“If our oceans are to survive acidification, there are two critical steps we must take. First and foremost, we must cut our carbon emissions and transition to a clean energy economy routed in efficiency and renewable power. And second, we must make our oceans as healthy, and therefore resilient, as possible in the face of the coming impacts - President Obama has set us on that path today.” Sigourney Weaver on the National Ocean Policy
Check out The Gulf Restoration Network blog for the latest updates and postings at www.healthygulf.org/blog.
Click here to read the Rivers Coalition Newsletter
20 minute radio interview now running on a number of NPR stations.
http://www.wmfe.org/site/News2?page=NewsArticle&id=10829&news_iv_ctrl=1441
Broward County CommissionNatural Resources Planning and Management Division
Local Rule Review Committee
Public Hearing
The Broward County Local Rule Review Committee (LRRC), as appointed by the Board of County Commissioners, is holding a public hearing on August 3rd, 2010. The purpose of the hearing is to gather public input regarding potential changes to the manatee speed zone portions of the local Manatee Protection Rule as established by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC).
On April 27, 2010, at the request of FWC, the Broward County Board of County Commissioners appointed a 10-member Local Rule Review Committee. The purpose of the committee is the review proposed changes to the local Manatee Protection Rule and submit recommendations back to FWC. The proposal contains 13 potential changes, 11 of which are directly related to boat usage and manatee protection speed zones in the County’s waterways. The proposed changes and additional information on the process can be found at www.broward.org/Manatees/Pages/LocalRuleReviewCommittee.aspx.
In order to seek public input, a public hearing will be held from 5:30-7:30 pm August 3rd in the Mangrove Hall at Anne Kolb Nature Center located at 751 Sheridan Street, Hollywood FL, 33019.
SAWGRASS NATURE CENTER & WILDLIFE HOSPITAL
3000 Sportsplex Drive Coral Springs, FL. 33065
954 752-WILD Sawgrassnaturecenter.org
“WILD VOLUNTEERS NEEDED”
Ready for a “Wild” time? If you love animals and the environment (are 18 years old or older) and have some free time to spare, then the Sawgrass Nature Center & Wildlife Hospital could use your help.
If you have a strong desire to help our “wildlife friends’ are willing to work hard and are dependable then we need your help (prior experience is not necessary).
The SNC a not-for-profit organization currently needs volunteers to help with animal care, raising orphaned babies, foster care, food prep, construction projects, gardening and landscaping, special events, camp and educational programs.
For more information or to obtain a volunteer application please call our Volunteer coordinator at (954) 752-WILD (9453) or check out our website at Sawgrassnaturecenter.org. You can also send her an E-mail at sncvolunteers@gmail.com. Visitors are also welcome at the Nature Center located at 3000 Sportsplex Dr, Coral Springs (in Sportsplex Park). The Center is open Mon- Fri from 9-5, and Sat & Sun. from 10-3.
Birds
Birds flying right into oily morass of Gulf
The piping plovers already are flying toward peril. The endangered birds are among the first of millions that will migrate this fall to the Gulf of Mexico — and the oil leak that could kill them.
Some birds, including the common loon and lesser scaup, spend winters along the Gulf Coast. Others, such as the blue-winged teal, use the Gulf as a staging area where they stock up on food before flying to Latin America.
"There are millions of birds at risk," says Ken Rosenberg, conservation science director at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. "It's safe to say thousands will die."
He fears the BP oil spill, which began April 20, "could erupt into a much bigger disaster as oil continues to come to the surface."
Hundreds of birds have died, and some drawn to the Gulf by migratory instincts will be affected starting this month, says Paul Schmidt, assistant director for migratory birds at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
He says the agency's "biggest concern is the long-term degradation of the habitat." Oil can kill plants and other food sources on beaches and in tidal and marshy areas, making them inhospitable for years, Schmidt says.
Migrating birds, like those that live year-round near the Gulf of Mexico, can introduce oil into their systems by preening oil-soaked feathers, says Greg Butcher, bird conservation director for the National Audubon Society. "If they get oil on their feathers, they lose their ability to regulate their temperature. If they swallow oil, they're going to get sick." Some birds that ingest oil might lose their ability to reproduce.
Read the article
Gulf oil spill threatens iconic loon Canada's beloved loon is among 60 species of Canadian migratory birds in danger of being trapped in the toxic net of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, bird experts say.
"The Gulf is at the crossroads of the Americas for migrating birds," says Ted Cheskey of Nature Canada. "Several species are going to take huge hits."
The southern migration of dozens of Canadian bird species begins in July. The once-fertile wetlands of the Gulf are the "gas station" stop along the way for the millions of birds en route to Latin America, said Cheskey. For others, such as loons, but not all loons, the Gulf itself is their winter haven.
In all, one billion birds could be threatened, said Greg Butcher of the U.S. National Audubon Society.
"No one wants to contemplate a time when a visit to their favorite lake will be saddened by the silence of the loons," said Carrol Henderson, of the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. “For some of these birds, it will be a one-way trip because of the oil or the lack of food. Because the U.S. has a migratory bird treaty with Canada, it must help the birds”, she said.
Even if they survive the journey, depleted energy and exposure to oil could damage their reproductive cycles.
Havens sought for birds hit by oil spill
Mississippi landowners will create inland habitat for migratory birds that can't find a home in oil-spoiled Gulf Coast marshes this winter.
An extra $2.1 million in federal assistance is available to farmers and landowners along the key migratory bird flyway that includes 23 Mississippi counties.
The Natural Resources Conservation Service, part of the Department of Agriculture, will work with those with large tracts of land to provide food, water and safe nesting sites, said state conservationist Homer L. Wilkes.
"More than 50 million migratory birds traveling south in coming months will instinctively head toward the marshes and coast lands of the northern Gulf of Mexico," Wilkes said. "With some marshes and shorelines already degraded and the potential for larger-scale oil impacts in the coming months, it is essential that we provide inland and coastal food, water and cover for migratory birds."
Interested landowners may sign up until Aug. 1 at USDA Service Center locations.
Parts of Mississippi, Louisiana, Alabama, Arkansas and Missouri are covered by the initiative. They make up about 36 percent of the Mississippi Flyway corridor for a multitude of species. Areas in Texas, Florida and Georgia are included.
"We'll have sandpiper moving down first, and then, later in the season, ducks and geese," said David Ringer, Vicksburg-based communications coordinator for the National Audubon Society's Mississippi River Initiative.
The society is one of several organizations in Mississippi set to work with the federal agency. Society volunteers have helped efforts in coastal Louisiana in the transport of oiled birds and communications between rescue boats ferrying them in and out of the Gulf.
In Mississippi, eligible counties - identified by NRCS based on the greatest potential - are Adams, Bolivar, Carroll, Claiborne, Coahoma, DeSoto, Grenada, Holmes, Humphreys, Issaquena, Jefferson, Leflore, Panola, Quitman, Sharkey, Sunflower, Tallahatchie, Tate, Tunica, Warren, Washington, Wilkinson and Yazoo. All are mainly in the Delta, where most of Mississippi's Wetland Reserve Program sites are located, the NRCS said.
http://www.wmfe.org/site/News2?page=NewsArticle&id=10829&news_iv_ctrl=1441
Broward County CommissionNatural Resources Planning and Management Division
Local Rule Review Committee
Public Hearing
The Broward County Local Rule Review Committee (LRRC), as appointed by the Board of County Commissioners, is holding a public hearing on August 3rd, 2010. The purpose of the hearing is to gather public input regarding potential changes to the manatee speed zone portions of the local Manatee Protection Rule as established by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC).
On April 27, 2010, at the request of FWC, the Broward County Board of County Commissioners appointed a 10-member Local Rule Review Committee. The purpose of the committee is the review proposed changes to the local Manatee Protection Rule and submit recommendations back to FWC. The proposal contains 13 potential changes, 11 of which are directly related to boat usage and manatee protection speed zones in the County’s waterways. The proposed changes and additional information on the process can be found at www.broward.org/Manatees/Pages/LocalRuleReviewCommittee.aspx.
In order to seek public input, a public hearing will be held from 5:30-7:30 pm August 3rd in the Mangrove Hall at Anne Kolb Nature Center located at 751 Sheridan Street, Hollywood FL, 33019.
SAWGRASS NATURE CENTER & WILDLIFE HOSPITAL
3000 Sportsplex Drive Coral Springs, FL. 33065
954 752-WILD Sawgrassnaturecenter.org
“WILD VOLUNTEERS NEEDED”
Ready for a “Wild” time? If you love animals and the environment (are 18 years old or older) and have some free time to spare, then the Sawgrass Nature Center & Wildlife Hospital could use your help.
If you have a strong desire to help our “wildlife friends’ are willing to work hard and are dependable then we need your help (prior experience is not necessary).
The SNC a not-for-profit organization currently needs volunteers to help with animal care, raising orphaned babies, foster care, food prep, construction projects, gardening and landscaping, special events, camp and educational programs.
For more information or to obtain a volunteer application please call our Volunteer coordinator at (954) 752-WILD (9453) or check out our website at Sawgrassnaturecenter.org. You can also send her an E-mail at sncvolunteers@gmail.com. Visitors are also welcome at the Nature Center located at 3000 Sportsplex Dr, Coral Springs (in Sportsplex Park). The Center is open Mon- Fri from 9-5, and Sat & Sun. from 10-3.
Birds
Birds flying right into oily morass of Gulf
The piping plovers already are flying toward peril. The endangered birds are among the first of millions that will migrate this fall to the Gulf of Mexico — and the oil leak that could kill them.
Some birds, including the common loon and lesser scaup, spend winters along the Gulf Coast. Others, such as the blue-winged teal, use the Gulf as a staging area where they stock up on food before flying to Latin America.
"There are millions of birds at risk," says Ken Rosenberg, conservation science director at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. "It's safe to say thousands will die."
He fears the BP oil spill, which began April 20, "could erupt into a much bigger disaster as oil continues to come to the surface."
Hundreds of birds have died, and some drawn to the Gulf by migratory instincts will be affected starting this month, says Paul Schmidt, assistant director for migratory birds at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
He says the agency's "biggest concern is the long-term degradation of the habitat." Oil can kill plants and other food sources on beaches and in tidal and marshy areas, making them inhospitable for years, Schmidt says.
Migrating birds, like those that live year-round near the Gulf of Mexico, can introduce oil into their systems by preening oil-soaked feathers, says Greg Butcher, bird conservation director for the National Audubon Society. "If they get oil on their feathers, they lose their ability to regulate their temperature. If they swallow oil, they're going to get sick." Some birds that ingest oil might lose their ability to reproduce.
Read the article
Gulf oil spill threatens iconic loon Canada's beloved loon is among 60 species of Canadian migratory birds in danger of being trapped in the toxic net of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, bird experts say.
"The Gulf is at the crossroads of the Americas for migrating birds," says Ted Cheskey of Nature Canada. "Several species are going to take huge hits."
The southern migration of dozens of Canadian bird species begins in July. The once-fertile wetlands of the Gulf are the "gas station" stop along the way for the millions of birds en route to Latin America, said Cheskey. For others, such as loons, but not all loons, the Gulf itself is their winter haven.
In all, one billion birds could be threatened, said Greg Butcher of the U.S. National Audubon Society.
"No one wants to contemplate a time when a visit to their favorite lake will be saddened by the silence of the loons," said Carrol Henderson, of the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. “For some of these birds, it will be a one-way trip because of the oil or the lack of food. Because the U.S. has a migratory bird treaty with Canada, it must help the birds”, she said.
Even if they survive the journey, depleted energy and exposure to oil could damage their reproductive cycles.
Havens sought for birds hit by oil spill
Mississippi landowners will create inland habitat for migratory birds that can't find a home in oil-spoiled Gulf Coast marshes this winter.
An extra $2.1 million in federal assistance is available to farmers and landowners along the key migratory bird flyway that includes 23 Mississippi counties.
The Natural Resources Conservation Service, part of the Department of Agriculture, will work with those with large tracts of land to provide food, water and safe nesting sites, said state conservationist Homer L. Wilkes.
"More than 50 million migratory birds traveling south in coming months will instinctively head toward the marshes and coast lands of the northern Gulf of Mexico," Wilkes said. "With some marshes and shorelines already degraded and the potential for larger-scale oil impacts in the coming months, it is essential that we provide inland and coastal food, water and cover for migratory birds."
Interested landowners may sign up until Aug. 1 at USDA Service Center locations.
Parts of Mississippi, Louisiana, Alabama, Arkansas and Missouri are covered by the initiative. They make up about 36 percent of the Mississippi Flyway corridor for a multitude of species. Areas in Texas, Florida and Georgia are included.
"We'll have sandpiper moving down first, and then, later in the season, ducks and geese," said David Ringer, Vicksburg-based communications coordinator for the National Audubon Society's Mississippi River Initiative.
The society is one of several organizations in Mississippi set to work with the federal agency. Society volunteers have helped efforts in coastal Louisiana in the transport of oiled birds and communications between rescue boats ferrying them in and out of the Gulf.
In Mississippi, eligible counties - identified by NRCS based on the greatest potential - are Adams, Bolivar, Carroll, Claiborne, Coahoma, DeSoto, Grenada, Holmes, Humphreys, Issaquena, Jefferson, Leflore, Panola, Quitman, Sharkey, Sunflower, Tallahatchie, Tate, Tunica, Warren, Washington, Wilkinson and Yazoo. All are mainly in the Delta, where most of Mississippi's Wetland Reserve Program sites are located, the NRCS said.
Wetlands farmed under natural conditions such as rice fields and catfish farms are ideal. Farms that produced this year's crop can be flooded, Ringer said.
Among other partners on the initiative in Mississippi are the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, Ducks Unlimited, USA Rice Federation, U. S. Fish & Wildlife Service, The Nature Conservancy, Environmental Defense Fund, National Wildlife Federation and the Mississippi Fish and Wildlife Foundation.
Important Bird Areas Spring Creek Forest Preserve served as Wendy Paulson's outdoor classroom for nearly 40 years. She would go out to the Barrington Hills preserve to listen to the rollicking courtship sounds of bobolinks and take children and adults out to study grassland birds.
In the past few decades, however, non-native plants encroached on the grasslands, and the bobolinks and other rare birds declined until hardly any were left.
Paulson and other volunteers began clearing the invasive vegetation, hoping to bring the rare birds back to the 4,000-acre preserve. It worked.
The bobolinks, along with Henslow's sparrows and grasshopper sparrows, have returned, and now Paulson's classroom — along with 90 other parks, preserves and wildlife areas in the state — has been designated an Illinois Important Bird Area. "This is nothing short of miraculous," said Paulson, who learned about the designation in June.
In Chicagoland, 21 public and private lands have been designated Important Bird Areas, from Illinois Beach State Park in northeastern Lake County south through the Chicago lakefront to Goose Lake State Prairie in Will County and west to Kane and McHenry counties.
These areas attract rare breeding grassland, wetland and shrubland birds as well as copious numbers of migratory birds including waterfowl, shore birds and songbirds such as warblers and tanagers.
Read the article
Osprey ‘supermum’ survives to see her chicks take off
Nature's answer to ‘Supermum', a 24-year-old osprey famed as the oldest breeding bird of its kind to be recorded in the UK, has exceeded the expectations of experts by surviving this year's breeding season to see that her latest chicks successfully take their first flight from the nest.
Taking to the skies on July 11 at 9:09am, the most recent chick to fledge from the osprey nest at the Scottish Wildlife Trust's Loch of the Lowes Wildlife Reserve and Visitor Centre is the 47th chick of the famed female bird. With ospreys living an average of eight years and producing 20 chicks during that time, experts are calling the Loch of the Lowe's osprey "a real record-breaker."
Following a bout of ill-health last month when thousands of wildlife enthusiasts from across the globe watched via web cam as the bird, known affectionately as the ‘Lady of the Loch, became unable to open its eyes, stand over its chicks, and stopped eating. It was feared that the animal only had days to live and that her death would threaten the survival of the chicks, but onlookers watched in disbelief as the hardy bird made an unexpected recovery.
Report reveals crime continues to have a serious impact on bird of prey populations in Scotland 2009 marked the highest number of confirmed poisoning incidents discovered in a single year in Scotland in the past two decades, according to an annual report by RSPB Scotland.The illegal killing of birds of prey in Scotland in 2009 indicates human killing continues to have a serious impact on the populations of some of the country's most vulnerable species.
In 2009, 21 buzzards, 4 red kites, 2 golden eagles and 1 white-tailed eagle, the latter gifted to Scotland from Norway as part of a reintroduction program, were among the victims in 46 confirmed poisoning cases. Illegal killings, through shooting, nest destruction or the use of spring traps, were also confirmed in nine incidents.
As many raptors are long-lived and have slow breeding rates, killing of these species (particularly adult breeding birds) can have dire consequences for their populations as a whole. This is affecting the conservation status of hen harriers, golden eagles and red kites.
Read more
Invasive species
Open letter from Sue Brown, Executive Director, NWF Action Fund In the Florida Everglades, wildlife like the endangered Wood Stork is being eaten by a massive invasive snake known as the Burmese python. As one of the world's largest snakes, in addition to birds, Burmese pythons are even known to eat larger wildlife like deer and alligators!
Currently, it's estimated that the population of Burmese pythons has grown to 150,000, wreaking havoc on the Florida Everglades' treasured ecosystem. By preying on native wildlife, and competing with other native predators, pythons are seriously impacting the natural order and threatening many of the endangered species we're trying so hard to protect.
Read more
Invasive species
Open letter from Sue Brown, Executive Director, NWF Action Fund In the Florida Everglades, wildlife like the endangered Wood Stork is being eaten by a massive invasive snake known as the Burmese python. As one of the world's largest snakes, in addition to birds, Burmese pythons are even known to eat larger wildlife like deer and alligators!
Currently, it's estimated that the population of Burmese pythons has grown to 150,000, wreaking havoc on the Florida Everglades' treasured ecosystem. By preying on native wildlife, and competing with other native predators, pythons are seriously impacting the natural order and threatening many of the endangered species we're trying so hard to protect.
Recently, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service proposed a set of rules essential to controlling the python population in the Everglades and prevent new invasions in the future. With invasive species being one of the top three threats endangering native wildlife in the U.S., it's clear that urgent action is needed on these rules. In fact, the Burmese python is just one of thousands of non-native animal and plant species that have invaded the United States in the last decades.
Sincerely,
Sue Brown
Executive Director,
NWF Action Fund
info@nwa.org
Please sign the letter to USFWS
Make sure endangered species like the Wood Stork are protected from further harm--send a message to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service today.
Please sign the letter to USFWS
Make sure endangered species like the Wood Stork are protected from further harm--send a message to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service today.
FWC discovers nonnative lionfish in Gulf of Mexico Researchers with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s (FWC) Fish and Wildlife Research Institute collected two juvenile red lionfish (Pterois volitans) last
week from the Gulf of Mexico. With the exception of a probable aquarium release from the Tampa Bay area, the discovery of these lionfish marks the first time this nonnative species has been documented in Gulf waters north of the Tortugas and the Yucatan Peninsula.
FWC researchers found the lionfish in the catch from two separate net tows taken at distances of 99 and 160 miles off the southwest coast of Florida, north of the Dry Tortugas and west of Cape Romano. The specimens were taken from depths of 183 and 240 feet as part of a trawl survey funded by the Southeast Area Monitoring and Assessment Program, a cooperative state and federal program.
FWC scientists believe the two juvenile lionfish, measuring approximately 2.5 inches in length, are either evidence of a spawning population on the Gulf of Mexico’s West Florida Shelf or they were transported to the area by ocean currents from other potential spawning areas, such as the waters off the Yucatan Peninsula. Either of these scenarios could indicate an expansion of the range of this species in the eastern Gulf of Mexico.
Lionfish are nonnative, venomous fish that have been sighted in Atlantic coastal waters of the United States since the mid-1990s and have been reported more recently in the waters of the Florida Keys and Dry Tortugas. Lionfish, specifically the red lionfish and the devil firefish, appear to have established populations in the western North Atlantic Ocean. These species are native to the reefs and rocky crevices of the Indo-Pacific, but were likely introduced into South Florida waters in 1992.
To report sightings of lionfish, call the nationwide reporting number (877-STOPANS) sponsored by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) or fill out an online report on the USGS website at http://nas.er.usgs.gov/sightingreport.asp.
For more information about lionfish, visit the USGS website at http://nas.er.usgs.gov/queries/FactSheet.aspx?SpeciesID=963.
Go toMyFWC.com/Nonnative to learn more about nonnative species in Florida.
Florida Panthers
Volunteers alert Golden Gates Estates residents to dangers of Florida panther prowling Volunteers have gone door-to-door in Golden Gate Estates to spread the word about living in panther country. Organizers put together the campaign after biologists confirmed that a female panther roaming the Estates with three kittens had attacked livestock at four spots in the sprawling neighborhood in western Collier County.
Florida Panthers
Volunteers alert Golden Gates Estates residents to dangers of Florida panther prowling Volunteers have gone door-to-door in Golden Gate Estates to spread the word about living in panther country. Organizers put together the campaign after biologists confirmed that a female panther roaming the Estates with three kittens had attacked livestock at four spots in the sprawling neighborhood in western Collier County.
The attacks on five chickens and four goats occurred in a more developed part of the Estates not before seen as a hot spot for the endangered species.
...more...
Endangered Species
Endangered Turtles Face New BP Danger
Dr. Donna Shaver has been working to save the endangered Kemp's ridley turtle for thirty years. This year, the hatchlings she's releasing into the Gulf of Mexico along the beaches of Padre Island National Park in Texas face a new threat as they grow and make their way to the Gulf Stream to head north up the East Coast. Another thousand of seven or eight thousand were released this week. Shaver says the threat to them, of course, is oil from the BP spill. "It's a tough life for a hatchling out there. Predators - birds, fish - take their toll; this is one more threat to these animals and we hope the best for them."The odds are stacked against the Kemp's ridley.
Endangered Species
Endangered Turtles Face New BP Danger
Dr. Donna Shaver has been working to save the endangered Kemp's ridley turtle for thirty years. This year, the hatchlings she's releasing into the Gulf of Mexico along the beaches of Padre Island National Park in Texas face a new threat as they grow and make their way to the Gulf Stream to head north up the East Coast. Another thousand of seven or eight thousand were released this week. Shaver says the threat to them, of course, is oil from the BP spill. "It's a tough life for a hatchling out there. Predators - birds, fish - take their toll; this is one more threat to these animals and we hope the best for them."The odds are stacked against the Kemp's ridley.
Under natural conditions between one in a hundred and one in a thousand eggs will produce a turtle that survives to adulthood. At best, a few will return to Padre Island in 10 to 15 years, if they aren't victims of the Deepwater Horizon blowout. Shaver says the decision was made by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service not to move the incubating eggs elsewhere, perhaps to the east coast of Florida for hatching, as was done in the case of some other species. "We hope for the best. We hope that our trajectory of increase is not tremendously impacted, but we don't know and we are fearful."Turtle experts say last year's "class" of turtles who didn't make it out of the Gulf used floating seaweed to hide in from natural predators.
But oil from the spill was soaked up by the seaweed and much of it is being burned off as part of the recovery process, cooking the turtles."Yes, we are troubled with the oil spill. We're worried that we know Kemp's ridley turtles are being killed. Some juveniles have been killed. We don't know what the impacts to the population are going to be. That remains to be seen in the future."Adult Kemp's ridley turtles live off the coast of Georgia and Florida in the colder months and off Delaware in the summer.
U.S. House of Representatives opts not to vote on bill. Wildlife advocates sent thousands of messages urging our representatives to vote against the "Multiple Peril Insurance Act of 2009". This dangerous bill would have made it easier for developers to destroy sea turtle habitats in Florida, as well as other sensitive wildlife habitat areas throughout the country. Not voting on the bill represents a victory for sea turtles.
U.S. House of Representatives opts not to vote on bill. Wildlife advocates sent thousands of messages urging our representatives to vote against the "Multiple Peril Insurance Act of 2009". This dangerous bill would have made it easier for developers to destroy sea turtle habitats in Florida, as well as other sensitive wildlife habitat areas throughout the country. Not voting on the bill represents a victory for sea turtles.
First ever pictures of ‘missing’ mammal
One of the rarest and most threatened primates in the world, so mysterious it was once thought to be extinct, has been has been caught on camera for the first time.The pictures of the Horton Plains slender Loris (Loris tardigradus nycticeboides) were taken in the montane forests of central Sri Lanka by the Zoological Society of London (ZSL) and Sri Lankan researchers.
One of the rarest and most threatened primates in the world, so mysterious it was once thought to be extinct, has been has been caught on camera for the first time.The pictures of the Horton Plains slender Loris (Loris tardigradus nycticeboides) were taken in the montane forests of central Sri Lanka by the Zoological Society of London (ZSL) and Sri Lankan researchers.
Until now this subspecies of slender Loris has only been seen four times since 1937 and disappeared from 1939 to 2002, leading experts to believe it had become extinct. Conservation Biologists from ZSL's Edge of Existence Program surveyed 2km transects for more than 200 hours, looking for signs of this elusive wide-eyed primate.
Major threats faced by sea turtles In January, turtles were brought to UF because they were stunned by unusually cold temperatures. In May, rescued turtles were covered with oil from the BP spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Now, UF is examining turtles that might have been killed by increased shrimping done in the wake of the spill.
It's well established that sea turtles are a species at risk. Five turtle species found in the Gulf of Mexico are considered endangered, and a sixth, the loggerhead, is listed as threatened. Fish and wildlife officials have proposed changing the loggerhead's status to endangered because of deaths related to long-line fishing.
"This animal is getting hammered," said David Godfrey, executive director of the Gainesville-based Sea Turtle Conservancy.
Read the article
Green Sea Turtle
Genus: CheloniaSpecies: mydas
Green sea turtles are rarely seen on land, but when they do make it to shore, they can stop traffic – beach traffic that is. Green sea turtles are an endangered species with drastically reduced population sizes. Females use beaches throughout the Southeast, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands and Hawaii to lay their eggs.
Although it might seem like an inconvenience to have a stretch of beach shut down to make way for turtles, the alternative is much more devastating. These majestic giants of the ocean depend on our support and protection to ensure that they do not go extinct. So remember on your next summer vacation to make way for the turtles, because they need the beach much more than we do.
Description: A green sea turtle's shell (called a carapace) is the largest and most noticeable part of the animal. The shell covers most of the body, except for the flippers and head. Despite its name, a green sea turtle's shell is not always green. The shell can be a blend of different colors including, brown, dark olive, gray or black. The shell is also smooth and heart-shaped. The underside of the shell (called the plastron) is a yellowish-white color.
Green sea turtles received their colorful name because of the green tint to their skin.
Unlike many other turtle species, sea turtles cannot retract their head into their shell. The head has brown and yellow markings. The jaw is serrated to help the turtle easily chew seagrasses and algae.
Unlike many other turtle species, sea turtles cannot retract their head into their shell. The head has brown and yellow markings. The jaw is serrated to help the turtle easily chew seagrasses and algae.
Green sea turtles have paddle-like limbs called flippers. They allow the turtle to move quickly and easily through the water.
Size: Green sea turtles are really big! They can grow to 3 - 4 feet in length. They are very dense and heavy animals. An adult green sea turtle can weigh upwards of 350 - 400 pounds! Despite their size, they are still not the world's largest sea turtles - that title belongs to the leatherback sea turtle!
Diet: Adult green sea turtles are herbivores. They live on a diet of seagrass and algae. Green sea turtles have a jaw designed for eating plant matter.
Juvenile green sea turtles are omnivores. They eat a wide variety of plant and animal life, including insects, crustaceans, seagrasses and worms.
Typical Lifespan: Green sea turtles live very long lives. It takes at least 10-25 years to reach sexual maturity and a healthy individual can expect to live 80-100 years or even more! A lot is still unknown about the life history of green sea turtles.
Habitat: Green sea turtles have ocean water habitats and nesting habitats. Once a green sea turtle hatches and heads into ocean waters, it rarely returns to land. Instead, it feeds on off-shore plant blooms around islands and beaches.
Green sea turtles stay in shallow waters off-shore until the breeding season. They will travel long distances, even across oceans, to return to their preferred breeding site. In the nesting season females emerge onto warm beaches around the world to lay their eggs.
Range: Green sea turtles are found around the world in warm ocean waters. There are populations with different colorings and markings in the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific Oceans.
In the United States, you are most likely to see green sea turtles on the Hawaiian Islands, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands and the east coast of Florida. Less frequent nesting also occurs on the Atlantic coast in Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina.
Life History and Reproduction: The breeding season occurs in late spring and early summer. The males arrive in off-shore waters first and wait for the females to come to the beaches. Adult males can breed every year, but females only breed every 3-4 years or so.
A few weeks after mating, a female green sea turtle arrives on the beach and digs a hole in the ground for her eggs. Inside the hole, she lays over 100-150 eggs and then covers the hole with sand. At this point, her role is complete and she leaves her eggs to fend for themselves. A female green sea turtle can lay several clutches of eggs before she leaves the nesting grounds.
After approximately two months, the eggs hatch and the hatchlings make their way to the water. The newly hatched green sea turtles are very susceptible to predators, exposure and losing their way. Birds, mammals and other predators love feasting on the young turtles. One of the greatest threats to hatchlings is light pollution. The light from buildings and homes confuses the young turtles so that they crawl towards the light and not the ocean.
For green sea turtle hatchlings that reach the water, it will be at least 10-25 years before they themselves can breed. Females prefer to lay their eggs at their own nesting beach. Every 3-4 years when the females breed, they make a long migration back to their natal beach.
Threats to sea turtles
Sea turtle nests vandalized
Members of Mote’s Sea Turtle Patrol this week found six disturbed sea turtle nests. The flagging tape was removed from two nests, another had broken stakes and three nests had the stakes removed and placed elsewhere.
“Moving the stakes might cause us to lose that nest and any information we have on it,” said Kendra Garrett, Mote staff biologist. “It can also hamper our monitoring of that nest. If we don’t know where a nest is, we can’t protect the eggs and the hatchling turtles.”
Mote’s Sea Turtle Patrol monitors beaches each morning and marks sea turtle nests sites with yellow wooden stakes and fluorescent flagging tape. The nests are monitored throughout the incubation period and once hatched, are excavated to determine the success of each nest and the overall success of the nesting season.
Given the environmental issues that sea turtles are already facing this year, from record cold temperatures in January and the current Deepwater Horizon oil spill, protecting sea turtle nests is especially important.
In January, more than 4,500 turtles statewide were stranded because of an arctic blast that sent Gulf waters to such low temperatures, it led to record numbers of cold-stunned turtles that had to be treated at rehabilitation facilities.
In April, the Deepwater Horizon oilrig exploded and has not yet been capped. Oil washing up on shore in the Florida Panhandle led to the relocation of nearly 70,000 sea turtle eggs to Florida’s East Coast by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. ...more.
Victory for polar bears
A federal court has just halted oil and gas companies from moving ahead with drilling operations in millions of acres spanning Alaska’s Chukchi Sea -- one of our nation’s two “Polar Bear Seas”, stopping companies from developing oil and gas wells on billions of dollars in leases off Alaska's northwest coast, saying the federal government failed to follow environmental law before it sold the drilling rights. The ruling is a huge victory for polar bears, bowhead whales, and other Arctic wildlife.
The lease sale in February 2008 brought in nearly $2.7 billion for the federal government from the sale of 2.76 million acres in the Arctic waters of the Chukchi Sea, including $2.1 billion in high bids submitted by Shell Gulf of Mexico Inc. The massive fire sale of drilling rights in the Chukchi Sea was initiated by the Bush Administration in its final days.
In effect, the Bush Interior Department sold the home of half our nation’s polar bears right out from under their feet and sparked a modern-day oil rush into the heart of the bear’s melting sea ice habitat. The Natural Resources Defense Council, in partnership with Earthjustice, Alaska Native groups and other conservationists, charged that the government had failed to study the far-reaching impacts of oil development, had broken our nation’s environmental law and should be ordered to revoke the drilling rights. U.S. District Judge Ralph Beistline has now agreed and has told the Obama Administration -- which adopted the Bush Administration’s reckless drilling policy -- to go back to the drawing board and gather the missing information about environmental risks.
Judge Beistline said that in failing to analyze the environmental effect of natural gas development despite industry interest and specific lease incentives for such development, the Minerals Management Service analyzed only the development of the first field of 1 billion barrels of oil — despite acknowledging that the amount was the minimum level of development that could occur on the leases.
It is hoped that the Obama Administration will take this opportunity to break with the “drill everywhere” policy of the Bush era and embark on a more science-based approach to protecting America’s endangered Arctic.
The agency also failed to determine whether information it acknowledged was missing before the sale was relevant or essential under environmental law, or whether the cost of obtaining that information was exorbitant.
Read National Audubon Newswire article
Everglades and Water Quality Issues
Environmental group alleges that another nutrient standards-blocking rider is in the works
Only weeks after reports surfaced that Florida U.S. Reps. Ander Crenshaw, R-Jacksonville, and Allen Boyd, D-Tallahassee, were attempting to introduce a rider that would essentially delay the EPA’s Numeric Nutrient Standards from taking effect, rumors of another rider have begun to circulate.
The proposal of Numeric Nutrient Standards came about after several environmental groups, including the Sierra Club and the St. Johns Riverkeeper, filed suit against the EPA, alleging that the Clean Water Act mandates the use of standards to protect Florida waters. The groups won, and at least part of the standards are slated to go into effect come October.
But David Guest, attorney with the environmental law firm EarthJustice, says that “the word on the street” is that several congressmen from Florida, including Boyd and Crenshaw, along with several “polluter-lobbyists” are again trying to delay the standards from ever taking effect. The list of those allegedly scheduled to meet with the Florida congressional delegation is long and includes lawyers, Florida utilities representatives and fertilizer and phosphate-mining representatives.
Picayune Strand Restoration Project Sets High Standards
Although many construction projects begin with a certain amount of demo work, the Picayune Strand Restoration Project takes that practice to the extreme by trying to eradicate all signs of development and restore an area of native wetlands to pristine condition.
In conjunction with the South Florida Water Management District, and with the cooperation of dozens of local, state and federal agencies and tribal governments, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville District, awarded a $53 million contract for Everglades restoration in Collier County to Harry Pepper & Associates, Jacksonville, Fla. The contract calls for construction of a pump station, plugging of 13.5 mi. (21.7 km) of canals and removal of 95 mi. (152 km) of crumbling roads. Construction is scheduled to start in December and will take about three years to complete.
As the first federally funded construction project of the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan, commonly called “CERP,” it is what Lacy Shaw, project manager, called a huge milestone. CERP provides a framework for restoring, preserving and protecting the south Florida ecosystem that surrounds the Everglades, while providing for other water-related needs of the region. Plans call for a series of more than 60 ecological and water system improvements to be made over the next three decades.
FLORIDA CRYSTALS BARONS ATTACK RIVER OF GRASS PURCHASE WITH DECEPTIVE P.R. CAMPAIGN
Even though the tarnished and damaged St. Lucie estuary stands it’s best possible chance at recovery due to the planned state purchase U.S. Sugar lands for a flowway, local residents are being peppered with advertising and phone calls aimed at killing the deal.
Orchestrated by U.S. Sugar's competitor, Florida Crystals (Fanjul family) is claiming that the River of Grass Acquisition is a "bailout" of cigar-smoking fat cats (TV images) and that everyone's real estate taxes will skyrocket.
The truth is that the purchase will be done under existing tax structures in the South Florida Water Management District and the result is expected to bring savings, not cost increases.
Meanwhile, the St. Lucie is being bombarded by nasty water that often exceeds a billion gallons per day, mostly discharged through Lake Okeechobee and then out the St. Lucie gates at Stuart. The U.S. Sugar purchase would provide land for a flowway south from the lake that would greatly reduce the inundations of the estuaries on both coasts.
Citizens are urged to read about the plan at the South Florida Water Management District website (sfwmd.gov) and at RiversCoalition.org.
And let's remember our sugar-coated politicians who fail to support the U.S. Sugar purchase. It's not likely that our beloved estuaries will get another chance for recovery that is anything like the River of Grass purchase.
Palm Beach County revives push for 'inland port' on western farmland
The Port of Palm Beach may have shelved plans for an "inland port," but county officials and sugar giant Florida Crystals aren't giving up on developing a job-producing industrial distribution center in the midst of western farmland.
The County Commission on Wednesday gave preliminary approval to changing development guidelines and easing traffic standards to allow an industrial complex on 850 acres wedged between Belle Glade and South Bay, alongside Lake Okeechobee.
Local officials for years have been pushing to build a port cargo storage and distribution hub in job-starved western Palm Beach County.
They envision creating an "inland port" with room for warehouses and spin-off businesses linked to coastal ports by rail lines and truck routes.
Environmental concerns and disputes about where to put the project prompted the Port of Palm Beach in May to scrap a development deal for Florida Crystal's proposed location.
But county commissioners and the land owners maintain that the project can succeed even without an agreement with the Port of Palm Beach.
Supporters are counting on an influx of cargo to Florida thanks to improvements to the Panama Canal expected in 2014.
County officials hope that tapping into that potential increase in shipping can lure businesses to help with 40 percent unemployment in Belle Glade, South Bay and Pahokee.
"There are jobs for the people," Commissioner Jeff Koons said. "This is very valuable."
The Port of Palm Beach last year picked another Florida Crystals site about five miles south of the new location for the inland port.
Environmental groups objected to the previous location next to Florida Crystals' Okeelanta sugar mill and power plant. They argued that putting industrial development there threatened to get in the way of Everglades restoration efforts, and state regulators agreed.
Florida Crystals reached a settlement deal with the state and environmental groups and agreed to move its proposed industrial development to the 850 acres now proposed.
But when Florida Crystals changed the proposed location, the Port of Palm Beach decided it could not move forward without facing a legal fight from other communities also vying for the inland port project.
Environmental activist Rosa Durando on Wednesday questioned moving ahead with development approvals for an inland port plan that didn't include the Port of Palm Beach.
Durando warned that giving the development approvals for a project that may not come to pass "will have caused [a] skyrocketing cost of land" in the western agricultural area.
Attorney Richard Grosso, who represents 1000 Friends of Florida and other environmental groups that agreed to the settlement, said Florida Crystals' new location proposed for the inland port avoids the areas targeted for Everglades restoration.
The plan endorsed by county commissioners on Wednesday still must undergo a review by state growth management regulators before coming back to the County Commission for another vote.
"Finally we have arrived at the right conclusion" Commissioner Jess Santamaria said about the new location. "We know we want the inland port."
Judge rejects Florida demand for water in dispute
ATLANTA (AP) -- A federal judge has declined Florida's request to release more water from a north Georgia dam to protect three threatened or endangered species downstream.
The Wednesday ruling from U.S. District Judge Paul Magnuson rejected releasing more water from dams along the Chattahoochee River to benefit the gulf sturgeon, the fat threeridge mussel and the purple bankclimber mussel.
But it does not change an earlier decision from Magnuson that metro Atlanta has little legal right to drinking water from Lake Lanier. The judge has said he will severely restrict Atlanta's use of
that reservoir in 2012 unless political leaders in Georgia, Alabama and Florida reach a deal to end 30 years of fighting over water usage.
In his ruling, the judge said that Florida failed to prove that the federal wildlife officials ignored any evidence in deciding how much water Georgia should release downstream to support Florida's endangered species.
Read the article
US to buy Everglades ranchland
Federal officials announced that the Fed will spend nearly $89 million to acquire partial ownership and to preserve almost 26,000 acres of wild ranch land in the northern Everglades.
The purchase will allow the treatment of surface water before it enters Lake Okeechobee, easing the burden on the Lake and water treatment areas to the south. The money will come from the agency’s Wetlands Reserve Program, which focuses on protecting watersheds and associated wildlife.
The remote location of the property, about 100 miles south of Orlando and 90 miles northwest of Fort Lauderdale, is central to accelerating efforts to cleanse and safeguard waters flowing from as far north as Orlando into ailing Lake Okeechobee and through the rest of the Everglades ecosystem.
"This is going to be one of the largest contiguous easement acquisitions in the history of the Wetlands Reserve Program," said Kathleen Merrigan, USDA deputy secretary in Washington “There are very few things that we can point to that we've done that are this big."
“This is a pioneering approach to achieving ecological benefits in a cost effective way, without displacing agricultural interests,” said Charles Lee, Audubon of Florida Director of Advocacy. “By restoring these wetlands with the assistance of USDA, we create healthy habitat and stimulate abundant wildlife populations even when public conservation land acquisition is not an option.”
The federal government plans to purchase land from four ranching families in the Fisheating Creek watershed located in southern Highlands County. At about 25% of the Wetlands Reserve Program budget, it would be the largest contiguous easement purchase in the program's history.
The Everglades once covered more than 6,250 square miles, but nearly half has been replaced with homes and farms and much of it has been deteriorated by a 2,000-mile system of drainage canals and dam-forming roadways, robbing the Glades ecosystems of most of its original function.
The acquisition will trigger the creation of a partnership between the USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service, The Nature Conservancy environmental group and the South Florida Water Management District to restore and manage the property.
“This is a pioneering approach to achieving ecological benefits in a cost effective way, without displacing agricultural interests,” said Charles Lee, Audubon of Florida Director of Advocacy. “By restoring these wetlands with the assistance of USDA, we create healthy habitat and stimulate abundant wildlife populations even when public conservation land acquisition is not an option.”
The federal government plans to purchase land from four ranching families in the Fisheating Creek watershed located in southern Highlands County. At about 25% of the Wetlands Reserve Program budget, it would be the largest contiguous easement purchase in the program's history.
The Everglades once covered more than 6,250 square miles, but nearly half has been replaced with homes and farms and much of it has been deteriorated by a 2,000-mile system of drainage canals and dam-forming roadways, robbing the Glades ecosystems of most of its original function.
The acquisition will trigger the creation of a partnership between the USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service, The Nature Conservancy environmental group and the South Florida Water Management District to restore and manage the property.
Fisheating Creek is the last free-flowing tributary to Lake Okeechobee—and home to some of the most pristine habitats in central Florida . The Wetlands Reserve Program will help enhance and protect the region and serve to connect lands in a wildlife corridor between inland natural areas and coastal natural areas, including conservation lands in Babcock Ranch.
“Redirecting government agency efforts to restore the hydrology and water quality of the Northern Everglades has long been one of our goals,” Lee said. “Cooperative projects with landowners and the acquisition of easements is more cost effective, and more likely to receive broad public support, than conventional efforts to manage water through large engineered public works projects in this area.”
Eric Buermann, SFWMD Governing Board Chairman said, “The South Florida Water Management District is extremely grateful for such significant support to protect and restore the Northern Everglades. Our partnership with the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resources Conservation Service and The Nature Conservancy — plus four landowners on the property — is a national model of collaboration to protect America’s Everglades. This effort vividly demonstrates that public, private and advocacy organizations together can achieve what some think impossible: environmental protection and productive agriculture coexisting side by side.”Carol Ann Wehle, SFWMD Executive Director, voiced optimism in her statement, “We look forward to working with our partners to develop onsite activities that will achieve restoration goals: improving water quality in the greater Everglades; protecting and expanding wetlands; preserving important habitats, such as longleaf pine uplands; and connecting natural areas that can support Florida’s diverse array of wildlife, including the bald eagle, Florida panther, black bear and whooping crane.
“The District deeply appreciates the federal support and collaboration of the many partners that led to this special project for Fisheating Creek. We are fully committed to demonstrating the value of this outstanding, collaborative model for Everglades restoration but, more importantly, to delivering environmental results that will permanently help to protect one of America’s national treasures.”
Federal officials described the deal as the result of a growing emphasis on protecting vast landscapes of wetlands, rivers and lakes, rather than isolated patches of watery environments. The greater Everglades ecosystem, which extends from Orlando to the tip of the Florida peninsula, was deemed by federal agricultural authorities to be important enough for what turned out to be one of the largest acquisitions yet made by the Natural Resources Conservation Service's Wetland Reserve Program.
The purchase of property rights along the upper reaches of Fisheating Creek coincides with the federal government's ongoing restoration of the Kissimmee River at a cost so far of nearly $1 billion. Also pending is a purchase by the South Florida Water Management District of 73,000 acres of sugar-cane farmland south of Lake Okeechobee for $536 million.
Charles Lee, director of advocacy for Audubon of Florida, said the Fisheating Creek deal, while important in its own right, may also lead to a major shift in strategy for those seeking to restore the northern Everglades ecosystem.Instead of trying to build huge and costly reservoirs to store and treat water, government officials should instead aim to repeat more deals like the one along Fisheating Creek, where restored wetlands can store and cleanse significant amounts of water less expensively, Lee said."Clearly there is work that must be done to capture water and remove nutrient [pollution] from waters all the way to the Orange County line," Lee said "The only way to do this is to figure out how to turn landowners into water farmers."
Greenscape Alliance has a mission to protect Collier County’s water quality
Greenscape Alliance has a mission. A mission statement, that is. “Protecting natural resources through innovative strategies that promote Florida-friendly landscaping practices in Southwest Florida,” the statement reads.
The Greenscape Alliance, formed in 2009, is a natural evolution of Project Greenscape, a landscape certification program that originated in the city of Naples in 2006 as an effort to address concerns about water quality. Project Greenscape began as a partnership between the city and Rookery Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve’s Coastal Training Program and quickly grew to include the state Department of Environmental Protection’s Nonpoint Source Management Program, Collier County Stormwater Management Program, the University of Florida/IFAS Collier County Extension Office and the South Florida Water Management District’s Big Cypress Basin.
Greenscape Alliance has a mission. A mission statement, that is. “Protecting natural resources through innovative strategies that promote Florida-friendly landscaping practices in Southwest Florida,” the statement reads.
The Greenscape Alliance, formed in 2009, is a natural evolution of Project Greenscape, a landscape certification program that originated in the city of Naples in 2006 as an effort to address concerns about water quality. Project Greenscape began as a partnership between the city and Rookery Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve’s Coastal Training Program and quickly grew to include the state Department of Environmental Protection’s Nonpoint Source Management Program, Collier County Stormwater Management Program, the University of Florida/IFAS Collier County Extension Office and the South Florida Water Management District’s Big Cypress Basin.
Project Greenscape was designed as the educational conduit of the Green Industries Best Management Practices (GI-BMP) training, and now helps perpetuate “Florida-friendly landscaping” messages throughout Collier County.
The Greenscape Alliance represents the continued growth of Project Greenscape and with each additional partner the common objective, so accurately reflected in the mission statement, comes closer to reality. In order to effectively support efforts to reduce nutrient pollution and protect Florida’s water quality, the Greenscape Alliance enables individual partners to pool their resources to raise community awareness of Florida-friendly landscaping principles and practices in a unified voice.
Florida-friendly landscaping is the collective term for three component educational programs: The Florida Yards & Neighborhoods Program, designed for homeowners and homeowner associations; the Builders & Developers Program, where principles are incorporated from the ‘ground up’; and the Green Industries Best Management Practices, designed for landscapers and industry professionals.
Each program is based on nine interrelated principles (www.fyn.org) intended to reduce irrigation use and minimize the use of pesticides and fertilizer to protect our environment in general and our water quality in particular. A Florida-friendly landscape is not determined by a change in plant material; it is determined by the cultural practices employed to maintain plant material, new or existing. For example, removing areas of turfgrass and installing new drought tolerant plant material yet continuing to irrigate two times per week and fertilize four to six times per year would not be considered Florida-friendly, nor would it be sustainable or cost effective. Conversely, if existing turfgrass and plant material can be attractively maintained with a reduction in water use and fertilizing frequency, the landscape would be considered Florida-friendly, provided the landscape does not contain invasive exotic plant material.
The Florida Yards & Neighborhoods Program for homeowners and associations is administered through the University of Florida Extension Services and programs are offered twice a month. There is no fee for the program, but registration is recommended. For more information contact the Collier County Extension Office at (239) 353-4244.
The Greenscape Alliance represents the continued growth of Project Greenscape and with each additional partner the common objective, so accurately reflected in the mission statement, comes closer to reality. In order to effectively support efforts to reduce nutrient pollution and protect Florida’s water quality, the Greenscape Alliance enables individual partners to pool their resources to raise community awareness of Florida-friendly landscaping principles and practices in a unified voice.
Florida-friendly landscaping is the collective term for three component educational programs: The Florida Yards & Neighborhoods Program, designed for homeowners and homeowner associations; the Builders & Developers Program, where principles are incorporated from the ‘ground up’; and the Green Industries Best Management Practices, designed for landscapers and industry professionals.
Each program is based on nine interrelated principles (www.fyn.org) intended to reduce irrigation use and minimize the use of pesticides and fertilizer to protect our environment in general and our water quality in particular. A Florida-friendly landscape is not determined by a change in plant material; it is determined by the cultural practices employed to maintain plant material, new or existing. For example, removing areas of turfgrass and installing new drought tolerant plant material yet continuing to irrigate two times per week and fertilize four to six times per year would not be considered Florida-friendly, nor would it be sustainable or cost effective. Conversely, if existing turfgrass and plant material can be attractively maintained with a reduction in water use and fertilizing frequency, the landscape would be considered Florida-friendly, provided the landscape does not contain invasive exotic plant material.
The Florida Yards & Neighborhoods Program for homeowners and associations is administered through the University of Florida Extension Services and programs are offered twice a month. There is no fee for the program, but registration is recommended. For more information contact the Collier County Extension Office at (239) 353-4244.
Successful completion of the Green Industries Best Management Practices program and certification is required for landscapers conducting business within the cities of Naples and Marco Island, as well as a growing number of municipalities statewide. For information about certification and program dates, contact Renee Wilson at Rookery Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve, (239) 417-6310, extension 231.
Wildlife and Habitat
FWC bringing live TV show celebrating Florida fishing to Miami
Florida seafood is fresh and delicious. Despite the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, the majority of our state’s waters are open to fishing. Florida continues to be, hands-down, the fishing capital of the world.
These are some of the important messages the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC), the Wildlife Foundation of Florida and Visit Florida will be promoting to a nationwide audience Friday evening. The FWC, the foundation and state tourism officials have pooled their resources to host an event that will be so huge, and so filled with prominent faces, VERSUS cable TV network will broadcast it live across the country.
Doors will swing open at 5 p.m. July 30 at the Grove Harbour Marina in Coconut Grove. FWC leadership and scientists will join fishing experts and world-renowned oceanographer Fabien Cousteau at a 5:30 p.m. press conference to unveil the state’s new fishing promotion campaign. Then it’s time for the live TV show, from 7-8 p.m. The evening’s festivities will conclude with a fresh Florida seafood cookout, the cuisine prepared on site by legendary chef Norman Van Aken of “Norman’s” restaurant in Orlando.
“Almost of Florida’s waters are untouched and teeming with big, hungry fish and other seafood critters,” event coordinator Tim O’Neil said. “Florida is like no other place on earth.”
State bear management plan in works
After three years of research and study, an eight-member team formed by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission has completed preliminary work on a statewide bear management plan and is seeking public feedback before finalizing its report.
The 135-page draft, which can be found on the FWC website, outlines biological, behavioral and historical information about the Florida black bear, and provides five interrelated bear management objectives for helping the species maintain a healthy population in minimal conflict with human communities.
Current estimates place the statewide bear population between 2,500 and 3,000, centered in the Eglin, Apalachicola, Osceola, Ocala/St. Johns, Chassahowitzka, Glades/Highlands and Big Cypress regions.
Something wonderful has happened.
The Crystal River City Council members voted unanimously to take joint ownership of the Three Sisters property, which assures that Three Sisters Springs will be saved for manatees and for future generations. Instead of being slated for development, these beautiful springs, which are the most important winter haven for endangered manatees on Florida's west coast, will become part of the Crystal River National Wildlife Refuge.
The refuge has plans to include observation decks where the public can view manatees -- something that should greatly limit manatee harassment.
The struggle to save Three Sisters Springs was long and difficult, but the story of the coalition of disparate forces that came together to achieve this is really incredible, and I want to thank all of the Save the Manatee Club members who made donations and sent letters or emails in support of the Three Sisters purchase. This fantastic victory is all the more crucial, as we have lost more than 10% of the manatee population already this year due to unprecedented cold and other factors. Without these springs, the remaining population would be at even greater risk during future severe cold events.
Click here to read more about it and why Three Sisters is so important for manatees.
We've been working on this project for so long, it's still hard for me to believe that we will acquire forever the springs, provide a refuge for manatees and other wildlife, and offer the public a way to see manatees in a natural situation. This is a great opportunity, not to mention a great tourist draw, for the city, the county, the state, and for America. As for me, this is proof that dreams do come true.
Sincerely,
Helen Spivey,
Co-Chair, Board of Directors
Senate Delays Action on Climate and Clean Energy Bill
Senator Majority Leader Harry Reid announced on Thursday, July 22, that efforts to move a clean energy and climate bill are on hold.
The abrupt about-face is both disappointing and appalling as the nation grapples with the worst environmental disaster on record, borne in part from our addiction to oil, and much of the nation sizzles in unrelenting heat.
The failure to act means that America will continue to send $1 billion a day overseas to buy oil, China will continue to race ahead in creating the jobs of the future, and pollution will continue to increase at home.
Now is the time to voice your outrage! We won't give up till we have legislation that addresses our need for clean, renewable energy and provisions to curb greenhouse gas pollution. Let your senators know that the time for meaningful energy reform is now and that your tolerance for obstruction and inaction is at an end.
You can reach your senators at http://www.senate.gov/ or 202-224-3121.
Climate scientist who shared Nobel with Al Gore dies at 65
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - Stephen Schneider, a Stanford University scientist who served on the international research panel on global warming that shared the 2007 Nobel Prize with former Vice President Al Gore, has died. He was 65. Schneider died of an apparent heart attack Monday while on a flight from Stockholm to London, Stanford officials said.
Climate scientist who shared Nobel with Al Gore dies at 65
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - Stephen Schneider, a Stanford University scientist who served on the international research panel on global warming that shared the 2007 Nobel Prize with former Vice President Al Gore, has died. He was 65. Schneider died of an apparent heart attack Monday while on a flight from Stockholm to London, Stanford officials said.
Schneider studied climate change for decades and wrote a number of books charting its effects on wildlife and ecosystems in the United States, and later chronicled its effect on the nation's politics and policy. He advised every presidential administration from Nixon to Obama. "A prolific researcher and author, co-founder of the journal Climatic Change, and a wonderful communicator, his contributions to the advancement of climate science will be sorely missed," Gore said in a statement.
Schneider was an influential, and at times combative, public voice in arguing the manmade causes of climate change, and appeared on news and science television programs, wrote articles and blogged.
"Through his books, his extensive public speaking, and his many interactions with the media, Steve did for climate science what Carl Sagan did for astronomy," said Ben Santer, a climate researcher at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.
As a co-author of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change reports that earned a share of the Nobel, Schneider defended the panel's work when it came under attack from critics after some unsettling errors were discovered, including how fast Himalayan glaciers are expected to melt. The errors were made in a subsection of the world's most authoritative report on global warming, and were found to be insignificant to its overall findings that glaciers are melting faster than ever.
In 1992, he received a "genius grant" from the MacArthur Foundation for his research. "Steve, more than anything, whether you agreed with him or not, forced us to confront this real possibility of climate change," Jeff Koseff, Schneider's colleague at Stanford's Woods Institute for the Environment, said in a statement. Schneider also was a leader in research seeking to quantify future effects of climate change on various areas - from the insurance industry to farming - to help guide policy decisions, said Ralph Cicerone, president of the National Academy of Sciences.
"In recent years he was most interested in communicating with the general public, and the substance of his work was trying to quantify the odds and the probability of the outcomes of climate change," Cicerone said.
Schneider had also fought a rare form of leukemia, a battle he chronicled in a 2005 book, "The Patient from Hell." That fight helped put into context his work on climate change, helping him to see hope in often gloomy work. He is survived by his wife, Stanford University biologist Terry Root, with whom he jointly won the 2003 National Conservation Achievement Award from the National Wildlife Federation. Arrangements for a memorial service are pending.
Offshore & Ocean
Gulf of Mexico Minutes Provide Tidbits of ‘Betcha Didn’t Knows’
If the Gulf of Mexico region were its own country, it would support the seventh largest economy in the world. Tourism, commercial and recreational fishing, and much, much more provide a bounty of economic abundance to the communities of the Gulf region and the nation.
Offshore & Ocean
Gulf of Mexico Minutes Provide Tidbits of ‘Betcha Didn’t Knows’
If the Gulf of Mexico region were its own country, it would support the seventh largest economy in the world. Tourism, commercial and recreational fishing, and much, much more provide a bounty of economic abundance to the communities of the Gulf region and the nation.
A series of 40 Gulf of Mexico Minute radio podcasts are now available on a variety of topics that directly, or indirectly, involve the vast water body. The short, 90-second messages enable listeners to explore the Gulf’s diverse array of habitats, learn about unusual creatures ranging from tube worms to polka-dot batfish, and even explain how buying local produce actually helps to protect Gulf waters.
Did you know that the National Cancer Institute has been researching for marine organisms that could potentially provide treatments for chronic pain, asthma and breast cancer? Or that in some Gulf areas up to 80 percent of sea grasses have been lost? Or that in 2009 a giant squid nearly 20 feet in length and weighing over 100 pounds was discovered? These are just a few of the fascinating facts that can be downloaded or played.
The messages were produced by staff at the Florida Department of Environmental Protection’s (DEP) Office of Coastal and Aquatic Managed Areas and developed as part of a Gulf of Mexico Alliance education and outreach project to promote awareness about the environmental and economic importance of the Gulf of Mexico.
Listeners are encouraged to share these messages with friends, family and co-workers, or to use for public broadcasts or publications. They are simple to download, just go to http://www.supportthegulf.org/media-section/podcasts.
The Gulf of Mexico Alliance was formed in 2004 by the Gulf States of Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas as part of their shared vision for a healthy and resilient Gulf of Mexico region. The Alliance recognizes the economy and quality of life for Gulf citizens are linked to its ecological health. Through the collaborative leadership of governmental partners like the Florida DEP and the active participation of businesses and non-governmental organizations, the Alliance is addressing priority issues facing the Gulf region. The Governor’s Action Plan for Healthy & Resilient Coasts, endorsed by the five Gulf Governors, outlines the specific actions necessary to achieve the Alliance’s mission.
Listeners are encouraged to share these messages with friends, family and co-workers, or to use for public broadcasts or publications. They are simple to download, just go to http://www.supportthegulf.org/media-section/podcasts.
The Gulf of Mexico Alliance was formed in 2004 by the Gulf States of Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas as part of their shared vision for a healthy and resilient Gulf of Mexico region. The Alliance recognizes the economy and quality of life for Gulf citizens are linked to its ecological health. Through the collaborative leadership of governmental partners like the Florida DEP and the active participation of businesses and non-governmental organizations, the Alliance is addressing priority issues facing the Gulf region. The Governor’s Action Plan for Healthy & Resilient Coasts, endorsed by the five Gulf Governors, outlines the specific actions necessary to achieve the Alliance’s mission.
To view the Action Plan, visit http://www.gulfofmexicoalliance.org/.
Energy
The U.S. Senate will not take up comprehensive clean energy and climate legislation prior to its August recess.
Energy
The U.S. Senate will not take up comprehensive clean energy and climate legislation prior to its August recess.
Even more distressing, it's also very unlikely that the Senate will push for a comprehensive clean energy and climate bill at all this year.
The Senate is expected to vote on a pared down bill to address offshore oil drilling and the Gulf oil spill catastrophe later this week, but that is no substitute for passing a comprehensive energy and climate bill.
Big Oil, Dirty Coal, and their allies in the Senate Republican leadership continue to obstruct our progress to develop a clean energy economy that creates jobs, makes America more energy independent, and protects the planet.
Oil spill threatens Kalamazoo River
An Enbridge Pipeline Company pumping station malfunction has sent crude oil into Michigan’s Kalamazoo River. A company spokesman says 840,000 gallons of oil has leaked into a creek that feeds into the Kalamazoo River in southwestern Michigan.
The oil leaked Monday from a 30-inch pipeline that carries about 8 million gallons of oil per day from Griffith, Ind., to Sarnia, Ontario.
The Battle Creek Enquirer says the leak estimate comes from Chicago-based Enbridge Liquids Pipelines. Company General Manager Tom Fridel says the cause remains under investigation.
The oil spilled into Talmadge Creek, which flows northwest into the Kalamazoo River. The site is in Calhoun County’s Marshall Township, about 60 miles southeast of Grand Rapids.
The oil spilled into Talmadge Creek, which flows northwest into the Kalamazoo River. The site is in Calhoun County’s Marshall Township, about 60 miles southeast of Grand Rapids.
Authorities have evacuated two homes near the leak.
A newly formed coalition of alternative energy advocates is calling on the Florida Legislature to act on several proposals during the upcoming special session, but lawmakers have said that action next week appears unlikely.
Peter Laughlin, president of the Florida Alliance for Renewable Energy, one of the Florida Renewable Energy Business Coalition’s members, says the group was formed to allow the renewable energy industry to speak with a unified voice that stands a better chance of getting the ear of legislators.
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FPL's Turkey Point expansion plans debated
Activists and supporters shared their thoughts on Florida Power & Light's proposed expansion of the Turkey Point nuclear power plant.
BY LAURA MORALES
Florida Power & Light's plan to expand its nuclear power plant at Turkey Point faced opposition Thursday from activists unhappy about its costs and the possible health and environmental effects.
The utility has said nuclear power is ``greener'' than power generated by coal-fired plants, and supporters at Thursday's public comment session cited about 4,000 construction jobs and 800 permanent jobs the expansion could generate.
``We have the opportunity to meet the future power needs of our community and, at the same time, spurring our economy,'' said Florida City Mayor Otis Wallace, adding that his city's commission unanimously passed a resolution supporting the expansion.
The meeting, in Homestead, was held by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission as part of its environmental impact review of FPL's application to build two new reactors in South Miami-Dade.
The Gulf oil spill clearly weighed heavily on the minds of environmentalists, who question the plant's safety and worry that it will compete with efforts to restore the Everglades.
Architect Valerie Amor, of Fort Lauderdale, who sees the project as an issue for all of South Florida, said the spill reminded her that ``safety and human error are always a factor.''
She also said the utility should be looking for new forms of energy: ``This is the Sunshine State. We should be using sunshine for our energy.''
Mandy Hancock, of the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy, called the reactors ``risky'' and ``the last thing Florida and this country need'' in light of the oil disaster. Cooling the new plants would use up too much water in a sensitive ecosystem, she added.
Hancock and South Miami Commissioner Walter Harris cited problems at the plant from a list put together by Citizens Allied for Safe Energy, culled from decades of news reports and filings with the NRC and the courts. They mentioned faulty maintenance of backup water pumps, boric acid buildup on a reactor head and problems with the core cooling system.
The mayors of Palmetto Bay, Cutler Bay and Pinecrest said their cities oppose the high-voltage power lines that would carry power from the new reactors along U.S. 1, through their communities.
But in a down economy, jobs are also important, some supporters noted. Jeanne F. Jacobs, president of Miami Dade College's Homestead campus, said she supports the project, saying it will provide more opportunities for graduates of an MDC program that trains students to work in nuclear facilities.
``We have 63 graduates. Thirty-six of them work at Turkey Point and 20 are in the process of being hired,'' Jacobs said.
Since last year, activists and concerned residents have been packing town hall meetings to voice misgivings about FPL's plans. Groups such as Citizens Allied for Safe Energy, Clean Water Action and the Tropical Audubon Society have distributed information that illustrates their concerns about nuclear plant safety, saltwater intrusion into the Biscayne Aquifer and disruption of the area's fragile ecosystems.
FPL has maintained that it runs the plant safely, that saltwater intrusion into fresh groundwater began before the plant was built in the early 1970s and that its water-collection wells for cooling, which anti-nuke activists worry would kill larval animals vital to the local seafood industry, draw water from 40 feet below the surface, deep enough to minimize risk.
Utility spokesman Mayco Villafaña said Thursday that, while FPL has three solar power plants in Florida, such plants ``are intermittent resources that limit their ability to produce large amounts of electricity.'' He said the best approach for power includes a variety of sources including renewables, nuclear and natural gas.
Environmental project manager Andrew Kluger said the agency expects its environmental impact statement to be ready by October 2012.
The NRC is taking public comments until Aug. 16. Comments may be submitted by e-mail to TurkeyPoint.COLEIS@nrc.gov
Comments may also be mailed to the Rulemaking and Directives Branch, Division of Administrative Services, Mailstop TWB-05-B01M, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, D.C. 20555-0001 or faxed to the RDB at 301-492-3446.
I continue to be committed to recovery efforts in the Gulf of Mexico. Last week, I called a Special Session of the Florida Legislature from July 20, 2010 through July 23, 2010, to address a constitutional amendment banning offshore drilling in Florida waters. This amendment would be put before the people this November.
I am confident our legislators will make the choice to protect Florida’s environment and economy from any future disaster like we have seen recently in the Gulf of Mexico. The connection between Florida’s environment and economy is inextricable. We must do everything we can to ensure a spill of this magnitude cannot happen again.
While visiting with business owners in Pensacola, Destin, Panama City, Apalachicola, St. Petersburg and Miami, I have seen firsthand how they are hurting. That is why I created the Oil Spill Economic Recovery Task Force that met last week for the second time in Pensacola. We are constantly receiving and reviewing recommendations for how Florida can recover from the loss of business and revenues due to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.
I have also been meeting with elected officials and community leaders to listen to ways I can help. Together, we are working every day to help minimize the economic and environmental impact of this disaster.
Land Conservation
Land deal puts Everglades restoration on track
St. Petersburg TimesIn Print: Tuesday, July 27, 2010A decade into the Everglades restoration project, one thing is clear: For this to work, it takes land — and the more, the better. That's why the federal government's announcement this month that it would spend $89 million to preserve 26,000 acres in the northern Everglades was so important. Putting cleaner water into that basin is the first step toward restoring Florida's River of Grass.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced it would acquire easements on five ranches along Fisheating Creek, a rural watershed in southern Highlands County, north of Lake Okeechobee. The area is the headwaters of the Everglades; protecting it from development and restoring it is essential for clean water to filter south into the Everglades basin.
The owners of the ranches will keep title to the land and be allowed to graze cattle, though they will need permits. The USDA also will work with the Nature Conservancy, the landowners and the South Florida Water Management District to restore and monitor the property and promote more sustainable land use and wildlife practices.
The transaction is historic in its sheer size. More important, the government is preserving an entire corridor stretching from Central to South Florida. These ranch lands are vital open spaces for natural habitat and a range of rare and threatened animals, from the Florida panther and black bear to the bald eagle. By preserving the natural hydrology and diversity of the landscape, the federal government puts the pieces in place for restoration to continue for the long term.
Cleaning the headwaters that flow south into the Everglades is essential for improving the water quality in South Florida. The land deal will put cleaner water into the entire Okeechobee basin. It will build on state and federal spending toward the cleanup effort. It provides a template for ending harmful agricultural practices and improving those in operation elsewhere. And it puts more land into the preservation bank. This is the comprehensive approach the Everglades needs if there is ever to be hope for its restoration.
The transaction is historic in its sheer size. More important, the government is preserving an entire corridor stretching from Central to South Florida. These ranch lands are vital open spaces for natural habitat and a range of rare and threatened animals, from the Florida panther and black bear to the bald eagle. By preserving the natural hydrology and diversity of the landscape, the federal government puts the pieces in place for restoration to continue for the long term.
Cleaning the headwaters that flow south into the Everglades is essential for improving the water quality in South Florida. The land deal will put cleaner water into the entire Okeechobee basin. It will build on state and federal spending toward the cleanup effort. It provides a template for ending harmful agricultural practices and improving those in operation elsewhere. And it puts more land into the preservation bank. This is the comprehensive approach the Everglades needs if there is ever to be hope for its restoration.
Bristol Bay
Alaska's Bristol Bay is a place of bounty and balance. It is blessed with more than half of all wild salmon in the world!
A new report1 reveals the intricacy of the ecosystem, embodied in its sustainable fishery: salmon populations have adapted to each individual stream that feeds Bristol Bay, their cycles of ebb and flow continually self-regulating the species. A truly natural blessing!
A new report1 reveals the intricacy of the ecosystem, embodied in its sustainable fishery: salmon populations have adapted to each individual stream that feeds Bristol Bay, their cycles of ebb and flow continually self-regulating the species. A truly natural blessing!
But, Bristol Bay is cursed with an abundance of another kind: minerals. The proposed Pebble Mine development, if built, would be one of the world's largest gold and copper mines. Positioned near vital watersheds and salmon streams, Pebble Mine and other hard-rock mining threaten the natural balance here. Damaging even a few streams with toxic mining runoff would disrupt the natural diversity of the ecosystem, permanently upsetting this natural system.
Don't let a Pebble tip the balance in Bristol Bay. Click here to protect Bristol Bay against the toxic threats of hard-rock mining.
Miscellaneous
Lawsuit Seeks Ban of Common FL Farm Pesticide
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. - A pesticide commonly used on Florida farm fields and citrus groves is the target of a federal lawsuit, asking for a national ban by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Chlorpyrifos, also sold as Lorsban, affects insects by causing nerve damage, and watchdog groups say it can do the same to humans. It was banned for household use in the U.S. about ten years ago. The Natural Resources Defense Council and the Pesticide Action Network have objected to its continued use in agriculture, and they say the EPA has had their petition asking for a ban for three years without taking action on it.
Their attorney, Kevin Regan with Earthjustice, says it's bad stuff."As far as pesticides go, this is one of the worst of the worst. Science clearly shows that chlorpyrifos doesn't just poison insects, it poisons people.
And our suit is attempting to get EPA to take action and make a decision, once and for all."Regan says the EPA reevaluates pesticides every 15 years, and is not scheduled to act on chlorpyrifos until 2015, so the suit is an attempt to speed up the process."Right now the United States is behind the curve with a number of other nations. Countries all over the world - for example, recently, South Africa - have already completely banned use of chlorpyrifos. We believe it's time for EPA to take action.
"Its maker, Dow AgroSciences, says chlorpyrifos has been the subject of more than 500 studies and reports that, in its words, are "largely reassuring" about its effects on human health and the environment. The company also has a website carrying farmers' comments saying the chemical is a necessary part of their pest control activities.
Pesticide Action Network background on the chemical is at http://www.panna.org/
The Dow site is http://www.chlorpyrifos.com/
Beyond the fish kill: St. Johns River now also plagued by bizarre foam
Beyond the fish kill: St. Johns River now also plagued by bizarre foam
Just as massive fish kills are finally easing up, more trouble for the St. Johns River — this time it comes in the form of a mysterious foam.
St. Johns Riverkeeper Neil Armingeon says the foam has a meringue-like texture, is “unlike anything anyone’s ever seen” and is, in some instances, as much as 3-feet thick. “It’s not like sea foam, which is more one-dimensional and caused by wind blowing across water. This foam is basically 3-D. … It looks like you could cut it and serve it.”
A report of “[white] debris floating with the tide for several miles” was made to the Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission’s Fish Kill Hotline earlier this week, according to Carli Segelson, the Commission’s Media Coordinator.
Segelson says the St. Johns River Water Management District was then sent to gather samples, which the FFWCC will tomorrow begin testing for traces of harmful algal blooms. Though they are unsure of the cause of the substance, Segelson says that, in general, algal blooms can result in foam: “Foam can occur when blooms decompose and it can release toxins. We will be testing it to see if it is harmful or not, and should have those results within the next couple of weeks.”
It is unclear if the foam will have as negative an impact as the river’s many algal blooms; if it is a by-product of an algal bloom, the impact will depend on the type of algae.
Teresa Munson, senior communications specialist with the St. Johns River Water Management District, says the foam collection and testing will be done much like the testing of algal samples.
“Our field officers have been collecting algae and water samples all summer and the foam collection will be no different,” she says. “We are still coordinating with the Duval County Health Department, the Department of Environmental Protection, and the FFWCC — we’ve created sort of an inter-agency partnership, an opportunity to compare playbooks and use a very high level of expertise.”
Munson says the foam was first reported by a Jacksonville resident living near the Shands Bridge, who tested the foam using a home pool kit. “This individual found something that was familiar to him and then contacted the Riverkeeper.”
That “familiar” substance in the foam was cyanauric acid, though it’s important to note that those test results have not been validated by any of the agencies involved, and likely weren’t done with professional scientific equipment.
Armingeon says the Riverkeeper has received “dozens” of calls in the past week with reports of the foam — and that its sudden appearance, coupled with the many algal blooms along the river, doesn’t bode well for the area economy: “One of the reports came from [a marina] that contained both the algae and the foam. … That can’t be good for business. When people see this stuff, they don’t want to go out on the river.”
Guana Tolomato Matanzas NERR and Flagler College Team Up
A cooperative agreement between the Guana Tolomato Matanzas (GTM) National Estuarine Research Reserve (NERR) and Flagler College enabled 15 students to graduate with a deeper understanding of career opportunities in state and federal science-based agencies. The students became the first to complete a three-month hands-on research course in which they explored nature’s living laboratory within the NERR.
“This was the first group of Flagler College Students to graduate with an environmental science minor and for our first try, it’s been a very successful venture,” said Professor Barbara Blonder, one of the program’s founders. “Through this program, students gained an understanding of how to contribute to science research needs in our community and beyond.”
Community-based research is a key component in the ongoing efforts to preserve biodiversity at GTM. The Research Reserve, with its 73,000 acres offers a natural setting where students can engage in authentic research to gain a greater understanding of the conservation issues they would encounter in an actual science or natural resource management career -- learning how to prepare science papers and to present the findings in a public forum.
The Flagler students were split into groups to study five areas of research:
The extent of damage within the reserve caused by invasive feral hogs;
Armingeon says the Riverkeeper has received “dozens” of calls in the past week with reports of the foam — and that its sudden appearance, coupled with the many algal blooms along the river, doesn’t bode well for the area economy: “One of the reports came from [a marina] that contained both the algae and the foam. … That can’t be good for business. When people see this stuff, they don’t want to go out on the river.”
Guana Tolomato Matanzas NERR and Flagler College Team Up
A cooperative agreement between the Guana Tolomato Matanzas (GTM) National Estuarine Research Reserve (NERR) and Flagler College enabled 15 students to graduate with a deeper understanding of career opportunities in state and federal science-based agencies. The students became the first to complete a three-month hands-on research course in which they explored nature’s living laboratory within the NERR.
“This was the first group of Flagler College Students to graduate with an environmental science minor and for our first try, it’s been a very successful venture,” said Professor Barbara Blonder, one of the program’s founders. “Through this program, students gained an understanding of how to contribute to science research needs in our community and beyond.”
Community-based research is a key component in the ongoing efforts to preserve biodiversity at GTM. The Research Reserve, with its 73,000 acres offers a natural setting where students can engage in authentic research to gain a greater understanding of the conservation issues they would encounter in an actual science or natural resource management career -- learning how to prepare science papers and to present the findings in a public forum.
The Flagler students were split into groups to study five areas of research:
The extent of damage within the reserve caused by invasive feral hogs;
The endangered Anastasia Island Beach Mouse and the dune vegetation necessary for its survival;
The effects of climate fluctuations on mangroves;
How unwanted fish, referred to as by-catch causes species depletion, increases scavengers and influences the net loss of biodiversity; and
The effects of beach nourishment and re-nourishment on loggerhead sea turtles nesting habits at St. Augustine Beach.
The students worked evenings and weekends on the research projects throughout January, February and March 2010, interacting with seasoned researchers and learning how to use the reserve’s equipment, laboratories and other facilities. The program not only gave the students experience but also assisted the GTM NERR by contributing to information needs outlined in its management plan.
For more information on the reserve’s cooperative college programs or other research, conservation and education projects, call the GTM Research Reserve Education Center at 904-823-4500. To learn more about Florida’s other estuarine reserves and aquatic preserves, go to www.dep.state.fl.us/coastal.
For more information on the reserve’s cooperative college programs or other research, conservation and education projects, call the GTM Research Reserve Education Center at 904-823-4500. To learn more about Florida’s other estuarine reserves and aquatic preserves, go to www.dep.state.fl.us/coastal.
The End is nigh for Formaldehyde
President Obama has signed a bill that will enact national standards for formaldehyde in composite wood products. Now all Americans will be safer from harmful levels of the carcinogen, which can also cause watery eyes, burning sensations in the eyes and throat, nausea, and difficulty in breathing.
National attention was first focused on the dangers of formaldehyde when a Sierra Club investigation revealed that tens of thousands of families were sickened after being housed in FEMA-supplied Katrina trailers.
FWC to close deer hunting in small area within Big Cypress National Preserve
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) has issued an executive order, which will close zones 3 and 4 of the Stairsteps Unit of the Big Cypress Wildlife Management Area to the harvest of deer for the 2010-2011 hunting season. The order will be effective prior to the archery season and will remain in place for one year.
The FWC, in cooperation with the National Park Service (NPS), continues to monitor the deer population in the Big Cypress National Preserve. Biologists from both agencies have observed a dramatic decline in the number of deer in zones 3 and 4 of the Stairsteps Unit (south and west of Loop Road).
During recent surveys, when biologists flew over the area to count deer, very few were observed. This trend also has been reported by hunters using the area. The reason for the decline is unknown, but a joint taskforce is investigating potential causes such as disease, predation, hydrological changes and other changes in habitat.
Access to all areas will remain open, subject to NPS regulations, and all other hunting will be permitted.
America's Great Outdoors Initiative
FWC to close deer hunting in small area within Big Cypress National Preserve
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) has issued an executive order, which will close zones 3 and 4 of the Stairsteps Unit of the Big Cypress Wildlife Management Area to the harvest of deer for the 2010-2011 hunting season. The order will be effective prior to the archery season and will remain in place for one year.
The FWC, in cooperation with the National Park Service (NPS), continues to monitor the deer population in the Big Cypress National Preserve. Biologists from both agencies have observed a dramatic decline in the number of deer in zones 3 and 4 of the Stairsteps Unit (south and west of Loop Road).
During recent surveys, when biologists flew over the area to count deer, very few were observed. This trend also has been reported by hunters using the area. The reason for the decline is unknown, but a joint taskforce is investigating potential causes such as disease, predation, hydrological changes and other changes in habitat.
Access to all areas will remain open, subject to NPS regulations, and all other hunting will be permitted.
America's Great Outdoors Initiative
President Obama recently announced his America's Great Outdoors Initiative, a collaborative effort that will seek the best ideas on conservation, the ways in which those ideas can be pursued so that local communities embrace them, and how the administration can better promote conservation. The President has requested that "listening sessions" be conducted around the country.
The goal is to learn how to reconnect Americans to the outdoors, and to build upon state, local, private, and tribal conservation initiatives targeted at protecting both public and private land. NPCA staff and supporters have attended multiple listening sessions in California, Maryland, Montana, South Carolina, and Washington state. Additional listening sessions are planned.
To learn more about the initiative and the upcoming sessions, visit: http://my.npca.org/site/R?i=9tzVjMXp_PybzqJZ2a2uSg...
Everglades lobbyist, past Director of FWF, Johnny Jones dies at 77
Born: August 20, 1932
Died: July 11, 2010Funeral ServiceSaturday, July 17, 201012:00 PM - 2:30 PM
DORSEY E. EARL SMITH FUNERAL HOME
3041 KIRK ROADLAKE WORTH, FL 33461Guest book http://www.legacy.com/gb2/default.aspx?bookid=4368125792699&cid=view
Looking way up at the John "Johnny" C. Jones, Sr. -- a giant among icons
He went far beyond words; he impassioned thousands into forceful actions; he overpowered many -- politicians and land developers -- who misbelieved themselves to be more powerful than this high school dropout who they perceived to be cunning lawyer; he has a still growing legacy that includes saving more than 1,000,000 acres from human destruction; and he took upon himself to start an effort then considered as hopeless which is now returning the Kissimmee back to life -- fulfilling the deathbed wish of Dave Beebe, his father-in-law, who had instilled Johnny's devotion to the natural world.
Everglades lobbyist, past Director of FWF, Johnny Jones dies at 77
Born: August 20, 1932
Died: July 11, 2010Funeral ServiceSaturday, July 17, 201012:00 PM - 2:30 PM
DORSEY E. EARL SMITH FUNERAL HOME
3041 KIRK ROADLAKE WORTH, FL 33461Guest book http://www.legacy.com/gb2/default.aspx?bookid=4368125792699&cid=view
Looking way up at the John "Johnny" C. Jones, Sr. -- a giant among icons
He went far beyond words; he impassioned thousands into forceful actions; he overpowered many -- politicians and land developers -- who misbelieved themselves to be more powerful than this high school dropout who they perceived to be cunning lawyer; he has a still growing legacy that includes saving more than 1,000,000 acres from human destruction; and he took upon himself to start an effort then considered as hopeless which is now returning the Kissimmee back to life -- fulfilling the deathbed wish of Dave Beebe, his father-in-law, who had instilled Johnny's devotion to the natural world.
~ Read more
New hunting strategy exposed
The margay, a wild feline living in the Brazilian Amazon, is a true copycat. As it lurks through the rainforest, this cat imitates the sounds of a pied tamarin—a small monkey, and one of its favorite meals. Hearing the calls, the tamarin draws near, expecting to meet another of its kind.
New hunting strategy exposed
The margay, a wild feline living in the Brazilian Amazon, is a true copycat. As it lurks through the rainforest, this cat imitates the sounds of a pied tamarin—a small monkey, and one of its favorite meals. Hearing the calls, the tamarin draws near, expecting to meet another of its kind.
Instead, the tamarin might meet its doom. “Cats are known for their physical agility, but this vocal manipulation of prey species indicates a psychological cunning that merits further study,” said WCS researcher Fabio Rohe.
Researchers from WCS and Federal University of Amazonas first saw this amazing case of vocal mimicry in 2005. Eight pied tamarins, which are about the size of squirrels, were feeding in a ficus tree. Suddenly, the sounds of tamarin babies rang out from a group of tangled vines, or lianas. The researchers pinpointed the cries to a margay, trying to lure in lunch.
First, the group's “sentinel” dropped down from the tree to investigate. Then four more of the curious monkeys followed.
The spotted cat sprang to action.Kudos to the sentinel that realized the mistake in the nick of time. Quickly sounding the predator alarm call, the tamarin thwarted the margay’s attack, saving its troop-mates.
Though the cunning cat missed out on its monkey meal on this particular occasion, the researchers watching nearby were heartily impressed with its hunting strategy.
The sightings, which took place in the Reserva Florestal Adolpho Ducke, confirmed anecdotal reports from people living within the Amazon of wild cat species—including jaguars and pumas—mimicking primates, agoutis (a type of rodent), and other animals to draw them into striking range.
“This observation further proves the reliability of information obtained from Amazonian inhabitants,” said Avecita Chicchón, director of WCS-Latin America. “Accounts of jaguars and pumas using the same vocal mimicry to attract prey also deserve investigation.”
US State Department launches Facebook site
The State Department's Office of Public Liaison and Intergovernmental Affairs launched a Facebook page in order to better engage with the American people. This office creates and coordinates opportunities for dialogue between the Administration and the American public to improve public awareness of and involvement in the Department and its work.
US State Department launches Facebook site
The State Department's Office of Public Liaison and Intergovernmental Affairs launched a Facebook page in order to better engage with the American people. This office creates and coordinates opportunities for dialogue between the Administration and the American public to improve public awareness of and involvement in the Department and its work.
The American people have demanded a government that they can be a part of, a government that works, and the State Department seeks to create just that - an atmosphere of inclusion and transparency, allowing Americans from across the country to share their views and to offer their stories and ideas regarding foreign affairs issues that concern them.
This Facebook page provides information, updates and opportunities for you to see how the department is engaging the community on foreign affairs and how you can be involved.
Become a fan and check back for exciting opportunities for you to voice your opinion on foreign affairs!
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