August 2013

Last month, residents and members at Eagle Ridge Golf Club got to see course conditions through the eyes of New Jersey Audubon Stewardship Director John Parke.  They toured the property with John to see the habitat restoration and wildlife that calls Eagle Ridge home.

John also did a workshop prior at the clubhouse teaching residents how they can make simple changes in their own backyard and be a part of the Eagle Ridge Community Wildlife Habitat initiative.

Eagle Ridge Golf Club, assisted by the New Jersey Audubon Society has entered into a partnership with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to partake in a habitat restoration project on the course.  Since 2010, over 50 different species of birds, including bald eagle, eastern meadowlark, purple martin and blue grosbeak have been observed on the property as well as numerous reptile, amphibian, and mammal species.

Eagle Ridge Golf Club lies within the Atlantic Coastal Bay focus area of the US Fish and Wildlife Service’s Partners for Fish and Wildlife program and represents a large tract of open space that is considered the “Core Habitat” area of the community.  Critical foraging and nesting habitat are available on the course to a variety of migratory birds.The partnerships with the New Jersey Audubon and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service have added to the overall golf experience at the club.

“My love of wildlife, in particular birds, has caused me to really focus my attention on the environment. I am encouraging nesting for the native wildlife at Eagle Ridge in hopes of increasing species populations, and I believe it is working.  Golfers are coming up to me saying they have never seen so much wildlife here at Eagle Ridge compared to other courses.  It is a labor of love for me.”

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