Brett Ewald, David La Puma, Chris Miller, Bob Mullock, Larry Weaner
(Site 1 - full group) The Cape May State Park Hawkwatch Platform is one of the most highly regarded bird observation sites in the Eastern U.S. From the vast wetland vista that the platform provides, Ornithologists Brett Ewald and David La Puma will point out the bird species that are present, interpret the behaviors they are displaying, and explain the specific habitat requirements that the marsh is providing.
(Site 2 - split group) Here we will be introduced to three restoration sites on Cape May Point. First, Bob Mullock, president and founder of The Cape May Point Science Center, will guide us through dune restorations that are some of the most beautiful, tall, and protective on the East Coast. He will then introduce us to Lake Lily, where restoration efforts rescued the lake from siltation; and climate change-induced temperature rise, salinity, and algae blooms. Finally, Director of New Jersey Audubon’s Cape May Bird Observatory, Brett Ewald, will host us at the observatory’s habitat restoration site. Completed in 2017 and managed exclusively by volunteers, this 1.5-acre site exemplifies what residences can do to enhance habitat at a small scale.
(Full group, indoors) Conservation Agronomist Chris Miller will give a presentation that provides guidance for plant selection, planting techniques, and stabilization protocols for dunes, tidal shorelines, streambanks, and heavily disturbed lands. Chris is manager of the USDA-NRCS Cape May Plant Materials Center, whose mission is to seek out, assemble, test, and provide the commercial landscape industry with superior performing plants for restoration; and develop innovative, science-based technologies to improve planting and seeding success.
(Site 3 - split group) We will visit and investigate Cape May Point State Park, one of the crown jewel natural areas of the region. The park contains 244 acres of freshwater meadows, ponds, forests, dunes, and beach. Ornithologist David La Puma will point out signs of bird use, the effects of invasive species, and the habitat enhancement that has been achieved in restored sections. Landscape Designer Larry Weaner will discuss how the native plant assemblages that are found here, and the restoration techniques that have been employed here, can be translated to the designed landscape.
Date & Time: Wednesday, October 11th, 2023, 9 AM - 4:30 PM ET*
This is Day 2 of 2 days that will be held in Cape May Point, NJ. Day 1 is classroom instruction and Day 2 is field walks. Register individually by day.
Location: Cape May Point Science Center
101 Lehigh Ave, Cape May Point, NJ 08212
with visits to nearby sites
Fee: $285
Students please email [email protected] with verification of student status (ie. course schedule) for discount code.
Event Category: Professional
CEUs: APLD (6), CBLP (6), LA CES (6), ISA, NOFA (4)
See here for details & instructions.
*Time listed above includes instructional time & breaks. There will be 6 session hours.
Light breakfast, lunch, and drinks are included in the registration fee.
Check-in & breakfast begin at 8:30 AM ET.
This session will be held mostly outdoors.
HOSTED BY
Cape May Point Science Center
We want to thank our Institutional Ally:
Brett Ewald is the Director of New Jersey Audubon’s Cape May Bird Observatory. He has been studying ornithology and nature for over 40 years. His passion for birds and their conservation has led to his involvement in many research and educational projects. His ornithological specialization is in bird migration and distribution patterns.
David La Puma, PhD, is a Vice President at Cellular Tracking Technologies, an environmental technology company located in Cape May, which makes transmitters used by researchers to study the movement of wildlife from bumble bees to grizzly bears. David received his PhD in Ecology from Rutgers University in 2010 and has over two decades of experience working in wildlife conservation including five years as Director of New Jersey Audubon’s Cape May Bird Observatory.
Chris Miller is a Conservation Agronomist and has served as Manager of the USDA-NRCS Cape May Plant Materials Center since 2009. Prior to this position, he served for 18 years as an NRCS Field Plant Materials Specialist for the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic states. In 2019, he served as an NRCS Liaison to both the Northeast and Southeast USDA Climate Hubs, studying strategies for agricultural producers to mitigate and adapt to saltwater inundation and intrusion on agricultural and forest lands.
Bob Mullock is the President and Founder of the Cape May Point Science Center. Bob helped to preserve the historic building from demolition back in 2021 and was instrumental in creating the educational research center; he was also heavily involved in the dune and other restorations at Cape May Point. He is also the founder of The Harriet Tubman Museum in Cape May and is the owner of Cape May National Golf Course, The Chalfonte Hotel, and the Dormer House. Bob is passionate about conserving Cape May’s rich natural and cultural histories.
Larry Weaner, FAPLD, founded Larry Weaner Landscape Associates in 1982 and established NDAL in 1990. He is nationally recognized for combining expertise in horticulture, landscape design, and ecological restoration. His design and restoration work spans more than twenty U.S. states and the U.K., and has been profiled in numerous national publications. His book Garden Revolution: How Our Landscapes Can Be a Source of Environmental Change (2016) received an American Horticultural Society (AHS) Book Award in 2017, and in 2021 he received AHS’s Landscape Design Award.
Photo by Kim Sokoloff
