Rookery Bay staff teamed up with the Von Arx Wildlife Hospital to release a rehabilitated Black tern back into the wild. After receiving care at the Conservancy of Southwest Florida’s Von Arx Hospital, the bird was transported by boat to the Second Chance Critical Wildlife Area in the southern region of the reserve. Here it soared once again over the Gulf.

TBAP staff and interns worked on some preparations of buoy moorings that had been damaged by last year’s hurricanes to be sure that the new rookery island buffer buoys will be securely anchored. This work is ongoing, along with post-rainy season assessments of volunteer work needs on islands near each rookery island.

Lake Jackson AP supports a diversity of wildlife, including extensive bat populations and nesting wood ducks. Prior to three years ago, however, we didn’t know what kinds of bats lived and foraged here and there were a lot fewer resident wood ducks. To continue surveying and managing the diverse wildlife at the AP, staff went out this week to deploy acoustic detectors as part of the NABat program in collaboration with FWC.

Rookery Bay Research Reserve recently hosted a Wildlife Interaction Workshop, organized by the Coastal Training and Engagement sector, as part of an ongoing series designed to educate environmental professionals who work outdoors in the field and interested community members about Florida’s native and nonnative wildlife.