Delaware Reserve

Location: The St. Jones Reserve component is located six miles southeast of Dover. The Blackbird Creek component is located in southern New Castle County. Total Acreage: 4,930 Designation: 1993 Lead State Agency: Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control Mailing Address: Delaware Reserve 818 Kitts Hummock Road Dover, DE 19901 Phone: 302-739-3436

The Delaware Reserve consists of two unique components, one on Blackbird Creek and the other on the St. Jones River. Freshwater wetlands, ponds and forest lands dominate the Blackbird Creek component. The St. Jones component is dominated by salt marsh and open water habitats of the Delaware Bay.

The reserve monitors long-term changes in weather and aquatic conditions in the estuary. The reserve’s research and monitoring programs address key management issues, such as biodiversity and the impacts of land use on estuarine habitats, ecological impacts on horseshoe crab populations from migratory shorebirds, beach replenishment activities in relation to habitat preservation/ reclamation, and eutrophication and contaminants in the estuary.

The reserve offers a wide variety of educational programs for the general public, school groups, private and nonprofit organizations, educators and coastal decision makers. Coastal decision-maker workshops have included such topics as land use planning and smart growth, energy resource conservation and development for the next decade and acoustical bay bottom mapping.