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Important Bird and Birding Areas
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Mercer Sod Farm
Burlington CountyCoordinates: N 40.03494
W 74.73833
Site Map Piedmont Plains: New England / Mid-Atlantic CoastArea: 3,899 Acres Habitat: Grassland and cultivated fieldsSite Description: The Mercer (Columbus) Sod Farm is located near Columbus in Burlington County. Formerly a working sod farm, the site is now owned by Burlington County and managed by their Resource Conservation Department. The site includes a wooded stream corridor, a deciduous woodlot and three small ponds. About half of the site is cultivated with soybeans and hay and the remaining fields contain a mix of grasses and forbs.
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| American Golden Plover | Kevin Watson |
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Birds: The Mercer Sod Farm is important for state-listed grassland birds. Bobolinks, Eastern Meadowlarks, over 60 Grasshopper Sparrows and over 30 Savannah Sparrows have been observed during a single breeding season. The state-threatened American Kestrel also breeds at this site. Late summer and early fall brings migrating grassland species of shorebirds including Upland Sandpipers, American Golden-Plovers and Buff-breasted Sandpiper to the Mercer Sod Farm. Northern Harriers, Red-tailed Hawks and American Kestrels also winter here.Conservation: Originally slated for development, Burlington County purchased the Mercer Sod Farm to preserve open space in a region of New Jersey increasingly threatened by suburban development. Funds from the Environmental Infrastructure Financing Program (EIFP), a program offered by NJ Department of Environmental Protection’s Green Acres Program, were used to purchase two-thirds of the site. Land purchased with this type of funding requires that management remains consistent with a set of Conservation Restrictions in order to maintain the site in its natural condition to protect water quality. The area purchased with EIFP funds, therefore, is limited to passive recreation and prohibits agriculture or any type of infrastructure. Currently, a portion of the site continues to be farmed for soybeans. Burlington County’s long term goals for the EIPF portion of the site include interpretive trails and grassland management. In an effort to encourage appropriate grassland management strategies, New Jersey Audubon Society provided the County with a set of recommendations. The remaining 200 acres of the Mercer Sod Farm have been dedicated to the development of the Burlington County Fair Grounds. An organized group of local residents have coordinated trash clean-up days and avian monitoring programs at the Mercer Sod Farm.Additional Information: Site Report
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| Field at Mercer Sod Farm | Cristina Frank |
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