Communication Builds Our Community
Communication Builds Our Community
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There's nothing quite like a bird in flight but Florida's butterflies have their own appeal. Over 190 butterfly species have been recorded in Florida, the most of any state east of the Mississippi River. Florida's famous sunshine and mild temperatures help a variety of butterfly species thrive throughout the year. These colorful insects are found across the state everywhere from the wildest trail to your own backyard, making butterfly watching a fun and easy activity for the...
Depictions of the beauty and diversity of Polk's county-managed environmental preserves are the focus of a juried art competition being organized by Polk Forever, a local grassroots non-partisan organization. The best works submitted will be displayed in September and October at locations including Lake Wales Art Center, Ridge Art in Winter Haven, and a third site that is yet to be announced. "The idea behind the exhibition is to bring to light the places we have already...
Did you know that over-watering can weaken your lawn's roots, and stimulate the growth of fungus and other lawn diseases? Despite near-daily rains during the summer, many residents leave sprinklers to run on an automatic daily cycle, wasting millions of gallons of water and thousands of dollars worth of electricity. The Southwest Florida Water Management District suggests that you follow these tips when you "watch the weather, wait to water": Water only when your yard needs...
(NAPSI)-It's likely you see one of the most common sources of plastic pollution everyday-on the ground, in parking lots, in gutters or at the beach-cigarette butts. This is not trash but toxic garbage and plastic pollution poisoning marine life and humans. Since cigarette filters are made of plastic, they can take years to decompose, leaving behind toxic microplastics that pollute our environment-and could make their way inside of us. In fact, every smoked cigarette filter...
Researchers from the University of Florida are using butterflies as a way to measure the health of ecosystems in a new effort that may have far-ranging uses. In 2017, a group of scientists raised alarm bells by showing that flying insects had declined in Germany by more than 70% in the three preceding decades. Studies before and since then have shown similar patterns in insects on a global scale. But with 1 million known species - and conservative estimates indicating there ar...
Florida celebrates a special day for gopher tortoises for very important reasons. The gopher tortoise plays a significant role in many of Florida's ecosystems and deserves our recognition. Gopher tortoises are considered a keystone species, as their burrows provide refuge for over 350 different species of wildlife. Burrow associates range from common animals such as opossums and rat snakes, to rarer and lesser-known species such as the punctuate gopher tortoise onthophagus bee...
Highlands Hammock State Park has a full lineup of activities and special events for the month of March including nature hikes, "Firefly Nights" tram tours, and a Music in the Park concert. On March 14, park visitors may join Park Services Specialist (PSS) Carla Sherwin on a "Hiking the Hammock" walk which offers the unique opportunity of exploring some restricted areas. This "off the beaten path" trek runs down Cottage Road through cypress swamp and emerges into pine flatwoods...
Saturday night is when we will turn our clocks ahead one hour. The time change is also a good time to make sure irrigation system timers are set correctly to ensure that the systems operate consistently with year-round water conservation measures. The Southwest Florida Water Management District (SWFWMD) is reminding residents to check the timers on their irrigation system controllers this weekend, which is the beginning of daylight saving time. All 16 counties throughout the...
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission's (FWC) volunteer program helps Floridians get directly involved with conservation and restoration projects across the state. Last year, over 1,000 volunteers put in over 60,000 hours to advance FWC's mission. One important project that could not have gotten off the ground without the help of dedicated volunteers is the Kestrel Nest Box Monitoring Program, which has collected data essential to efforts to protect these...
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) has been notified by the National Veterinary Services Laboratory of confirmed cases of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) strain: H5 2.3.4.4 in a lesser scaup, black vultures and other avian species. There is a low risk of HPAI transmission to humans and, to date, there have been no known human infections in North America. The FWC is currently investigating bird mortalities in Brevard, Indian River and Volusia...
Lake Wales area residents are being offered a hands-on habitat restoration activity which will see the planting of 5,000 young Long Leaf pines at the Lake Wales Ridge State Forest. The effort is being sponsored by the Florida Fish & Wildlife Division and their Ridge Rangers volunteer program. The purpose is to reintroduce native Long Leaf pines, in an effort to restore native and globally threatened habitats of the Lake Wales Ridge. Mature Longleaf pines provide essential...
Different species of birds build their nests in all sorts of different places – high in the treetops, deep in thick shrubs, even hiding in plain sight on the ground. Some birds will only build their nests within the protection of a hole. These cavity nesting species fall into two categories. Primary cavity nesters, such as woodpeckers, can excavate their own holes. Other species including bluebirds, tree swallows, screech owls and kestrels are secondary cavity nesters; they a...
Editor's Note: Controlled burns and selective logging have been employed on certain Florida properties including many environmental preserves. The proven technique is now being adopted for wider use) The Biden administration has announced that it is using $3 billion from last year's infrastructure law to revamp the federal approach to wildfire management, introducing a 10-year plan to deal with the large swaths of the West scientists consider most at risk of destructive...
Christmas is a time for celebrating the season and a time for cutting down trees – and that holiday tradition sometimes leads to discussions about what's best for the environment: Is it greener to buy a real tree or a fake tree, or abstain altogether? UNH forest resources specialist Steven Roberge explained some of the factors he weighs in determining whether cutting a tree is an environmental boon or bust. The first caveat, according to Roberge: It's not as simple as you migh...
The first time I met Martine de Wit, she was dressed in scrubs, ready to step into a laboratory containing eight dead manatees. Her job, and that of the dozen people assisting her in this St. Petersburg lab behind Eckerd College, was to find out what killed them - sort of a "CSI: Sea Cow," but without any rock stars screaming over the opening credits. These eight deaths weren't much of a mystery. Seven were victims of a lingering red tide algae bloom, while the eighth...
Do you like the neighborhood where you live? I sure like mine. My wife and I bought a 1926 Craftsman fixer-upper in St. Petersburg back in the mid-1990s, and we've been here ever since. We love the brick streets, the shady oaks, and the down-the-block proximity of a waterfront park. Our neighbors are pretty cool, too. They include a scientist, a professor, a couple of actors, a newspaper editor, a liquor store manager, and a lawyer (in court she may be a bulldog but in person...
Area boaters and fishers using the Kissimmee Chain of Lakes east of Lake Wales may wish to speak up as plans are made for the future management of the public waters. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) is seeking public input on their draft Lake Management Plans for the Kissimmee Chain of Lakes. The plans cover management activities within the FWC's jurisdiction, including habitat protection, restoration and enhancement, fish management, and invasive...
In a tribute to the very concept of restoration, a portion of Florida's Kissimmee River that was once reduced to a single canal carrying contaminated water has been approved for status as a Wild and Scenic River under legislation passed by the US Congress. The river fell victim to a misguided flood control effort by the US Army Corps of Engineers following repeated floods after hurricanes dumped record rains across central Florida. The project turned a 103-mile meandering rive...
Attracting wildlife to our yards by planning and planting for their needs is simple and satisfying. If we supply adequate food, water and shelter, we can increase the number and variety of species that visit our properties, improving our chances of observing them more closely while providing the habitat they need to survive. The Lake Wales Ridge is home to scores of "endemic" species that exist nowhere else on earth. Because almost all of Florida was submerged as recently as t...
Swaths of wetlands and waterways in Florida left unprotected when the Trump administration weakened federal standards in early 2020 are being developed in Florida - despite a federal court ruling that struck down the Trump rules eight weeks ago. At least 300,000 acres of wetlands and waterways in Florida alone are likely subject to regulation under the stronger, pre-Trump standards, say a trio of environmental lawyers and scientists, but state regulators have announced no...
A group of Democratic lawmakers unveiled an energy-efficiency plan this week that would reward farmers for conserving energy, assess energy efficiency in state-funded buildings, and create "floating solar" systems – among other projects. The plan - a bill for consideration in the 2022 legislative session - is sponsored by state Sen. Tina Polsky and state Rep. Kelly Skidmore, both of Palm Beach County, with backing from Agriculture and Consumer Affairs Commissioner Nikki F...
Do you play the lottery? I've been known to purchase a ticket or two when the payoff gets enough zeroes. The fact that I am still writing for a living should tell you how good I am at picking numbers. Once, I ducked into Publix to purchase a Powerball ticket and discovered a knot of people around a well-tanned, white-haired customer. It was former Gov. Charlie Crist in a blue blazer, silk tie, and tassel loafers, waiting his turn to wager a couple of bucks. "You can't win if...
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Service is inviting you to join them on Thursday, October 14 for their virtual MarineQuest 2021 event. This is a live on-line event that will include a number of nature-oriented features that begin at 9:00 am. Tune in even earlier, at 8:40 am for field videos of sandhill crane banding, searching for skunks and weasels with Cowboy, the scat-sniffing dog, pulling nets with their fisheries monitoring team in Tampa Bay, and much more! Viewers will...
Outdoor lovers are invited to attend the 35th Annual Civilian Conservation Corps Festival scheduled for November 13 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Highlands Hammock State Park. Festival highlights include featured guest speaker Florida folklorist Robert Stone, who will speak about Cattle King William B. Hooker and present Florida Cattle Ranching: Five Centuries of Tradition Two members of the Florida Artists Blacksmith Association will forge a fish wall sculpture as a silent...
The plan proposed by Manatee County to treat the estimated 270 million gallons of polluted wastewater from the Piney Point gypsum stack ponds and inject it deep underground has been controversial. Deep well injection has been used extensively in Florida as an alternative to surface discharges. The best example locally is a well near Mulberry that is used to dispose of acidic wastes that were previously discharged, causing concrete bridge supports downstream to begin...
