On May 1-3, the Florida Keys Aquatic Preserves (FKAP) partnered with Reef Relief and SeaCamp to host cleanups as part of this year’s I.CARE Trash Derby. The Trash Derby features two days of debris collection, sunrise to sunset, throughout the Florida Keys.
On May 1st, IRLAP conducted their seventh Indian River Lagoon (IRL) Drift Card Study Deployment. The study involves numerous partner organizations deploying wooden “drift cards” from different sites across the IRL on the same out-going tide.
Charlotte Harbor Aquatic Preserves staff were busy in the field conducting monthly rookery surveys. Wading and diving bird rookeries were monitored for active nesting across all five aquatic preserves managed through the CHAP office.
Rainbow Springs Aquatic Preserve assisted Eckerd College’s Herpetology Club with their 26th year of turtle population and health assessment research on the Rainbow River. Within two hours, students collected 103 turtles including 43 loggerhead musk, 4 common musk, 39 Suwannee cooters, 8 Florida cooters, 6 Florida redbellies, and 3 Florida softshell turtles.
The Apalachicola Reserve collaborated with Florida DEP Waste Reduction and Recycling Education to bring together various environmental partners in an Earth Day celebration located at Riverfront Park in Apalachicola.
On April 16, Stephanie Stinson from the Coral Reef Conservation Program (CRCP) participated in the Palm Beach State College Earth Day event. The CRCP team educated students on coral reef conservation efforts local to Palm Beach and throughout the state.
Charlotte Harbor Aquatic Preserves staff completed a one-year post planting survey on two hurricane impacted islands where they planted mangroves last spring. The two islands have had mixed results of success. The southern island showed a 76% survival rate and the northern island had a survival rate of only 40%.
OTG Invasions is a non-profit organization that provides occupational therapy-based trips. The OTG teachers promote independence through life skills and social skills. Apalachicola National Estuarine Research Reserve was fortunate enough to meet students aged 11 – 24 on one of these trips. They learned about the watershed through art and science in the nature center and on the trails.
Nature journaling can provide another way to gather qualitative data on a field trip. A gale recently made a water quality data collection boat trip impossible for a visiting high school class. By remaining flexible, the education department was able to do a land-based version of the trip. Most of the data is collected using the YSI and other traditional equipment.
On April 10-12, the Coral Reef Conservation Program and its Citizen Support Organization, Friends of Our Florida Reefs, participated in the annual Tortuga Music Festival’s Conservation Village on Ft. Lauderdale Beach.