Today was the fourth day of the Pine Barrens Intensive Learning program. This morning, after a short bus ride, we arrived at Woodford Cedar Run Wildlife Refuge, where we were greeted by Erin, our guide. She led us on a trail through the Pine Barrens and pointed out some of the interesting plants along the way. We got to taste teaberry leaves and we also learned about lichen, the soft leaves of the lamb’s ear plant, the carnivorous pitcher plant, and more. After our short hike, we ventured into the animal refuge area, where many injured birds, mammals, and other animals are kept and taken care of.
Erin told us about each animal’s injury or sickness and why they had to live at the Wildlife Refuge. Most of the animals had gotten their injuries from vehicle accidents and were brought to Cedar Run by people who found them afterwards. Additionally, each animal had a name to go along with its story. For example, we met two white-tailed deer named Sassafras and Spike. In the beginning, Spike was too shy to interact with us, but after a little while he became more comfortable and even let some of us feed him.
Before our departure, we did some service by raking up leaves and dead pine needles in the area next to the animal cages. Erin explained that this was helpful to Cedar Run because it was part of how they got ready to bring in animal babies that would need refuge during the Spring. After we finished the service, we came back to school. It was a very fun and successful day!
