| Wildlife surveys focusing on vertebrates were conducted at two created wetland in Central New Jersey, in East Windsor, NJ and Clinton, NJ, to determine if the sites were being utilized in a manner similar to natural wetlands. Surveys were conducted for 15 weeks over Spring 2002. A total of 731 individuals were observed and birds were the most common form of wildlife encountered, with 703 individuals surveyed. Species diversity (H) showed a highly diverse population, with 25 species seen at Created Wetland Study Site I and 33 seen at Created Wetland Study Site II. The most common species seen at Created Wetland Study Site I was the red-winged blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus ) (32.8% of population) and the mallard (Anas platyrhynchos ) at Created Wetland Study Site II (13.1% of population). The high diversity and most abundant species observed were most likely the result of the most common vegetation types growing in the two differing created wetlands. |
