Special Events
Spring Family Campout
April 19th-20th
6pm – 9am
Spring is here and this year’s Family Campout is just around the corner! Pack your tent, sleeping bags, and adventurous attitudes and head on over to the Arboretum for an evening of games, crafts, animal presentations, a home-cooked meal, and guided night hike. Pitch a tent in the forest and enjoy a relaxing night under the stars.
Whether you are an avid camper or looking to try something new, we invite you to join! Begin the night by finding your campsite and pitching your tent. Then enjoy a hearty home-cooked meal followed by games and crafts, but don’t forget to leave room for s’mores! End the night by learning about some of our NJ native wildlife and join one of our environmental educators on an Owl Prowl, a guided night hike where we will look for signs of owls in our forest.
When registering, you have the opportunity to mention any allergies or dietary restrictions. We will do our best to accommodate, but cannot promise that we will meet every individuals needs. If you have questions or concerns regarding food at this event, please contact swilson@hartshornarboretum.org.
| Member Price | Non-Member Price |
| Adult: $60
Child: $45 |
Adult: $75
Child: $60 |
| What We Provide: | What to Bring: (for a more comprehensive packing list, click here!) |
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New Jersey Audubon’s World Series of Birding
May 11th
We’re calling you up to the Big Leagues!
A team of birdwatching enthusiasts (some might say fanatics) from the Cora Hartshorn Arboretum and Essex County’s Turtle Back Zoo will be representing our home county in the 41st annual World Series of Birding, and we are looking for sponsors.
What is the NJ Audubon’s World Series of Birding? A marathon of birding, starting before dawn as we listen for owls and herons, and continuing for 24 fast-paced hours on the second Saturday in May. While other teams attempt to cover the whole state, or head for the bird-dense county of Cape May, our team is playing for home county pride. The name of our team is Birdin’ with Glorious Purpose, and we are shining a light on bird biodiversity right here. We may not have as many species as other counties, but Essex County has more than you think in habitats ranging from urban environments to open meadows, thick woodlands to swampy wetlands.
An annual survey like the World Series of Birding is an important tool to track impacts on bird populations in response to changes in climate, degradation of habitat, and other factors. While our team has a huge amount of fun on the day of the competition, this is serious science: boots on the ground, waders in the wetlands, eyes-wide-open fieldwork which gives us an update on the status of local birds. This informs our efforts to educate the public about ways to become better stewards of wildlife.
When most people think of wildlife conservation, they think of charismatic megafauna—orca, pandas, tigers—in habitats on the other side of the world. We want people to recognize that there is wildlife in our own backyards in need of attention as well. Our “score” on the big day will demonstrate that there are hundreds of bird species in our county, either year-round or flying through on migration, who deserve conservation.
By sponsoring our team, you will help us to help wild birds. You may have seen the headlines recently when a study in Science, one of the world’s leading scientific journals, published the finding that almost 3 billion breeding adult birds have been lost from North America, more than 25% of our birdlife, since 1970. Both the Cora Hartshorn Arboretum and the Turtle Back Zoo are committed to the long-term survival of species in natural ecosystems and habitats. Any amount you contribute will enable us to amplify our educational message that local bird conservation is both urgently needed, and achievable. Please sponsor us and follow along with the team virtually through updates to our stats on our social media platforms throughout the day. Cheer us on as we try to hit a homerun for bird conservation.
Please Select “Contribution to the Arboretum” and choose “2024 World Series of Birding” from the Campaign drop down menu
*Please note that this is a Sponsor Only event. We encourage sponsors to follow along with our virtual updates on social media, but you will not physically attend the event.
