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Important Bird and Birding Areas
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Beaver Swamp Wildlife Management Area
Cape May CountyCoordinates: N 39.14228
W 74.80178
Site Map Delaware Bay: New England / Mid-Atlantic CoastArea: 5,081 Acres Habitat: Forested wetlands surrounded by mixed upland forestSite Description: This forested wetland site is surrounded by mixed upland forest and is a major component of the largely contiguous, forested central corridor of Cape May Peninsula. A dam and Clint Mill Pond, the freshwater pond at Beaver Swamp Wildlife Management Area (WMA), are what remain of Clint Ludlam’s saw mill that once manufactured lumber for housing and shipbuilding. The Beaver Swamp WMA is appropriately named after a population of beavers that had inhabited the pond until the dam began to erode. The site is part of the Cape May Corridor Natural Heritage Priority Macrosite (NHPM). The nearly contiguous wetlands and adjacent upland forests of this NHPM are one of the state’s most significant natural areas designated by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection.IBA Criteria:
| Criterion | Species |
| Conservation Concern – State-endangered (B) | Bald Eagle |
| Conservation Concern – State-threatened (B) | Barred Owl |
| Regional Responsibility Species - BCR 30 Forested Wetland (B) | Acadian Flycatcher, Kentucky Warbler, Louisiana Waterthrush, Wood Duck, Yellow-throated Warbler |
| Regional Responsibility Species - BCR 30 Mixed Upland Forest (B) | Acadian Flycatcher, Black-and-white Warbler, Blue Jay, Broad-winged Hawk, Carolina Chickadee, Common Grackle, Eastern Wood-Pewee, Gray Catbird, Great Crested Flycatcher, Kentucky Warbler, Louisiana Waterthrush, Northern Flicker, Scarlet Tanager, Tufted Titmouse, Whip-poor-will, Wild Turkey, Wood Thrush, Yellow-throated Warbler |
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| Louisiana Waterthrush | Jim Gilbert |
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Birds: State-endangered Bald Eagles and state-threatened Barred Owls breed at the Beaver Swamp WMA. This site also provides essential habitat for forested wetland and mixed upland forest breeding birds.Conservation: In 1992, restoration of the dam at Clint Mill Pond was completed to preserve the lake to ensure the availability of foraging opportunities for the site’s nesting Bald Eagles and other wildlife. Fragmentation and loss of the adjacent privately-owned habitats threaten the integrity of the WMA and the Peninsula’s nearly contiguous, forested central corridor. Residential and industrial development continues to expand in Cape May County. Protection and restoration of privately-owned lands can be achieved by promoting state and federal habitat incentive programs to landowners and by prioritizing lands for acquisition. Finally, development and implementation of a forest management plan is recommended to ensure continued viability of the site to forest breeding birds.Additional Information: Site Report
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| Birders at Beaver Swamp WMA | Laurie Pettigrew for NJ F&W |
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