can't wait to come back this year with the kids.”

Created and hosted by the Great Swamp Watershed Association, the Great Swamp Scavenger Hunt is a day-long adventure game that is one of the most entertaining ways to discover—or rediscover—some of the great sites of natural, cultural, and historic importance tucked away in northern New Jersey.

The concept is simple. Stop by the Kitchell Pond Pavilion at Loantaka Brook Reservation (75 Kitchell Road in Morristown) to pick up your official Great Swamp Scavenger Hunt Clue Kit—including GPS coordinates for geocachers—any time after 9:00 a.m.  When you’re ready, hop on your bike, or into your car, and set out to collect as many scavenger hunt tokens as you can from a total of 19 different locations in Morris County and Somerset County.

Participating sites include the Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge, Morristown National Historical Park, the Somerset County Environmental Education Center, Morris County’s Outdoor Education Center, The Raptor Trust, the Schermann Hoffman Wildlife Sanctuary, Meyersville Café, and Millington Gorge, so there will be plenty of exciting things to see and do along the way!

Return to Kitchell Pond Pavilion by 4:00 p.m. with a healthy appetite and as many tokens as you can.  Every token collected is a chance to win one of several fantastic prizes donated by local businesses and organizations.  Last year’s prizes included a four-person tent, a high-end foldable camp chair, a NorthFace Recon backpack, a Mountainsmith camera bag, and lots of other outdoor recreational equipment.

Before prizes are awarded, enjoy a picnic barbeque courtesy of Great Swamp Watershed Association. Drinks, hot dogs, and burgers will be supplied. Feel free to contribute your own side dish to the covered dish buffet too! (Remember to bring along your own lawn chairs, blankets, or other alfresco dining supplies.)

To register for the Great Swamp Scavenger Hunt, or to find more information, please visit GreatSwamp.org or call 973-538-3500 x22.  Participation is free, but donations to the Great Swamp Watershed Association are gratefully accepted.  RSVPs via online or telephone registration are appreciated.

Did You Know? About Red-tailed Hawks

by Jim Northrop, GSWA Volunteer

It was a black speck in the sky, gradually coming closer, and then I saw that it was a bird gliding gracefully, effortlessly, circling above me. It was a red-tailed hawk, the most common hawk in North America. Years of observation have shown that red-tailed hawks can easily mold themselves to any surrounding, but these birds prefer a habitat that is open. Hawks usually inhabit places like deserts and fields, perhaps to make it easier to find prey. They also like to have high-perching places nearby from which they can watch for prey.

Red-tails are known as very able hunters. They are widely reputed to have visual acuity several times that of a normal human being. In fact, hawks can see a mouse a half mile away. This is due to the many photoreceptors in the bird’s retina, an exceptional number of nerves connecting these receptors to the brain, and a small indented area of the retina which magnifies the central portion of the visual field. Hawks also see in color.

A fledgling hawk is fed by its parents until it leaves the nest for good. It will leave its parents’ nest as early as six weeks old. As the hawk grows older, it begins to act on its ancestral instinct to hunt for itself.

While other birds of prey like falcons use their mouths to kill their prey, red-tailed hawks both catch and kill prey with their claws, or talons. They also use their talons dismember a kill before swallowing it. A hawk’s preferred time for hunting is usually just before night fall, when daylight begins to lessen.

Even though red-tailed hawks are known as being a violent predator, this bird actually has a peaceful side. The hawk’s main mode of transportation is flight. When it flies, the hawk flaps its wings rapidly, and then uses that momentum to glide smoothly and gracefully through the air. Hawks typically move at 20 to 40 miles per hour.

Red-tails also are known for their unusual mating practices. The method this bird uses to reproduce is different from that of most other birds. The male and female will fly together up into the air in a circular motion. Once the two get to a certain height, the male will dive toward the female and then they will rise back to the height again. The two birds will repeat this until finally the male latches onto the female and they begin to free-fall down to earth.

Red-tailed hawks are monogamous and will keep the same mate their entire lives. In one year, a female hawk will lay about five eggs. Both the male and the female will watch the nest and take care of the eggs for about a month, until they hatch. Males and females also create their nests together, and will improve it together during mating season. One wonders if members of the hawk family may be mimicking some members of the human family.

A red-tailed hawk’s diet is very predictable, in that it includes a variety of small animals. However, most hawks are opportunistic feeders and they feed on anything they can catch. Some of these small animals may include snakes, lizards, mice, rabbits, squirrels, and any other type of small game that is found on the ground. More specifically, hawks like to eat smaller birds like doves, and bugs like grasshoppers and crickets.

The red-tailed hawk is protected under the Migratory Treaty Bird Act. This covers their residence in the United States, Canada, and Mexico. They do not have low population numbers at this point, but many people believe that without such protection their numbers would be low.

Hawks also provide us with a metaphor for our political life. When talking about politics, some people use the term “war hawk,” or simply “hawk” for short. This refers to someone favoring war in a debate over military action. “War hawks” are the opposite of “war doves.” The terms derive from the fact that hawks are predators which attack and feed on other animals, whereas doves mostly eat seeds and fruit, and are historically a symbol of peace.