East Dover Hundred in Kent County, Delaware — The American Northeast (Mid-Atlantic)

St. Jones River Wildlife and Habitats

Photographed by Pete Skillman, April 24, 2026

1. St. Jones River Wildlife and Habitats Marker

Inscription.

St. Jones River Wildlife and Habitats. . The St. Jones River was straightened for commercial traffic; its floodplains and riparian wetlands filled for development; its forests cleared for homes, roads, shopping, and parking lots; it's small tributaries have been contained in pipes, and it's waters degraded by point and nonpoint source urban pollution. These disturbances occurred in a time before Federal protections like the Clean Water Act and state and local resource regulations and land use planning began to protect Kent County's natural resources. The river we know today is a remnant natural resource that still hosts many of the original species of wildlife, although in much reduced populations due to the harm caused by these earlier human activities.

Riparian habitats here still include some regenerating hardwood forests where development did not occur. Narrow forested buffers still reduce human disturbance in many areas and provide some roosting, nesting, and foraging cover for perching birds and birds of prey. Some of these small woodlands along the river host small mammals such as opossum, raccoon, skunk; and more rarely weasel, otter, and beaver.

Bald Eagle or Osprey can occasionally be seen soaring over the river. In the spring and fall teal, ducks, and other migratory waterfowl visit the river as a temporary refuge during their journeys. Great blue herons, great white egrets, cattle and snowy egrets, night crown and little green herons, and least bitterns can sometimes be seen from a canoe or kayak.

Experience the river and its tributaries, Tidbury Creek, Isaac Branch, and Cypress Branch directly from its waters. Consider launching your canoe from the floating dock at the southeast end of E. Water Street in Dover, from Lebanon Landing Recreation Area on Sorghum Mill Road, or Scotton Landing near the Route 1 bridge over the river. To learn more about wildlife habitats and human interactions along the St. Jones River, contact the Delaware National Estuarine Research Reserve at 739-3436, or at their website: www.nerrs.noaa.gov/delaware

For non-emergency information please contact the Kent County Community Services Department at (302) 744-2490.

The St. Jones River was straightened for commercial traffic; its floodplains and riparian wetlands filled for development; its forests cleared for homes, roads, shopping, and parking lots; it's small tributaries have been contained in pipes, and it's waters degraded by point and nonpoint source urban pollution. These disturbances occurred in a time before Federal protections like the Clean Water Act and state and local resource regulations and land use planning began to protect Kent County's natural resources. The river we know today is a remnant natural resource that still hosts many of the original species of wildlife, although in much reduced populations due to the harm caused by these earlier human activities.

Riparian habitats here still include some regenerating hardwood forests where development did not occur. Narrow forested buffers still reduce human disturbance in many areas and provide some roosting, nesting, and foraging cover for perching birds and birds of prey. Some of these small woodlands along the river host small mammals such as opossum, raccoon, skunk; and more rarely weasel, otter, and beaver.

Bald Eagle or Osprey

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can occasionally be seen soaring over the river. In the spring and fall teal, ducks, and other migratory waterfowl visit the river as a temporary refuge during their journeys. Great blue herons, great white egrets, cattle and snowy egrets, night crown and little green herons, and least bitterns can sometimes be seen from a canoe or kayak.

Experience the river and its tributaries, Tidbury Creek, Isaac Branch, and Cypress Branch directly from its waters. Consider launching your canoe from the floating dock at the southeast end of E. Water Street in Dover, from Lebanon Landing Recreation Area on Sorghum Mill Road, or Scotton Landing near the Route 1 bridge over the river. To learn more about wildlife habitats and human interactions along the St. Jones River, contact the Delaware National Estuarine Research Reserve at 739-3436, or at their website: www.nerrs.noaa.gov/delaware

For non-emergency information please contact the Kent County Community Services Department at (302) 744-2490.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Animals • Environment • Industry & Commerce • Waterways & Vessels.

Location. 39° 7.754′ N,

St. Jones River Wildlife and Habitats Marker - wide view image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Pete Skillman, April 24, 2026

2. St. Jones River Wildlife and Habitats Marker - wide view

75° 29.768′ W. Marker is in Dover, Delaware, in Kent County. It is in East Dover Hundred. It is on East Lebanon Road, on the right when traveling south. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 1681 E Lebanon Rd, Dover DE 19901, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in the American Mid-Atlantic,

on the Delmarva Peninsula,

and on the Eastern Seaboard. Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region,

North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Netherland,

one of the original Thirteen Colonies,

and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 2 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Wolf Creek - A River Changes Course (here, next to this marker); St. Jones River Wild Life and Habitats (approx. 0.6 miles away); Fish Resources and Water Quality of the St. Jones River (approx. 0.6 miles away); September 11, 2001 Memorial (approx. 1.3 miles away); American Legion Veterans Memorial (approx. 1.3 miles away); Kent County Theatre Guild

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(approx. 1.4 miles away); Dover (approx. 1.6 miles away); Bell UH-1 Iroquois Helicopter (approx. 2 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Dover.

Also see . . . NOAA - Delaware National Estuarine Research Reserve. This website is referenced on the marker itself, but the original link is dead.

This reserve consists of two components: 1,087 acres of freshwater wetlands, ponds, and forest lands in Blackbird Creek, and 5,119 acres of salt marsh and open water habitats on the St. Jones River on Delaware Bay. The Blackbird Creek watershed is a predominantly rural area consisting of wetlands, forests, and agricultural lands. The St. Jones River watershed has significant development in upstream non-tidal area, where urbanized Dover dominates the middle and upper watershed. Downstream portions of the St. Jones River watershed are still primarily agricultural.

(Submitted on April 24, 2026, by Pete Skillman of Townsend, Delaware.)

Credits. This page was last revised on May 15, 2026. It was originally submitted on April 24, 2026, by Pete Skillman of Townsend, Delaware. This page has been viewed 15 times since then. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on April 24, 2026, by Pete Skillman of Townsend, Delaware.