Our thanks to Wild Ridge Plants and Northwest New Jersey Skylands Visitor magazine for featuring many of the beautiful, amazing plants found throughout White Lake! Be sure to pick up a copy of the latest Skylands issue to learn more!
After a brief rain, the sun has popped out again! Come on over to White Lake for a paddle or hike and stop by the “Ask a Naturalist” table! I’ll be here until 4!
UPCOMING EVENTS AT WHITE LAKE NATURAL RESOURCE AREA:
Sunday, October 17, 2021 from 1-4 PM, Naturalist, Jennifer Correa-Kruegel will be set-up by the boat launch with her “Ask a Naturalist” table full of fun hands-on artifacts to learn more about the nature at White Lake. Stop by on your hike around the lake or on your way for a paddle!
Wednesday, October 20, 2021, Join Aaron Rosado, Land Steward for White Lake, for a “Full Moon Paddle”! Please call to reserve at 973-937-8748. This is a “bring your own kayak or board” event and the gates will be open until 9:30 PM. ** All inflatable paddleboards- please pump at the parking lot, in the grass so the traffic flow can be smooth.
Hope to see you there!
The white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) is a large native mammal that occupies most of North America and has a range extending throughout New Jersey. At appropriate population densities, deer help to maintain biodiversity in ecosystems. At high population densities, however, studies have found that the amount of browsing (eating the leaves, twigs and buds of woody plants) by deer can have detrimental effects forest health. Overbrowsing can eliminate the native forest understory (herbaceous plants, shrubs, and saplings) which are a critical source of food and cover for other wildlife species.
Additionally, as older trees die, normally saplings will grow up to replace them. But overbrowsing can impair a forest’s ability to regenerate over time. What’s more, as overbrowsing removes native plants from the forest, the ecosystem becomes more susceptible to invasion by non–native plants. Unfortunately, deer do not browse many of these non-native, invasive plants, which gives them a competitive advantage over native species. Once invasive plants get a foothold, they can quickly spread and overtake large expanses of habitat. Because invasive plants provide little to no value to wildlife species in terms of food or cover, this leads to a loss of overall biodiversity.
To help regulate the deer population, which promotes forest regeneration and biodiversity, the County of Warren allows hunting at its three Natural Resource Areas (Marble Hill, Oxford Mountain, and White Lake) by permit only. Hunting permits are free and can be obtained from the County’s Sheriff’s Office located in the Warren County Courthouse, 413 Second Street, Belvidere, New Jersey.
For more information about Warren County's Hunting Program, visit: drive.google.com/file/d/1oZ6HvDVNGzQwwIF8ZBpBlFe0-1W_rYqh/view
For more information about managing New Jersey’s White Tail Deer population:
njaes.rutgers.edu/fs1202/
www.nrcs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/nrcs141p2_017804.pdf
www.nj.gov/dep/fgw/deer.htm
BE SEEN OUTDOORS THIS FALL
Hikers and bikers should wear at least one piece of hunter orange viewable from all directions such as a hat, jacket, or vest.
Don't forget your pets! Dogs should wear hunter orange or another visible color vest, leash, harness, or bandanna.
Horseback riders should also wear a hunter orange vest or hat, and use a hunter orange vest or rump sheet on your horse.
BE ADVISED: Hunting is permitted at the Marble Hill, Oxford Mountain, and White Lake Natural Resource Areas. Please note that hunting is also permitted on state lands adjoining Florence Kuipers Park and Mt. Rascal Park.
A friendly reminder: If you recreate with your pup at any of the Warren County Parks, you are required to leash your dog at all times. It’s the law.
We have this rule so everyone (people and animals) can peacefully enjoy walking along our trails. Additionally, the wildlife that live in these parks can be very tempting for Fido to instinctively run after and possibly get hurt.
Please be considerate of your fellow park visitors and the wildlife in the area by leashing up your pup!
Thank you!
NOTICE
At the White Lake Natural Resource Area, access to the lake will be closed until 1pm on Thursday September 30th for herbicidal treatment of invasive Phragmites along the shoreline.
Thank you in advance for your understanding and cooperation.
…
Also known as Common Reed, the non-native Phragmites is a perennial wetland grass that spreads very rapidly by means above-ground stolons and underground rhizomes. (Stolons grow from an existing stem and are thin, horizontal structures that grow above-ground, sprouting new plants. Rhizomes are underground horizontal stems that also send out roots and shoots to start new plants). Stolons can grow dozens of feet annually, and new plants can sprout at nodes located every few inches along the stolon. Rhizomes, which create thick underground mats, can expand at the rate of 30 feet per year, with new plants sprouting all along the rhizome.
Once established, Phragmites forms a monoculture which is able to outcompete native vegetation. This is problematic because it reduces local plant and wildlife biodiversity. By regularly treating the Phragmites at White Lake, Warren County is trying to mitigate the negative impacts this invasive species has on the local ecosystem and visitor experience. Different methods of control have been attempted at White Lake and elsewhere, including mowing, burning, and mechanical removal (which can have other negative impacts on the environment). Careful and targeted application of specific herbicides by licensed applicators has proven relatively successful.
Licensed applicators will apply Clearcast Aquatic Herbicide directly to the Phragmite’s foliage. The active ingredient will then move through the plant tissues, where it kills Phragmites by deactivating a protein found only in plants (treated plants will begin to yellow, turn brown and eventually die). Because the herbicides used to treat Phragmites specifically target plants, the effects on birds, fish, mammals, and invertebrates have been found to be minimal. The herbicide also has low run-off potential because it quickly breaks down into non-toxic compounds that are absorbed onto soil particles and microorganisms in both water and sediment. As such, the Unites States Environmental Protection Agency has approved application of specific herbicides by licensed applicators to control Phragmites on sensitive aquatic sites.
For more information about Phragmites, visit: www.fws.gov/gomcp/pdfs/phragmitesqa_factsheet.pdf
Happy autumn from the New Jersey Forest Service!
The time has come to start planning your fall foliage adventures throughout New Jersey and New Jersey State Parks, Forests & Historic Sites!
Each Friday during the fall season we will post an updated graphic and give you suggestions for which one of our state parks and forests have the best foliage of the week.
#NJForestService
