By Lauren Wanko
Correspondent
Tucked in New Jersey’s Pinelands at Woodford Cedar Run Wildlife Refuge, foxes, hawks, vultures and lots of other animals are cared for by humans.
“When people think of species diversity, they think Africa or South America. They don’t think New Jersey, but that’s actually the reality,” said Executive Director Jeanne Gural.
Established by a couple in the 1950s, Cedar Run educates people about New Jersey’s natural resources and habitats, treats injured wildlife and takes in those that can no longer be released back into the wild, like Baron, a 14-year-old gray fox. He was brought here as a baby. Someone attempted to keep him as a pet.
“There are two species of fox that are present in New Jersey. There are red fox and gray fox. Gray fox used to be the predominate species in New Jersey, then European settlers brought in with them the red fox,” Gural said.
Baron doesn’t live far from two bald eagles, Hallie and Orion. Gural says the birds remind her of the species’ incredible comeback.
“Specific to New Jersey in the early 1980s we had one nesting pair of bald eagles left in New Jersey, and now we have recently documented 161 pairs of bald eagles living in New Jersey and that does not include the individuals that are yet to be paired,” she said.
These birds are the only animals on the property not from New Jersey. Both came from Wyoming. Their injuries left them flightless.
At the Cedar Run Wildlife Refuge hospital, staffers typically treat about 4,000 animals a year, 149 different species. Most of the animals are brought in by New Jersey residents who spot injured wildlife around the state.
Like an owl that was found injured on the Turnpike. Here he’s being treated with various medications, including eye drops. Gural says employees are careful not to create a relationship or connection with these animals since they’ll be released back into the wild. But those who call this refuge home are given lots of extra attention. Director of Education Denise Peters loves spending time with Apollo, a turkey vulture.
“Turkey vultures and black vultures in general get a bad rap because they’re scavengers. They eat dead, decaying material by the side of the road,” she said.
Peters says vultures play an important role. They’re like nature’s garbage collectors.
“Without them there would be an overabundance of dead animals laying around,” she said.
Cedar Run relies on private donations.
“So some months are harder than other months,” Gural said.
Still Gural says Cedar Run doesn’t let that stand in the way of treating New Jersey’s injured, helpless wildlife.