On January 27th, 2026, I saw one American Woodcock foraging on the side of the road near Shaws Mill Pond, Cumberland County NJ. The surrounding forest was covered in ice-capped snow, and it was tapping for earth worms in a small strip of bare dirt created by a snow plow. It did this for quite a while, and even after it noticed me and flew off it went right back to foraging on the side of the road again. Not busy road at all.

The recent snowstorm, which has meteorologically turned to ice, hitting the U.S right now perfectly demonstrates the importance of native plants. Outside a window in my home there is a small patch of lawn that never was mowed. In this extremely small, maybe 5 square foot,area there are about three different types of plants. I admittedly could only tell you one of those confidently right now, Pokeweed, but that is besides the point. The birds flocked to these plants in the otherwise barren yard! The plants provided not only a place to rest, but also food. I hope these photos demonstrate the importance of native plants to birds on these icy winter days to you.

Although there may officially be no mascot for the Delaware Bay, a perfect, arguably the best, candidate for this position would be the Atlantic Horseshoe Crab. These ancient creatures exit the waters of the Delaware Bay every year in mind-boggling numbers to breed at their highest concentration anywhere in the world. That's right, despite having a range from Maine to Mexico, the Delaware Bay is home to the largest concentration of these creatures in the world. Despite this, their population is a fraction of what it used to be. Not only have we noticed this decline, but the ecological recipients of their services have felt this blow as well.

I thought I would write an article on one of my favorite spots in Down Jersey, Shaws Mill Pond. A 28 acre pond, or maybe lake, popular for fishing and “boating”. Surrounding the pond is some of NJs rarest types of habitat as well. Let's settle that first, what is Shaws Mill Pond?

Mason Cain

I, Mason Cain, took all of these photos on November 16th, 2025, at The Nature Conservancy's South Cape May Meadows Preserve. I was doing some birthday biking in Cape May that day, and decided I would do some hiking here on one of my stops. 

Recently the Secretary of The Interior Doug Burgum, along with Governor of Alaska Mike Dunleavy, celebrated through the signing of multiple pieces of legislation on what they boasted as a celebratory “Alaska Day”. The two most important, and controversial, pieces of legislation are what I am going to summarize in this short blog.

        I thought I would organize five congressional bills from the House Natural Resources Committee (mostly) I find interesting and worth watching the progress of, and these are not necessarily bad! Each link brings you to congress.gov, and on it you can find all the information on the bill, its progress through congress, and who to contact if you wish to comment on it.

Every fall two natural phenomenon's take place, the annual Monarch Butterfly Migration back south and the blooming of Goldenrod. Most of people think of "field" types of goldenrod at first, famous for making fall fields seem golden. Most people also don't seem to know about the Monarchs perilous journey down to Mexico it takes every autumn, and I thought I would highlight not only this incredible migration but also a different type of Goldenrod that fuels the Monarch's migration as they stumble along the Atlantic Flyway; Seaside Goldenrod.

Taken in Washington and Jefferson National Forest

Spartina Alterniflora, a salt-water tolerant grass that has evolved to survive the bays harsh conditions, dominates the salt marshes.

The largest of all Nuthatches in North America, this bird is always great to see!