Fence Me In

Originally published on Audubon Guides on August 13th, 2012

Traveling across the Everglades, a motorist will see signs that caution “panther crossing”, and “wildlife on roadway”. Speed limits are reduced at night to protect nocturnal species. Hundreds of miles of fences stretch from one side of the state to the other. Wildlife is often observed behind the fence and one might wonder if you’re traveling through a zoo or you are part of the zoo.

The Big Cypress National Preserve, established in 1974, is a vast 750,000 acre wilderness in the heart of the Everglades. Three main roads cut through the preserve. I-75, also known as Alligator Alley runs east/west from Fort Lauderdale to Naples. SR-29, aka Panther Pass runs north/south along the western border of the preserve and US-41, aka Tamiami Trail cuts just above the southern boundary of the Preserve and runs from Miami to Naples.

Wildlife crossings in the Everglades\

In the 90’s, the Florida Panther (Puma concolor coryi) population dropped precipitously low to an estimated 35 cats. Various methods were used to help the population, including introducing eight Texas Cougars, installing reduced speed limit signs in popular panther habitat and building wildlife underpasses and overpasses. The majority of the passes were built along I-75 with an additional 6 passes built along SR-29. They were built in locations where an unsustainable number of road fatalities to panthers had occurred as well as American Alligators (Alligator mississippiensis), American Black Bear (Ursus americanus), White-tailed Deer (Odocoileus virginianus) and many other species.

A White-tailed Deer safe behind a fence © Pete Corradino

Fencing helps redirect the wildlife to the bridges where they can safely cross, prevents vehicular accidents and maintains contiguous habitat for animals that are known to wander far and wide throughout the wet and dry seasons.

In January of 2012, Florida DOT installed solar-powered, Remote Animal Detection Systems in areas where fences are not practical. LED-slit signs flash when the RADS are triggered, warning motorists of wildlife on or near the roadway.

White-tailed Deer © Pete Corradino

Safe from vehicles, the deer in the photo was grazing behind the fence, oblivious or uncaring that I stood just fifteen feet away. It also happened to be inside the Panther Refuge…..

Are You Man Enough? - Attack A Shark Edition

Descartes once said "I drink therefore I fish". It was later in his life and he would have said anything to stay relevant French masses.

For me - I don't drink beer - therefore I don't fish. I don't have the patience to fish nor the inclination/demons to drink. I also don't have to prove my manhood but duping a large-toothy cartilaginous fish into thinking it's going to get a meal and than yanking it out of the water by it's face.

On June 6th and 7th - insecure people will have the opportunity to fish for sharks during the "Are You Man Enough? Shark Challenge" on Fort Myers Beach. Click on the link and you get an idea of the foolishness involved here.

And keep in mind that Fort Myers Beach and Sanibel Beach are the main draw for tourists here in Lee County. Promoting shark fishing off our shores can't be good for tourism, but I'm not so naive to think the sharks are not there. They are. In truth the tournament sends boaters up to Boca Grande where sharks are far more prevalent. Up until the protests (by groups like Shark Safe) started last week, there was no rule against killing the sharks. After public outcry, fisherman will be encouraged to catch and release.

Although I don't fish I'm not anti-sport fishing. I just take exception to the testosterone-fueled marketing campaign that demonizes sharks. I will give them credit for listening to the public and elected officials and I understand marketing is about getting attention but I call into question any one's manhood that feels the need to catch the biggest fish to prove themselves a man.

A few things to consider - there have been 7 confirmed shark attacks in Lee County since 1882!

The global threats humans cause sharks and the diminishing populations of most shark species around the world suggest we should be protecting rather than harming sharks.

For more on Shark Conservation go here - http://www.flmnh.ufl.edu/fish/Sharks/sharks.htm

and http://www.neil4sharks.org/sharkconservation.html

For moron Shark fishing go here - http://www.areyoumanenoughsharkchallenge.com/

No Plans

You know those people who go through life without a plan? Just make it up as they go? And when life goes awry they expect someone else to come along and flip them over? The following is a perfect example of bad planning. The turtle must have believed the water would always be there. But what if someone pulls the plug? What if the water runs out?

We filled the pool back up and Mr. Red-eared Slider flipped himself back over. He probably could have done so without the water. Turtles have long, strong necks and are quite flexible.

What will we do when the water runs out? There are over 6 million people in south Florida. Most of our drinking water comes from an shallow aquifer that is recharged by rainwater. If we continue to consume more water than is replaced in the aquifer we face certain ecological disaster. Some have suggested we need to sacrifice so that the environment might benefit. I disagree. I think we simply need to live responsibly. Here's a few ways (from the South Florida Water Management District) and they work pretty much anywhere you may live.

• plant native vegetation that does require excessive watering. Fabulous, lush green lawns are still the costly, wasteful norm and people get so upset when it browns
• wash your car less often. If you use a car wash - make sure they recycle water
• make sure your home is free from leaky pipes and dripping faucets - one drop per second wastes 2700 gallons of water a year. Plus the dripping is torturous
• since I replaced the flapper on the toilet the water bill has been halved each month
• get out of the shower sooner and use a low-flow showerhead. 4 out 5 people are clean within the first 4 minutes.
• collect water during your shower to water your plants. Don't pee in the bucket.
• turn the water off while you brush your teeth. or don't brush your teeth. I'd rather someone was toothless than have them waste water.
• Don't flush just because you tossed a bug in the toilet. Come on! ("But it was a spider") They will crawl back up.
• use a rain barrel to collect water for other uses. My family did this when I was younger except it was to collect water that was coming through a hole in the roof.
• ask restaurants to only serve water on request or simply don't go to restaurants that put water out for every guest.
• Encourage responsible growth in your community that minimizes paved surfaces that prevent water from percolating into the aquifer.

The water will run out at the rate we are going. There are far too many people here and most have bad habits. It's not a sacrifice to do any of the above. It's simply responsible. We have to plan for today and tomorrow or we end up turned over on our shell and sitting in the sun.

Have other water saving ideas? Press the COMMENTS button on the bottom of the page.

Polar Bear Opposites

I'll apologize up front for directing you to a video including Glenn Beck. He's a repugnant human being and I would give my left hand to slap him with my right hand. But he interviewed presumptive VP candidate Sarah Palin a few months ago and I thought a few of her views were utter nonsense.

Sarah Palin is an intelligent, yet agenda-driven person and her utilitarian views on Alaskan oil bubble through. Regarding the interview:

1) Palin says the Polar Bear population has increased over the last 30 years and they should not be listed as an Endangered Species. There are several sub-populations of Polar Bears around the Arctic. 5 are declining, 5 are static, 2 are increasing and 7 populations are indeterminate. I don't know the specific number of Polar Bears in each sub-population but overall there are about 25,000 bears. The problem is global warming - which Palin reportedly doesn't believe is occurring, is causing the Arctic ice sheets to melt. Polar Bears hunt by seeking out ice holes that seals use to breathe air. They then catch and eat the seals which I hear are delicious. As the ice continues to decrease and habitat becomes more fragmented, Polar Bears that require the ice will suffer and could very well become extinct.

2) Palin refers to the oil and natural gas in Alaska as "our oil". "Our" being Alaska's and she demands the right to drill immediately in the Alaska National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR). Federal land is protected and the natural resources on it, in it and under it belong to the American people. Congress can approve the drilling in ANWR, but they haven't since it is considered to be an insufficient amount. Drilling would be restricted to a small area, but getting the oil to refineries would be environmentally damaging. Pipelines would disrupt Caribou migrations at the least and the 19 million acre refuge was established in the 60's (and planned before Alaska was a state) to protect the natural ecosystem. McCain and Obama are against drilling in ANWR.

3) Palin suggests we are "fighting over energy supplies" in the wars the US is currently waging. Really? I thought it was about "weapons of mass destruction." Did we invade a foreign country to assure oil rights? I do believe she is on the record as saying what most politicians have not.

When Nixon called for the creation of the Endangered Species Act in 1973, Congress approved legislation that "was designed to protect critically imperiled species from extinction as a consequence of economic growth and development untendered by adequate concern and conservation." Polar Bears are perfectly qualified for this protection. They simply "mess around" with Palin's oil and gas drilling interests so the state of Alaska is suing the Federal Government to keep the bears from being listed.

As the former chair of the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission, Sarah Palin is an appropriate spokesperson for the continued pressure to utilize the natural resources of Alaska, but she clearly cares little for the plant and wildlife of Alaska, nor Endangered Species Act that was created to protect them.

Let's NOT bring these ideals to the lower 49. I won't be voting for McCain/Palin.

Waterlogged: The Magic Toilet

One of the differences between Vermont and Florida other than the sun, the heat, the traffic, the development, the flat land, the beaches, the alligators and Walgreens on every corner is the fact you have to pay for water. Pardon my naivete if anyone pays for water in Vermont. I never did in the 10 years I lived there...

I'm fine with it. I think we should pay more for it. I think there will be a day when we have wars over fresh water as we already have annual droughts and severe water restrictions. But I figure the more people have to pay for it, the more likely they will conserve it.

• You can turn the water off when you brush your teeth
• You can wash the dishes by hand instead of running the dishwasher
• You can get in the shower and then turn the water on. (Don't try this in Vermont. or with clothes on)
• You can do as Ash & Kate do and not flush the toilet every time - "If it's yellow, let it mellow". Why flush three gallons every time you pee? Be grateful the famous credo of native Montanans has not left the outhouse state - "If it's brown, keep it around."

I've taken to the Mellow Yellow idea and when I moved here in January, I noticed that I had a magic toilet. Pee in it and it disappears after a few minutes. Magic! I tightened all of the valves. Checked for leaks. All was well. My water bill seemed normal until the second bill when the consumption had jumped from 40 gallons a day to 70! 40 seemed outrageous. I blamed my sister for a few of those gallons from when she came to visit (and I still do so, especially since she no longer reads the blog due to her impending childbirth. What is up with pregnant women....can't go to the Everglades at night, can't read my blog). So I checked with maintenance who said - no leak...I'm apparently just wasting water. So when the next bill arrived at it was 84 gallons a day I said no way. Come check the magic toilet again.

They came out again and apparently had not noticed the leaky flap. The maintenance guy told me most apartments have the faulty flap. No big deal. It's a huge deal! I made him change it and asked how many other apartments needed to be changed.

The landlords were still skeptical and had me wait 2 more months to see how the water bill would change. What do you know, I'm back down to 42 gallons a day. They made maintenance change hundreds of toilet flaps.

By my crude calculations, my apartment was responsible for the waste of 9600 gallons of water in 4 months time. If 200 people had the same issue (and there are 2000 people in this complex), than that is 1,920,000 gallons of water wasted during one of Florida's worst droughts. I can't say they would not have fixed the issue if I had not complained, but I'd like to think a little credit can be given to the magic toilet.