Bat-Signal: Help Needed for At-Risk Forest Denizens
Have you seen these Drew Forest Bats?
Flitting around on a moonlit night, lucky Forest walkers may be able to spot six of nine NJ bat species. The rarest among them: the Indiana Bat and the Northern Long-Eared Bat, both of which are on the Federal list of endangered species.
Our commissioned report from the Davey Resource Group found that, “The [Drew] Preserve contains canopy, sub-canopy, shrub and flowering herbaceous layers largely composed of New Jersey native species, which aids in creating a balanced food web that is able to support habitat for a wide variety of pollinators, birds, and other wildlife.” Read the full report here.
Where to look? Bats like to nest in trees with peeling bark such as shagbark hickories and sugar maples and in dead trees with small to large cavities. They may have a reputation of being spooky, but bats are incredibly beneficial animals to people. All of New Jersey's bats are insectivores and are the only major predator of nocturnal insects. A single little brown bat can eat up to 3,000 mosquito-sized insects per night!
What to read? Recommended by The Nature of Reading, Amara and the Bats by Emma Reynolds tells the story of a young girl named Amara who works with her community to protect the trees that her bat friends call home.
Help us Raise $15,000 to Fund Bat Habitat and Other Studies
With your support, we’ll get the data necessary to help protect the Forest. That means digging into stormwater requirements, wetland protections, endangered species habitats, shade tree surveys and much more.
This is a huge investment in the Drew Forest’s future. It is urgent for the ongoing Drew/Madison lawsuit and it will be indispensable for:
protecting the Drew Forest from development;
applying for conservation funding;
managing the Drew Forest when it is preserved as open space for us all to enjoy.
How to Donate:
Send a check to Friends of the Drew Forest c/o 10 Highview Terrace, Madison NJ 07940.
PLEASE, PLEASE: Do not donate on change.org; the money does not go to us.
WE’RE WINNERS!
Friends of the Drew Forest received a prestigious Environmental Achievement Award from the Association of NJ Environmental Commissions (ANJEC). Kate Ransom-Silliman, right, accepted the award from Jennifer Coffey, ANJEC Executive Director, at a state-wide environmental congress on October 14. Kate, who’s on our steering committee, says that “the event made me realize all we’ve accomplished so far. By establishing a nonprofit from scratch, we’ve created a model for action that other towns can follow.”