Have You Met The Grasshopper Sparrow?

Probably not, because this tiny bird that is found

nowhere else on earth, except the Everglades,   

A Grasshopper Sparrow

is having a really hard time, just stayin' alive!

The usual factors contributing to the demise

of the Grasshopper Sparrow, are loss of habitat
and intrusion by humans, in addition to fire ants and

flooding from the water pouring into the Everglades.

This sweet song of this very tiny, most common species

of bird, is what makes it so unique in the bird world.

Its song imitates the grasshopper's sound and so bring

females to it by deception.

So, if it wasn't bad enough with all that this bird in distress has going against it,
now people are complaining that the Everglades is having its water source "wasted"
because some of it is being diverted out to sea by FWS, to keep the nests of the birds
ancestral homes from being flooded out.

The bird did not ask for any of this, but it is being blamed none the less.

Can we at least be fair here?

The amount of water being "wasted" on this critically Endangered bird,

can not begin to compare with the amount that is being "truly wasted"

by some of the greedy humans of South Florida!

Grasshopper Sparrow

Why Can't The Everglades Ever Get A Break?

Just about the time you think,

well maybe things are getting better,

some very disturbing news just arrived

The Florida Everglades

from Audubon of Florida.

In Miami today, Audubon of Florida will

take on the bullies who want to pour

the nastiest, most polluted, chemical laden

water in this state into the Everglades.

The three worst farms in the Everglades Habitat area,
want to dump their toxic waste into the pristine waters

of the Everglades and few people even knew this was
about to take place.

The phosphorus in discharged farm water, is by Florida law,

required to be reduced by 25%, but these three farms are not playing by the
rules and neither, it seems, is the South Florida Water Management District.

Like the St. John's Water group, SFWMD may have become too big

and too powerful, and in ever more increasing fashion, both are

behaving like they are not only above the law, but can make or change

the rules at will, with no repercussions from the public, or anyone else either.

While some farms are doing the right thing for all of Florida's waterways,

the ones who cheat and those people who are supposed to be watching them,

are making it nearly impossible to ever bring this Paradise known as the Everglades,

back from the brink of the disastrous onslaught of pollution from chemicals and toxins.

The Everglades really does need to get a break!

Any Questions?

A PDF is here:

Florida Audubon Water Permits

Or write to Jonathon Webber,

Conservation Campaign Manager

jwebber@audubon.org

Or call: 850 222-2473

The Wood Stork May Get Room To Stretch Its Wings~

A pond or small lake with an island in it,

A Florida Wood Stork

within the Perico Preserve will soon become

a new nesting habitat for some of Florida's

most Threatened or Endangered birds, like little

blue herons, snowy egrets and white ibis and the
most eagerly anticipated member, who may

hopefully join this list, is also one of Florida's most

Endangered birds, the Wood Stork.

The new Manatee County Rookery, which should be finished by July 2013, will have the island in the middle, to deter the rats and raccoons who would pose a significant threat in the rearing of little ones, for parent birds.

Construction on this new home for Florida's winged ones in trouble,

will begin in about two months.

Stay tuned for updates~

Manatee County's New Rookery

Friends In Need, Are Friends Indeed

 
       A Florida Natural Place

Here in Florida, we are very fortunate to have many Environmental groups who

work diligently and tirelessly to preserve and protect the beauty that is Florida.

One of these groups, the Audubon Society, has a great News Blog Page and

if you are in need of an issue, place, or animal to get involved with,

you will probably find it listed here.

Come meet Audubon of Florida and offer to lend a hand, if you can:

The Audubon of Florida News Blog

Right Whales Are About To Become Extinct For Oil Gluttony

Very soon, in the birthing/calving grounds
of the North Atlantic Right Whale, which

The Right Whale

just happens to be the most Endangered Whale on

the planet, loud explosions may drive away the last

few of the species that remain in the waters along

the Florida-Georgia Coastline.

The Right Whale had very, very poor birthing numbers this year,
due to a complete lack of food up North and now they want
to do seismic blasting in the very place where they are born.

Are you kidding me?

How much more oil do we need? This is greed, not need!

These animals are hanging onto their very existence by a thread and they want to finish them off by looking for more oil?

Why? We need less oil, not more.

We need to walk, no run, away from this archaic, non renewable energy and

demand new sources of energy, so that in the future, we can all live in a place
where you can actually breathe the clean air, not see it.

Seismic Testing

Offshore Oil Exploration Plan Draws Fire

I Do Believe

 

                   A Florida Panther

A few days ago something happened that made me believe in the Wildlife Fairy,

or perhaps an even higher being~

A Florida Federal Judge said, "I don't think so," to ORV's running amuck

in the pristine Big Cypress Preserve.

This will be a lifeline for the most critically Endangered mammal in Florida,

maybe in the entire Country, the Florida Panther.

The National Park Service lost this battle to a powerful group of Wildlife Advocates,
who were fiercely determined to win this one for both the Panther and the Preserve.

Throughout this long, drawn out ordeal, however, there was much talk about who or

what would be disturbed, saved, lost, injured or damaged, but did anyone remember

what should have been the single most important reason for of doing all of this,

for the Panther and the Preserve?

When Wildlife are disturbed, as with the Panther in Florida or the Bison in Yellowstone,

by loud, intrusive machines running helter-skelter all through their natural habitats,
they are diverted and/or driven away from their number one priority,
which is eating to stay alive.

Once they have been interrupted by these intruders, it may take hours

or even days for the animals to find their food again.

These noisy, disturbing machines don't belong in Yellowstone Park,

and they don't belong in the Big Cypress Preserve either, ever!

Wild Animals cannot just reorder lunch.

Big Cypress National Preserve Protected From Off Road Vehicle Abuse!

The Precious Gift Of Life Is Not Always An Organ

Two American women who passed on in the 1990's,

left behind a great deal of their money to make sure

that the Whooping Cranes in this Country will have

A Whooping Crane

a better life.

The generous financial gifts from Lurae Brinkerhoff of
Wyoming and Elizabeth Overton of Colorado, were used

to secure more land for the critically Endangered Whooping Crane,
whose American living spaces have been disappearing for years.

As a "Designated Organ Donor" all of my life, I feel that each of us, in whatever way we are able, has a personal responsibility or moral obligation, to protect and care for those who cannot do it for themselves.

Human and/or Animal.

So, in lieu of any great financial bequest, my donation, for as much time as I have here, will always be to speak for those with no voice.

Private Cash Secures U.S. Habitat For Endangered Whopping Cranes

The Snail Kite Returns to Lake Okeechobee

This story brings hope for the most abused

A male Snail Kite

Bird in our state, the Everglades Snail Kite. 

You notice that I said Everglades, because just

a few short years ago, the Snail Kite was driven

out of its ancestral home on Lake Okeechobee,

north up to Lake Toho, where it was just beginning

to get a break and then bam.....

Whining, complaining, boaters forced FWS to clear Lake Toho of the fast growing and now most abundant Hydrilla plant because it clogged up their boat propellers.

Unfortunately, Hydrilla is the primary food of the Snail,

which is the only food that this Endangered Bird can eat,

so, no more Snails, no more Kites.

But joy untold, it would seem that for some reason the Snail Kite has returned

to Lake Okeechobee in numbers, that make even the most doubting of all Thomas's,

that would be me, believe that there just might be hope yet for the Snail Kite.

A great story, hope the news will continue to be so positive for the Everglades Snail Kite.

On Lake Okeechobee With Lieutenant Colonel Thomas Greco

Wonderful Rain, You Bring Life Back To Us Again

    

               Photo credit: USFWS/George Gentry
We here in Central Florida have been dealing with drought conditions for

many months now, something we don't normally have to contend with,

unlike our neighbors out in the West.

It is usually very tropical around here and rains just about everyday.

In fact, where we live, is just about dead center in the middle of the state,

where the two tropical sea breezes collide each summer day,

bringing thunder storms and lots and lots of rain.

This is what is normal.

But nothing has been normal here for a while and we got behind to the point where

most of Lake County's lakes had dried up and animals and people were desperate for rain.

Just recently, we started getting back to our normal and have been blessed with downpours

that have filled up our lakes, rivers and ponds and the pay off can be seen everywhere.

Florida's vast array of Tropical Birds can once again be seen everywhere,

enjoying the plentiful return to the "wet season" as all around us has finally,

turned to a deep, bright Irish green.

We are thankful for small blessings.

It is all good~

Today Is Another Three-fer

      

Three things have happened recently that affect Endangered Wildlife.

First, the Black Bear has been taken off of Florida's Endangered Species List.

Do not even get me started on this disaster.......

I have talked to those at the very top of the food chain in Florida about this

and there is no changing their minds, period.

Black Bears Removed From Endangered Species List

And second, a lawsuit has been filed to try to prevent the numbers of deadly ship

strikes on the most Endangered Whale on our planet, the Right Whale.

Give Right Whales A Brake

And third, the state of Nebraska has very foolishly extended something that never

should have been started in the first place for this exact reason.

Hunting Sandhill Cranes is beyond a really stupid idea and here is why:

At half a mile, more or less, away, do you really think that most hunters

can tell the difference between the Sandhill Crane and the critically

Endangered Whooping Crane, before he pulls the trigger?

What were these people in Nebraska thinking or smoking?

Duh!

Kansas Extends Hours For Sandhill Crane Hunting

We Will Take It!

 

  

Kind of similar to what happened this week in the Supreme Court,

this victory was not exactly what we were expecting.

Not only was this Restore Act a win for wildlife, but at the same time,

the despised Keystone Tar Sands Pipeline rider was left off of the Bill.

The message this all sends is pretty clear, at least for the moment.

Animals are important, clean air and water are important.

And a clean environment is important.

And people everywhere are demanding that we have it.

The people have spoken loudly and clearly all this year and thanks to the

millions of them all around the world who are wired and connected,

networking with Facebook and Twitter, the signatures on petitions went

through the roof and their angry voices were heard all the way to the Senate.

Oil Companies and their greedy CEO's need to start looking for a new place to call home,

America is once again, becoming a safe haven for our wildlife and our environment.

Wildlife Victory! Congress Says BP Fines Must Help Restore Gulf

The Last of His Kind, Lonesome George!

                             Photo credit: putneymark
Like Ishi, the Last Yahi, George was also the presumed last of his kind,

a giant Pinto Island Galapagos Tortoise.

When the last of any species is gone forever, we should ask ourselves one question:

"what are we doing to cause this?"

With Ishi, it was simple, Manifest Destiny.

European invaders marched across this country and decimated every Indigenous person

that they encountered along the way, in the pursuit of what they claimed

was their absolute divine right or Manifest Destiny.

The scenario is pretty much the same right now, for many species of animals on this planet,

as their Habitats are being wiped out for hotels, restaurants and shopping centers, while

their water and food sources are being poisoned with chemicals and pesticides.

Species of every type, including we humans, are in danger of extinction due to

our own greed and stupidity.

Living beings all over the world are dying at an alarming rate and the future is

bleak according to the scientists who are studying this rapid demise.

We simply cannot continue on this destructive, selfish path and

not expect a terrible price to be paid.

Unfortunately for the animal kingdom, they are the first price to be paid.

Will we be next?

Lonesome George

Galapagos Giant Tortoise

George's Photo Gallery

A Ray Of Hope For Florida's Most Treasured Bird

On the Gulf Coast of Florida in Homosassa Springs

right now, there are two doting parents tending to

eggs and if we are very, very fortunate, one or maybe

A Whooping Crane

even both of them are fertile.

These two Whooping Cranes are making history for the most Endangered Bird in this Country and if chicks are born, they will probably be sent off to become a part of one of the research programs based out of the Patuxent Wildlife Research Center in Maryland.

Regardless of whatever happens right now, a pair of Florida Whooping Cranes is doing their best to save their own kind from disappearing, forever.

All that we need to do now, is to let them be themselves and stay out of their way.

Whooping It Up

Captive Whooping Cranes Offer Hope

Can You See Through Your Glass Of Water?

This story is so important on so many levels.

Just in case you did not minor in Geology,
here is something that was pounded into my
head by a Professor at CSUN years ago.

Pipeline Spill in North Dakota
Photo: Peter Carrels

When our water is poisoned, it could take as long as 10,000 years
to clean it up.

At the time he was speaking of the poisons in California's water
from the fertilizers and pesticides used in the San Joaquin Valley,
or the Vegetable Bowl of America.

Now, it is Dirty Tar Sands Oil, and it is just as lethal and
will take just as long to clean up.

Millions of innocent people all over this country are being bullied
by these Oil Companies and the environmental disaster certain to be created by these greedy, ruthless people, will be left behind for our
children to contend with for centuries.

The Ogallala Aquifer is just one of many, many American water
sources that are right now in very grave jeopardy.

When our glass is full of toxins, it will be too late to object:

Visuals: Dirty Oil Sands

Great story, well done!

Protecting The Cultural And Historic Values Of The Powder River Basin

Can Clams Clean Up Our Coral?

              

                                            Photo credits:

                      (L) Lucinid Clams - Laura L. Govers
       (R) Typical Seagrass Meadow - Marjolijn J.A. Christianen

Well, according to the Biologists at the University of Florida, yes!

These little cleaner/sweepers are doing a great job on Florida's,

correction, America's only Coral Reef.

This vital Ecosystem just off our shoreline, has been, like all Ecosystems,

used and abused, so any help that it can get is great.

Enter tiny Clams to the rescue.

The seagrass beds just offshore, absorb much of the bacteria/toxins from

the Ocean and would die a slow, painful death from them, if it were not

for these tiny toxin devouring Clams.

The actual study is here:

A Three-Stage Symbiosis Forms The Foundation Of Seagrass Ecosystems

An interesting Thesis on the process is here:

Interactions Between Lucinid Clams And Seagrass

Another look at the actual process:

Symbiotic Bacteria In Lucinid

So, the next time you run across one of these little Clams, please say thank you!

The seagrass keeps the Ocean clean, the clams keep the seagrass clean.

It is life in perfect harmony and balance.

Little Clams Play Big Part In Keeping Seagrass Ecosystem Healthy

Two of Florida's Endangered Butterflies Are On The Brink

                        

As if the recent news about the Miami Blue wasn't bad enough, word now comes
that the Schaus Swallowtail, which was thought to be heading out of trouble,

has gone into a downward spiral.

Emergency procedures have been implemented that includes taking some of them

into "protective custody" to save the species from complete extinction.

The causal factors here are the usual: shrinking habitats and the wide spread use of pesticides.

Do we really expect these fragile creatures on the brink of extinction,

to be able to survive these never ending intrusions and abuses by humans

or overcome these kinds of invasions into their worlds?

Why do we act so surprised when they simply just disappear?

Biologists, Volunteers Rush to Save Florida Butterfly Species

Florida's Schaus Swallowtail Numbers Crash

Wind Farms In Florida, The Good, The Bad And The Extinct!

As a former resident of California, Solar and Wind power

were always just a normal part of our everyday lives.

There was rarely ever any controversy connected to them,
in fact most of us were proud to live in a state that was so 

Birds at Lake Okeechobee
Photo credit: FAU/Richard Botta

devoted to clean energy.

But here in Florida, it is a much different story because we still have lots and lots of at-risk Wildlife.

Huge Wind Turbines, called the Sugarland Wind Project, are currently being considered for an area of about 13,000 acres that Sugarland owns in South Florida, where they can and will potentially do a lot of harm, for maybe just a very small return in useable energy.

If you read the story below from the Miami Herald, as well as the comments, you will get a better understanding of why the biggest objectors to these Wind Turbines are not coming from the usual or expected places, they are coming from Environmental groups, like Audubon and the Sierra Club.

Hmmmmmmm.........

The Everglades,  Lake Okeechobee and a nearby Wildlife Refuge are sensitive habitat areas that are home to a multitude of permanent native or resident birds, as well as a large number of visiting or snow-birds species.

Some of these locals, like the Snail Kite, are an Endangered Species and the idea of losing any more of them could simply be disastrous.

Now, who do suppose is in huge favor of installing these Wind Turbines?

That would be Big Sugar, or Sugarland, who is set to make a fortune off of this deal.

You know, those people who are already poisoning much of the water in South Florida,

including Lake Okeechobee and the Everglades with their toxic phosphorus run offs.

The stakes are very high here and the winners and losers are yet to be determined.

Florida Wind Farm's Antagonists: Environmentalists

Nothing Else Is Working

Although this could seem scary for any another dog,

these specially trained ones from the University of Auburn,

called EcoDogs, will be carefully watched over,

The Florida Everglades

so maybe it just might work.

One thing is for sure, nothing else that has been tried so far
has been effective in removing the most dangerous opponent
the Everglades has ever had, the Burmese Python,
which now number anywhere between 30,000 and 100,000.

These deadly, carnivorous constrictors have made a virtual buffet
out of the Everglades, eating their way from one end of it
to the other.

Thanks to a plan submitted by our own U.S. Rep. Alcee Hastings,
there may still be some hope yet for the most pristine Ecosystem
on the planet, the Florida Everglades.

Hastings: Unleash The Hounds In The Everglades

A Tragic Trio: Ignorance, Evil, Cruelty

Reading the story below yesterday nearly broke my heart.

Those of you who read this Blog regularly already know

Our Sweet Harriet

about our own sweet Gopher Tortoise, Harriet.

At some point in our history as a Race or Species, we simply
must start taking at least a little of the responsibility for

the kind of people who do these horrific things.

These three boy/men were not hatched in a biology lab somewhere.

They were born, they had parents and at some point, must have gone
to school, had friends and been a part of our society.

They are not the first to commit these kinds of hideous acts,
nor will they be the last.

Evil has been with us from the very beginning.

Sadly, with the wired world we now live in, news like this travels globally in nano seconds.

These disturbed young men belong to all of us, their crimes are on all of us.

Somewhere, somehow, we missed something we should not have with all three of them.

If we turn away from desperate need in others, we are part of the problem.

As for the tortured creatures whose lives they ended, I need to believe

that they are now in a better, safer, happier place.

Endangered Tortoises Tortured

Do You Really Want To Live In A World Without Bats?



An Endangered Grey Bat

This often maligned creature is in big trouble right

now and its future may lie in our trembling hands.

Many people fear the bat and with all of the hype from Hollywood,
is it any wonder?

Bats are warm blooded, flying mammals that we should
be praising with every breath.

Because, truth be known, we would be at the mercy of millions of nasty, ferocious bugs without them in our world.

Take this number for instance: 3,000.

One bat can eat 3,000 mosquitoes in just one night!

Since 2006, White-nose syndrome has been wiping this species off of the map,

all but eradicating one bat species after another, all across the Country.

So, we humans had better put our heads together, as a species and help the best friend

we could ever find for insect control, because when the bats are all gone,

the insects my friend, shall inherit the Earth!

White-nose Syndrome Confirmed In Endangered Gray Bats