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Important Bird and Birding Areas
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Clove Brook Road Corridor
Sussex CountyCoordinates: N 41.25746
W 74.73482
Skylands: Appalachian MountainsArea: 41,623 Acres Habitat: Site is a mix of habitats including scrub-shrub, forest and grasslandSite Description: Located in the northwestern corner of New Jersey, the Clove Brook Road Corridor IBA includes the upland forest, scrub-shrub, grassland and forested wetland habitats straddling Mill Brook and the northern most section of Clove Brook. The site is bound by High Point State Park to the east, Route 524 to the west, Route 23 to the north and High Point Country Club to the south. Though most of the site is privately-owned, public lands include The Nature Conservancy’s Montague Woods Preserve and the NJ Natural Lands Trust’s Reinhardt Preserve. The wooded hillside of Montague Woods is designated as a Natural Heritage Priority Site because it is inhabited by a federally-endangered plant population. Designated by NJ Department of Environmental Protection, Natural Heritage Priority Sites are considered the state’s most significant natural areas. This site is part of the Delaware Valley Water Gap Macrosite IBA.
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| Red-shouldered Hawk | Mike Lyncheski |
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Birds: The largely intact forests of this site provide valuable breeding habitat for several species of raptors including state-endangered Northern Goshawks and Red-shouldered Hawks, state-threatened Barred Owls and state-special concern Cooper’s Hawks. The forest community also includes breeding Wood Thrush, Eastern Wood-Pewee, Black-and-white Warbler, Scarlet Tanager, Yellow-throated Vireo, Gray Catbird and Baltimore Oriole. State-listed early successional species breeding at the Clove Brook Road Corridor IBA include Golden-winged Warblers, Savannah Sparrows and Bobolinks. The site also hosts a Great Blue Heron colony consisting of over 40 nests.Conservation: Major threats to this site include residential and commercial development, off-road vehicle use, overabundant deer populations, invasive plant species, and exotic pests and tree diseases. Residential and commercial development is responsible for increased habitat loss, forest fragmentation and reduced water quality throughout the region. The associated infrastructure, including roads and power line expansion, further fragments the landscape. Overabundant deer can severely reduce forest regeneration and alter structure by browsing heavily on native plants and the buds and young shoots of woody shrubs and saplings. Overbrowsing by deer also facilitates the establishment of many aggressive, nonnative plant species that outcompete native vegetation. Recreational activities, particularly off-road vehicle use, disturb and degrade habitats. Privately-owned portions of this IBA that contribute to the connectivity of the habitats in the region need to be prioritized for protection. Outreach to land managers and private landowners should promote the maintenance of old growth forest stands and large contiguous tracts of forest suitable for forest interior species. Additionally, early successional habitats should be actively managed to prevent forest succession.Additional Information: Site Report
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| Montague Woods | John Parke |
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