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Coastal Conservation Research Program It was a busy, muddy summer with the Coastal Conservation Research Program interns. We were able to learn so much through their contributions, and had a great time doing it! The crew of six– all undergraduates or recent graduates...

In July, Quest for the Best Foundation awarded the Institute with a two-year grant of $82,698 to support the Diamondback Terrapin Conservation program. Grant funds are in support of the headstarting program, mark and recapture work, intern support and the Terrapins in...

by Brian Williamson In an effort to fill gaps in our knowledge of behavior and survival of juvenile terrapins, we initiated a telemetry study to track movements of head-started juvenile terrapins this summer. We are partnering with Cellular Tracking Technologies...

by Anne Galli For 50 years the Wetlands Institute has been moving forward founder Herb Mill’s vision for a coastal research, conservation and education facility supported by a community convinced that coastal wetlands are of paramount importance. Step by step,...

by Dr. Lenore Tedesco, Executive Director Another summer is screaming by. Part of me can’t believe it’s going by so quickly, while another part of me is excited by all the wonderful accomplishments of the team here. Hundreds of children are exploring the marsh and...

Jamie is our new Manager of Advancement, and helps coordinate fundraising and marketing efforts at TWI. Her passion is connecting people with environmental issues, encouraging them to support projects which impact quality of life and the environment. A marketing...

by Dr. Lenore Tedesco I often wonder about my role, my contribution, my impact. Perhaps it’s because I think about the impact the average American lifestyle has on the environment so much that it has become alarming. I am talking about our disposable society, and the...

by Dr. Lenore Tedesco, Executive Director For the past 4 years, scientists at The Wetlands Institute have been working as part of a project team that includes the US Army Corp of Engineers, NJ Department of Environmental Protection, The Nature Conservancy and many...

It’s mid-May as I muse. It’s been a busy few weeks for me – 4th annual native plant sale, World Series of Birding, Return the Favor Horseshoe Crab rescue walks, the Conservation Wine Series release with Jessie Creek Winery, and the Spring Shorebird and Horseshoe Crab...

by Deborah A. Hays, Chair of the Board of Trustees I have had a special relationship with The Wetlands Institute for decades, both visitor and volunteer. Every time I step onto the Institute’s grounds I am amazed by the bustling activity. Whether it is butterflies and...

by Kimberly Dmytro “There is nothing quite like the new Tidepool Shop at The Wetlands Institute…” – Camperways, September 1991. Nearly 30 years ago the Tidepool Shop and Front Desk were one and the same. In 1990, because of a generous grant in memory of William...

Yay! Spring! I have always felt connected to nature and that connection extends to the changing of the seasons. The rhythm that accompanies the earth’s cycles as the days get longer and the sun gets brighter permeates the Institute. It feels as if the marsh is...

Every spring, Delaware Bay host the largest concentration of spawning horseshoe crabs on the Atlantic Coast. Surveys estimate 300,000-1,300,000 horseshoe crabs annually come ashore onto NJ Bayshore beaches and are in greatest numbers during spring tides in May and...

If you have lived near the coast or have visited for many years, you have probably noticed the changes in water levels in our marshes. Lots of people have told me that it used to be a really big deal when the meadows were flooded because it didn’t happen very often....

by Sue Slotterback Everyone knows autumn is the tEdit Postime for change. It’s colorful panoramic views of the forest foliage just before it falls to blanket the ground insulating roots, crowns, seedlings, and many small creatures from winter’s frosty bite. These same...

by Sue Slotterback For the past seven weeks children ages 4 through 13 have been having fun getting wet and muddy. They’ve made animal costumes and had a parade, created a project for the Cape May County 4H Fair, presented a whale puppet show, caught fiddler crabs,...

The summer flies by fast when you are immersed in research and conservation projects (and mud and sand…) at The Wetlands Institute. From late May through early August, CCRP interns design and conduct independent research projects, contribute to annual data collection...

by Dr. Lenore Tedesco It's fall in Cape May and that means one thing – it’s time for the great migrations of wildlife headed south. Cape May sits in one of the world’s great migration corridors and in addition to being on one of these great highways, our area is also...

by Carole Forte In 1969, Herbert Mills, then Executive Director of the World Wildlife Fund, founded The Wetlands Institute to draw attention to the dramatic losses of wetlands and the threats that their loss posed to society. The Wetlands Institute has for nearly the...

Shelby Schmeltzle is our new Aquarist and Environmental Educator. She graduated in 2016 from Kutztown University of Pennsylvania with a Bachelor’s degree in Marine Biology. Since graduating she has been worked up and down the east coast from Mystic, CT to the Florida...

by Lenore Tedesco, Executive Director The triangle near 118th St between 3rd Ave and Dune Drive has been transformed into an oasis for butterflies, songbirds, hummingbirds, and pollinators of all types. Thanks to a collaboration between the Borough of Stone Harbor’s...

by Allison Anholt, Research Scientist Extra high tides during the new moon in May, combined with warm water temperatures and high sustained winds caused mass strandings of spawning horseshoe crabs on the Delaware Bay over Memorial Day weekend. The water overflowed the...

by Dr. Dottie Ives-Dewey, Trustee My family’s roots in Stone Harbor and Cape May County date back generations to when my maternal grandparents, Hugh and Dorothy Grove, purchased their house on 104th street. Some of my earliest memories include trips to the shore with...