Green Pond Marsh, Bethlehem, PA: An Important Bird Area

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1 Green Pond Marsh, Bethlehem, PA: An Important Bird Area The flooded fields (Green Pond Marsh) located on Green Pond Road in Bethlehem Township, Northampton County is one of the best areas for wetland birds in the Lehigh Valley and perhaps, eastern Pennsylvania. This area has been attracting unusual birds since the 1970 s and hopefully will continue to do so. There is virtually no place of its kind in the Lehigh Valley. Wet areas such as this may not seem like much to the average eye, but they provide important resting and feeding stops for migratory waterfowl, shorebirds, and other species. In spring, especially after heavy rains, the water levels in many of our lakes and ponds become too high to provide habitat for migratory shorebirds. However, flooded fields are often utilized by shorebirds before they dry up. The benefit of Green Pond Marsh is that it does not dry up like an ordinary temporary puddle. It often stays wet for extended periods of time providing a muddy shoreline where shorebirds and waterfowl can feed. Many of these birds remain for days and sometimes a week or more feeding on organisms in the soft mud. It is especially important to the shorebirds since it provides an area where they can refuel and build up body fat they need to complete their long journey to their Arctic and sub-arctic nesting grounds. Over the years, the wet fields at Green Pond have attracted over 160 species of birds and at least 20 different species of shorebirds, including such rarities as American Avocet, Wilson s Phalarope, and Red-necked Phalarope. Sometimes flocks of Least Sandpipers reach 100+ individuals. On one occasion, a flock of 11 Glossy Ibis were seen here, the largest flock ever recorded in the Lehigh Valley. Once a Sandhill Crane spent an entire winter in the fields around Green Pond, which at the time was the longest stay of a Sandhill Crane in Pennsylvania during the winter months. Green Pond Marsh has also attracted over 20 species of migratory waterfowl. Over 100 Northern Pintails have been seen here at one time and large numbers of Green-winged Teal have also been seen here. The first county record of the rare Ross s Goose came from Green Pond and the only record of Barnacle Goose was recorded here. In addition, the Greater White-fronted Goose has also been recorded here several times. The nation behaves well if it treats the natural resources as assets which it must turn over to the next generation increased, and not impaired, in value. - Theodore Roosevelt, 1910 Save Green Pond Marsh Revised: 4/5/13 1

2 In the Fall of 2011 the road between Green Pond and the Green Pond Marsh was resurfaced and the road was raised enough to block the water from flowing across the road from the Pond overflow into the Marsh area during most high water events. This appeared to be good for drivers using the road, but unfortunately, it stopped water from reaching this extremely unique wet area. The raised road acts like a dam to contain the water on the Pond side of the road, so that now when the water overflows the road, there is much more water on the road creating hazardous driving conditions. On January 31, 2013, for the first time since the Fall of 2011, the Pond water flowed over the raised road and entered the Green Pond Marsh area. Thanks to heavy rains the previous night, the Marsh, which had been dry for over a year, finally was replenished with water. Unfortunately, because of the raised road, there is much more water on the road in places next to the pond where it DIDN T occur before PennDOT raised the road level. So the driving conditions are now more dangerous for vehicles (and drivers) than it was before the road was raised. The solution to both of these problems - getting water to the former Marsh and fixing dangerous driving conditions on the road during high water events - is for PennDOT to put a drainage pipe under the road to reconnect the Pond overflow back into the Marsh area. 2

3 Google Map: Green Pond, Bethlehem, PA January 2013 The road level was raised by PennDOT in 2011 and now acts like a dam preventing water from flowing into the Green Pond Marsh Area and creating dangerous driving conditions when water does flow over the road. A pipe should be placed under the road here to reestablish water flow from Green Pond into the Green Pond Marsh Area. Green Pond Marsh area 3

4 Before the road was raised: 4

5 After PennDOT raised the level of the road and blocked water flow into the Green Pond Marsh Area: Notice the two dead fish in the photo. 5

6 1) Greater White-fronted Goose 2) Snow Goose 3) Ross's Goose 4) Cackling Goose 5) Canada Goose 6) Barnacle Goose 7) Brant 8) Tundra Swan 9) Mute Swan 10) Wood Duck 11) Mallard 12) American Black Duck 13) Gadwall 14) Green-winged Teal 15) American Wigeon 16) Northern Pintail 17) Northern Shoveler 18) Blue-winged Teal 19) Ring-necked Duck 20) Bufflehead 21) Hooded Merganser 22) Ruddy Duck 23) Wild Turkey 24) Common Loon 25) Pied-billed Grebe 26) Double-crested Cormorant 27) American Bittern 28) Black-crowned Night-Heron 29) Green Heron 30) Little Blue Heron 31) Snowy Egret 32) Great Egret 33) Great Blue Heron 34) Glossy Ibis 35) White Ibis 36) Turkey Vulture 37) Black Vulture 38) Osprey 39) Mississippi Kite 40) Northern Harrier 41) Bald Eagle 42) Sharp-shinned Hawk 43) Cooper's Hawk 44) Broad-winged Hawk 45) Red-shouldered Hawk 46) Red-tailed Hawk 47) Merlin 48) Peregrine Falcon 49) Common Moorhen 50) American Coot 51) Sandhill Crane 52) Black-bellied Plover 162 species of birds have been sighted at the Green Pond Marsh. The 162 species include these eight species which are listed as either Endangered or Threatened in the State of Pennsylvania: PA Endangered Species: American Bittern Black-crowned Night-Heron Black Tern Blackpoll Warbler Common Tern Great Egret 53) Semipalmated Plover 54) Killdeer 55) American Avocet 56) Lesser Yellowlegs 57) Greater Yellowlegs 58) Solitary Sandpiper 59) Spotted Sandpiper 60) Sanderling 61) Dunlin 62) Semipalmated Sandpiper 63) Western Sandpiper 64) Least Sandpiper 65) White-rumped Sandpiper 66) Baird's Sandpiper 67) Pectoral Sandpiper 68) Short-billed Dowitcher 69) Stilt Sandpiper 70) Wilson's Snipe 71) Wilson's Phalarope 72) Red-necked Phalarope 73) Bonaparte's Gull 74) Ring-billed Gull 75) California Gull 76) Herring Gull 77) Glaucous Gull 78) Iceland Gull 79) Lesser Black-backed Gull 80) Great Black-backed Gull 81) Royal Tern (pending PORC acceptance) PA Threatened Species: Northern Harrier Osprey Courtesy of Pennsylvania Game Commission: 82) Forster's Tern 83) Common Tern 84) Black Tern 85) Rock Pigeon 86) Mourning Dove 87) Great Horned Owl 88) Common Nighthawk 89) Chimney Swift 90) Ruby-throated Hummingbird 91) Belted Kingfisher 92) Red-bellied Woodpecker 93) Northern Flicker 94) Downy Woodpecker 95) Eastern Wood-Pewee 96) Least Flycatcher 97) Eastern Phoebe 98) Great Crested Flycatcher 99) Eastern Kingbird 100) Red-eyed Vireo 101) Warbling Vireo 102) Blue Jay 103) American Crow 104) Fish Crow 105) Horned Lark 106) Tree Swallow 107) Bank Swallow 108) Cliff Swallow 109) Northern Rough-winged Swallow 110) Barn Swallow 111) Tufted Titmouse 112) Black-capped Chickadee 113) Carolina Chickadee 114) White-breasted Nuthatch 115) House Wren 116) Carolina Wren 117) Ruby-crowned Kinglet 118) Blue-gray Gnatcatcher 119) Eastern Bluebird 120) American Robin 121) Gray Catbird 122) Northern Mockingbird 123) Brown Thrasher 124) European Starling 125) American Pipit 126) Cedar Waxwing 127) Prothonotary Warbler 128) Nashville Warbler 129) Magnolia Warbler 130) Yellow-rumped Warbler 131) Black-and-white Warbler 132) Black-throated Green Warbler 133) Yellow-throated Warbler 134) Blackpoll Warbler 135) Palm Warbler 136) Yellow Warbler 137) Wilson's Warbler 138) Louisiana Waterthrush 139) Northern Waterthrush 140) Common Yellowthroat 141) American Redstart 142) Eastern Towhee 143) Field Sparrow 144) Chipping Sparrow 145) Savannah Sparrow 146) Song Sparrow 147) Swamp Sparrow 148) White-throated Sparrow 149) Dark-eyed Junco 150) Rose-breasted Grosbeak 151) Northern Cardinal 152) Indigo Bunting 153) Bobolink 154) Red-winged Blackbird 155) Common Grackle 156) Rusty Blackbird 157) Brown-headed Cowbird 158) Orchard Oriole 159) Baltimore Oriole 160) House Finch 161) American Goldfinch 162) House Sparrow

7 By raising the road level and stopping water flow from Green Pond into the Green Pond Marsh Area, in the Fall of 2011, PennDOT was in violation of Bethlehem Township Codes, which state that the municipality shall... "Utilize and preserve the desirable natural drainage systems." "Maintain the existing flows and quality of streams and watercourses in the municipality and the commonwealth." "Preserve and restore the flood-carrying capacity of streams." "Meet legal water quality requirements under state law, including regulations at 25 Pa. Code 93.4a to protect and maintain "existing uses" and maintain the level of water quality to support those uses in all streams and to protect and maintain water quality in "special protection" streams." Township of Bethlehem, PA Codes can be viewed here: 7