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10/3/2013

"Building Resilient Coastal Communities" Is Coast Day 2013's Theme

Coast Day 2013 Is This Sunday, October 6, in Lewes, Delaware!

Celebrate the Beautiful Delaware Coast!

Coast Day 2013 Announcement From The University of Delaware:

"The University of Delaware's festive Coast Day returns for the 37th year on Sunday, Oct. 6 from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Our theme this year is "Building Resilient Coastal Communities." Throughout the event, UD scientists, staff, and students are highlighting some of the many ways we are working to maintain a healthy environment and ensure that society continues to benefit from the coast. Anyone curious about the wonders of the sea can visit the Hugh R. Sharp Campus in Lewes, Del. on Coast Day to learn about the state's rich marine resources."

"Coast Day will highlight how UD scientists, staff, and students are improving understanding of ocean environments and serving coastal communities. Coast Day attendees can interact with researchers, tour ships, try hands-on activities, and attend presentations on a range of topics."

"Family-friendly activities include an event-wide treasure hunt for answers to questions about the environment and Coast Day exhibits. Children can meet sea-dwelling animals such as horseshoe crabs and dogfish sharks at the critter touch tanks. Everyone can enjoy live music, vendor displays, and seafood favorites showcased by local chefs at the Crab Cake Cook-Off and the Seafood Chowder Challenge."

"Coast Day is sponsored by UD’s College of Earth, Ocean, and Environment and the Delaware Sea Grant College Program."

"Admission and parking are free!"

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7/3/2013

Prime Hook Beach

Get Ready For Great Photographs of Prime Hook Beach & Prime Hook National Wildlife Refuge

This Sunday, Delaware's The News Journal will feature beautiful photographs of a hidden wonder along the Delaware Bay--Prime Hook National Wildlife Refuge and Prime Hook Beach. Breathtaking photos of wildlife and the open access areas for public enjoyment will be featured. The article is entitled, "Prime Hook: Photographs of the Off-the-Beaten Path Beach."

A few miles east of Milton, Delaware, and 22 miles southeast of Dover, the quiet shores of Prime Hook Beach can be reached via Prime Hook Road, a left turn off of Delaware Route 1 South.

Directly behind the community of homes lining the beach is the Prime Hook National Wildlife Refuge. The refuge was created in 1963 by the authority of the Migratory Bird Conservation Act as a sanctuary expressly for migrating birds. It encompasses nearly 10,000 diverse acres of freshwater and saltwater marshes, woodlands, grasslands, bottomland forested habitats, scrub brush zones, farming lands, ponds, and a seven mile long creek. Naturally occurring tidal salt marshes make up 2300 acres of the refuge, and man-made freshwater ponds cover 4000 acres. Administered by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the freshwater impoundment systems were built in the 1980's to provide refuge officials the means to raise and lower water levels in the ponds to accommodate the needs of migratory birds during different seasons of the year. The ponds provided habitat for wintering waterfowl, places to feed for spring and fall migratory shorebirds, and nesting areas for wading birds in the summer.

And therein lies the rub. Having provided beautiful habitat for bird watching and wildlife viewing, the refuge created the perfect conditions for housing development along the bay coast: water views both east and west of established residences and newly built homes. But since 2006, multiple hurricanes have caused sea water to breach the dunes, causing an influx of sediment and saltwater into the freshwater ponds, killing most of the vegetation and limiting the use of the ponds by migrating and local birds, as well as by local wildlife populations.

The beauty of Prime Hook National Wildlife Refuge will be preserved in the beautiful photo layout in The News Journal on Sunday, but all of Delaware and the nation needs to rally behind permanently preserving our national wildlife refuges.

Egrets Resting in Trees at the Prime Hook National Wildlife Refuge

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12/1/2012

Photographs of Hurricane Sandy's Impact in New Jersey, Delaware, and Pennsylvania Needed for Research by the Partnership for the Delaware Estuary

A Message from the Science Director of the Partnership for the Delaware Estuary:

Staff at the Partnership for the Delaware Estuary are currently working to assess the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy. To help us with this assessment, we welcome any photos, stories, videos, or storm-related data you may have. Please share them with us on facebook or send them to SRothrock@DelawareEstuary.org.

We are particularly interested in the natural lands and waters of coastal Delaware, New Jersey's southern bayshore, and Southeast Pennsylvania. We hope to learn new lessons about which habitats and resources survived best. We will then apply those lessons using new projects, like our living shorelines.
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Hurricane Sandy made landfall within 50 miles of Delaware Bay, sparing millions from the destruction others are suffering in the Northeast. We are extremely lucky. Damage could have been far worse. That's why it's imperative we take the necessary steps to prepare for the future. Your photos, stories, and videos can help.

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8/17/2012

Featuring the Photography of Robert A. Nagle of Kitts Hummock, Delaware

Viewing the Lovely Flora and Fauna Along the Delaware Bay

White Blossoming Yucca Plants and Yellow Cacti Cover the Beach at Kitts Hummock on the Delaware Bay

The beaches lining the western side of the Delaware Bay provide some of the best photography opportunities in the Mid-Atlantic States. The scenery here is still in its natural state, undisturbed by landowners and tourists who carefully respect where they walk.

Robert A. Nagle, one of the residents of Kitts Hummock, Delaware, gave me permission to post on this blog one of his beautiful landscape photographs of the area surrounding the Kitts Hummock Beach. Despite dry weather this summer, the yucca plants and cacti are thriving and showing off bright yellow and white blossoms in contrast to the dark green vegetation growing on the sand dunes. Thank you, Bob, for sharing this amazing composition of native plants which you captured with your camera.

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8/4/2012

Big Stone Beach on the Delaware Bay

The Mysterious Big Stone Beach, Delaware, Located on the Delaware Bay

Delaware Bay Beach

Photographing the lovely beaches lining the western shore of the Delaware Bay would take you to unique locations: Woodland Beach, Port Mahon Beach, Pickering Beach, Bombay Hook Beach, Prime Hook Beach, Kitts Hummock Beach, North and South Bowers Beaches, Slaughter Beach, Roosevelt Beach, and Lewes Beach, to name a few sites. Another beach bears a descriptive name and a mystery about how it received its name--Big Stone Beach.

Big Stone Beach's name would lead us to believe there must be large rock formations on the beach like on the West Coast of the United States. The coastal zone along the Delaware Bay, however, does not have any steep rock formations. Rather, it is made up of low lying marshes that often lead to sandy beaches. My curiosity piqued, I set out to take photos of this beach and its unique rock structures.

As I drove along Big Stone Beach Road, I passed through two and a half miles of beautiful forests and low marshlands inhabited by a variety of songbirds and shorebirds. A half mile from the beach, the freshwater marshes lapped lazily at the grassy edges of the road, and in the distance, I could see a tall black structure that reminded me of a fire watch tower. A few cottages lined the bay, but I didn't see any inhabitants or people on the beach.

Big Stone Beach is a very quiet beach, and in the vicinity of its entrance road, there are no large natural rock formations or manmade structures composed of stone. Could the name have originated from a local Native American word describing the sizes of stones on the beach or the size of the beach itself?

The military history of the beach and the black tower dates back to the end of WWI when a commissioned fort, Fort Saulsbury, was built to protect the eastern shore. During WWII, the United States used the fort to house prisoners of war and the staff who guarded them. Was the name of the beach related to a military maneuver?

Entrance Road to Big Stone Beach

Marshes on the North Side of the Entrance Road

Marshes on the South Side of the Entrance Road

Close-up View of the Tower at Big Stone Beach

From a Distance, What Appears to Be Tree Stumps on the Beach

Close-up View of the Stumps Lining the Beach

Roiling Charcoal Sea Foam on the Beach

The tower in the photos was part of the Fort Saulsbury defenses that were used in WWII as observation towers and as a gun battery. In May 1941, the 261st Coast Artillery Battery B was assigned to Fort Saulsbury for the purposes of coastal defense. They watched the coast line from three steel fire control observation towers that were built at Stone Beach, Mispillion Lighthouse and Fowler's Beach. Only the Big Stone Beach tower remains, along with the mystery of how this unique location received its name. If you know the answer to this question, please add your information to the Comments section below.

The Big Stone Beach area is environmentally protected because of Ted Harvey's foresight. Ted Harvey acquired 2700 acres along Big Stone Beach as part of the Ted Harvey Wildlife Area, giving the organization control over land that had been planned to be appropriated by oil companies for major building projects. Today, the conservation district is one of the premier East Coast wildlife refuges.

Directions to Big Stone Beach: North of Milford, Delaware, on Route 1, turn right (NE) at Thompsonville Road and go 3.5 miles. Turn right (E) onto Scotts Corner Road, arriving at Scott's Corners in 1.1 miles. Take a left (NE) onto Big Stone Beach Road. The road reaches the bayshore in another 2.6 miles after traveling through forests and marshes inhabited by songbirds and shorebirds.

Map of Delaware Bay Beaches by the US Fish & Wildlife Service

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6/2/2012

Prime Hook Beach and Prime Hook National Wildlife Refuge

Prime Hook Beach, A Delaware Bay Beach Near Prime Hook Wildlife Refuge, Is Now Threatened by Rising Water Levels, Salt Water Intrusion & Inaction

Entrance to Prime Hook National Wildlife Refuge

A few miles east of Milton, Delaware, and 22 miles southeast of Dover, the quiet shores of Prime Hook Beach can be reached via Prime Hook Road, a left turn off of Delaware Route 1 South. The beach area is not easily accessible to the public, but there are a few unmarked entrances over dunes that can be traversed. Parking is a problem because of the frequent posting of No Parking signs, and there is no parking lot available for visitors.

Directly behind the community of homes lining the beach is the Prime Hook National Wildlife Refuge. The refuge was created in 1963 by the authority of the Migratory Bird Conservation Act as a sanctuary expressly for migrating birds. It encompasses nearly 10,000 diverse acres of freshwater and saltwater marshes, woodlands, grasslands, bottomland forested habitats, scrub brush zones, farming lands, ponds, and a seven mile long creek. Naturally occurring tidal salt marshes make up 2300 acres of the refuge, and man-made freshwater ponds cover 4000 acres. Administered by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the freshwater impoundment systems were built in the 1980's to provide refuge officials the means to raise and lower water levels in the ponds to accommodate the needs of migratory birds during different seasons of the year. The ponds provided habitat for wintering waterfowl, places to feed for spring and fall migratory shorebirds, and nesting areas for wading birds in the summer.

And therein lies the rub. Having provided beautiful habitat for bird watching and wildlife viewing, the refuge created the perfect conditions for housing development along the bay coast: water views both east and west of established residences and newly built homes. But in 2006, Hurricane Ernesto breached the dunes and caused an influx of sediment and saltwater behind some homes. Viewed as a natural process, the breach was not repaired. In 2009 and 2010 the dune line was again overwashed, pouring more saltwater into the freshwater ponds, killing most of the vegetation, and again flooding the area. In 2011 the dunes were rebuilt, but destroyed within a week by another storm. Valuable time for action has been delayed by lawsuits and agencies debating how to resolve the issues, one of which is how to protect the homes already in the community.

Prime Hook Road entrance to Prime Hook Beach

Prime Hook Road Surrounded By Saltwater Infused Ponds

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has developed three proposals to resolve this problem, but homeowners are concerned about the outcomes:

1. Option 1: Take no action.
2. Option 2: Actively manage the refuge to mimic natural processes (FWS' preference).
3. Option 3: Reinstate cooperative farming in the refuge, manage both saltwater and freshwater habitats, and rebuild infrastructure and the dunes along the Delaware Bayshore.

For more information about Prime Hook Beach and the Prime Hook National Wildlife Preserve, go to www.fws.gov/northeast/primehook

Wading Shorebirds' Habitat at the Refuge

Two Wading Shorebirds Perched on Tree Branches

Prime Hook Beach

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5/19/2012

Migratory Birds Feast on Horseshoe Crab Eggs

Every Spring . . .
Migratory Shore Birds Stop to Feast on Horseshoe Crab Eggs Along the Delaware Bay Beaches Before Continuing Their Arduous Flight North

Red Knots As Seen in Wikipedia May, 2012.

Throughout the year Delaware's ocean and bay beaches provide some of the best birdwatching experiences on the Mid-Atlantic Coast, but spring and fall migratory seasons attract thousands of bird enthusiasts hoping to see birds on the endangered species list. One of the most remarkable of those birds is the Calidris canutus rufa, commonly called the red knot shorebird.

About the size of a robin, red knot shorebirds travel more than 9300 miles from South America to North America, stopping over for two weeks along the Delaware Bay beaches to feed on the translucent green eggs being laid by the horseshoe crabs (see last week's post below). Then the red knots continue migrating north to the Canadian Arctic to breed.

Little is known about the juvenile red knots after they leave the Arctic until they return to the Delaware Bay two years later. In 2006, because of declining red knot populations, the species was named a candidate for the endangered species list. A decision should be announced later this year. Scientists believe the health and vitality of the birds is directly related to their refueling stopover on the Delaware Bay. The eggs of the horseshoe crabs provide valuable fat reserves for the birds' long flight north and contributes to the health of the new Arctic hatchlings. One reason their numbers may have dropped before 2006 may have been because of overfishing of the crabs, reducing the numbers of eggs for the shore birds to eat. New regulations now limit the number of crabs permitted to be taken and the time period in which they may be trapped.

Adult shorebirds have begun arriving at the Delaware Beaches and the next two weeks will provide great birdwatching, especially at these bay beaches and wildlife reserves: Bombay Hook, Port Mahon Beach, Kitts Hummock, Ted Harvey Wildlife Area, Bowers Beach, South Bowers Beach, Slaughter Beach, Fowlers Beach, and Broadkill Beach.

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5/11/2012

Horseshoe Crabs Annual Census on the Delaware Bay Beaches

Horseshoe Crabs Inundate the Delaware Bay Shoreline

Delaware Bay beaches come alive with activity in mid-May as migrating shorebirds fly in from Central and South America, horseshoe crabs swim ashore to lay their eggs, and census takers count the number of crabs finding mates. The shorebirds refuel by feasting on the eggs that are half-buried in the sand and then continue their flight northward. The remaining eggs that are covered by sand will mature and hatch after a month or more of development, in relatively calm water when the moon is full. Waves sweep the half inch long crabs into shallow water where they stay for nearly a week until they are ready to molt. The young crabs then live in the nearby intertidal flats for the first two years of life.

During the full and new moons of late May and early June over a million horseshoe crabs appear on the beaches of the Delaware Bay. Most of them favor the beaches mid-way up the Delaware Bay, such as Pickering Beach, which often has the highest densities of horseshoe crabs in the Delaware Bay, according to the U.S. Geological Survey's horseshoe crab census. Researchers counted an average of 27 horseshoe crabs per square meter at Pickering Beach during the peak of spawning season. Other beaches with large populations of horseshoe crabs are Mahon Beach, Kitts Hummock Beach, Fowlers Beach, Bowers Beach, Big Stone Beach, Slaughter Beach, and Prime Hook Beach. The highlighted beaches have been reviewed in my earlier blogs, and the other beaches will be reviewed in upcoming blogs.

Since 1990 the University of Delaware Sea Grant College Program sponsors a horseshoe crab census to estimate the population on Delaware beaches. The data from these annual crab counts provide a valuable management tool for long-term monitoring of the Delaware Bay horseshoe crab population. You can volunteer for the Annual Horseshoe Crab census by contacting Dr. Bill Hall (Delaware) at (302) 645-4253 or by e-mail at bhall@udel.edu. An excellent source of information about the Delaware horseshoe crab population is the University of Delaware's College of Earth, Ocean, and Environment's website at http://www.ceoe.udel.edu/horseshoecrab.

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5/5/2012

Partnership for the Delaware Estuary

Logo of the Partnership

The Partnership for the Delaware Estuary is one of 28 national estuary programs in the United States' coastal zones. Established in 1996 as a non-profit organization, the Partnership takes a leadership role in protecting and enhancing the Delaware Estuary, where fresh water from the Delaware River mixes with salt water from the Atlantic Ocean. Partners in three states, Pennsylvania, Delaware, and New Jersey, work with the organization's staff to increase awareness and understanding of the estuary and to share scientific knowledge and research about the Delaware Estuary.

The Partnership's mission is to lead collaborative and creative events that will educate the public and organizations about the Delaware Estuary and its tributaries in an effort to protect it for current and future generations. Activities are as varied as volunteer clean-ups of the local river banks and bay beaches to fundraisers and teacher education programs. Follow this link for a list of upcoming activities and information about the Partnership for the Delaware Estuary:

http://delawareestuary.org/who_we_are_the_estuary.asp

The Delaware Estuary Encompasses Areas of Delaware, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey.

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4/28/2012

Bowers Beach and South Bowers Beach, Delaware

Bowers Beach, and Right Across a Narrow Inlet, South Bowers Beach: Two Beautiful Beaches Accessible to Each Other By a Quick Trip Over Water or a Longer Inland Drive

Bowers Beach and South Bowers Beach

Bowers Beach on the Delaware Bay has a lovely stretch of white sand, scattered shells, colorful rocks and minerals, and gentle waves. What a great combination for family fun or solitary beachcombing!

Bowers Beach is located 13.6 miles south of Dover, Delaware, with easy access from Delaware State Route 1S. Quaint summer vacation homes and modern multi-story homes on high pilings intermix along the beach and inland, as well.

Bowers Beach is often confused with South Bowers Beach which is just an inlet away. Access to the southern beach front is by boat across a narrow inlet that is lined with boat launching sites, charter deep sea fishing services, charter dining tours, and local seafood restaurants. An alternate and much longer route to South Bowers Beach involves returning to Route 1 S and driving seven miles south to a left turn onto Milford Neck Road. From Milford Neck Road, veer left onto Mosley Road which becomes South Bowers Road. Follow South Bowers Road until it ends at the Delaware Bay.

Both beaches have beautiful white sandy beaches with plenty of rocks and colorful stones to collect, but South Bowers Beach has been recently replenished with an abundance of clean, white sand that stretches seamlessly along the open bay beach, surrounded by lush dune grasses and shrubs. On the day I visited to take pictures for this column, I was the only person on the wide beach for most of the sunny afternoon. It is a rock collectors' paradise as areas of the white sand are overlaid with an amazing variety of minerals and stones. This section of South Bowers Beach is reached by simply following South Bowers Road until it runs into the sand, but if you veer to the left before the sand-covered road, you will drive past a group of bay houses and end up at the marina opposite the marina at Bowers Beach, just across the inlet described above.

Bowers Beach and South Bowers Beach are two Delaware Bay Beaches worth visiting. By the way, did I tell you that you have to travel past the village of Little Heaven as you travel north or south on Route 1 to get to these beaches?

Looking South Along Bowers Beach, Delaware

Sandy Entrance Road to South Bowers Beach, Delaware

View of the Delaware Bay at Bowers Beach, Delaware

Looking South Along South Bowers Beach, Delaware

Looking North Along Bowers Beach, Delaware

Looking North Along South Bowers Beach, Delaware

Rocks and Minerals at Bowers Beach, Delaware

Rocks and Minerals at South Bowers Beach, Delaware

19 Comments

"Building Resilient Coastal Communities" Is Coast Day 2013's Theme

Coast Day 2013 Is This Sunday, October 6, in Lewes, Delaware!

Prime Hook Beach

Get Ready For Great Photographs of Prime Hook Beach & Prime Hook National Wildlife Refuge

Photographs of Hurricane Sandy's Impact in New Jersey, Delaware, and Pennsylvania Needed for Research by the Partnership for the Delaware Estuary

A Message from the Science Director of the Partnership for the Delaware Estuary:

Featuring the Photography of Robert A. Nagle of Kitts Hummock, Delaware

Viewing the Lovely Flora and Fauna Along the Delaware Bay

Big Stone Beach on the Delaware Bay

The Mysterious Big Stone Beach, Delaware, Located on the Delaware Bay

Prime Hook Beach and Prime Hook National Wildlife Refuge

Prime Hook Beach, A Delaware Bay Beach Near Prime Hook Wildlife Refuge, Is Now Threatened by Rising Water Levels, Salt Water Intrusion & Inaction

Migratory Birds Feast on Horseshoe Crab Eggs

Every Spring . . .
Migratory Shore Birds Stop to Feast on Horseshoe Crab Eggs Along the Delaware Bay Beaches Before Continuing Their Arduous Flight North

Horseshoe Crabs Annual Census on the Delaware Bay Beaches

Partnership for the Delaware Estuary

Partnership for the Delaware Estuary

Bowers Beach and South Bowers Beach, Delaware

Bowers Beach, and Right Across a Narrow Inlet, South Bowers Beach: Two Beautiful Beaches Accessible to Each Other By a Quick Trip Over Water or a Longer Inland Drive

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Coast Day 2013 Is This Sunday, October 6, in Lewes, Delaware!

Get Ready For Great Photographs of Prime Hook Beach & Prime Hook National Wildlife Refuge

A Message from the Science Director of the Partnership for the Delaware Estuary:

Viewing the Lovely Flora and Fauna Along the Delaware Bay

The Mysterious Big Stone Beach, Delaware, Located on the Delaware Bay

Prime Hook Beach, A Delaware Bay Beach Near Prime Hook Wildlife Refuge, Is Now Threatened by Rising Water Levels, Salt Water Intrusion & Inaction

Every Spring . . .Migratory Shore Birds Stop to Feast on Horseshoe Crab Eggs Along the Delaware Bay Beaches Before Continuing Their Arduous Flight North

Partnership for the Delaware Estuary

Bowers Beach, and Right Across a Narrow Inlet, South Bowers Beach: Two Beautiful Beaches Accessible to Each Other By a Quick Trip Over Water or a Longer Inland Drive

Author

Archives

Categories

Every Spring . . .
Migratory Shore Birds Stop to Feast on Horseshoe Crab Eggs Along the Delaware Bay Beaches Before Continuing Their Arduous Flight North