Coastal Breeze News

To date, we have been so fortunate in avoiding oil and tar balls on our beautiful beaches. Marco Island and its environs is incredibly important nursery ground for many different coastal species. There is an amazing amount of wildlife on our beach that is thriving and reproducing in this window of oil-less opportunity. Abundant bait and game fish are in the near-shore waters; invertebrates, such as our favorite shells’ egg casings (Horse Conchs, Queen Conchs, Sand Dollars, etcetera) litter the beach; the Turtle Lady’s posted sea turtle nests can be seen (thirty-four to date) near the dunes; and the three ... Read More »

It is late in the year for the final count of the Island’s Burrowing Owl population, but it is better late than never. Typically, for the last ten years of monitoring, nesting behavior of this species is seen as early as November and continues through January. First the pairing up of the adult owls; then new burrows may be dug, and old and even burrows that have been abandoned for a two or more seasons will once again be occupied. Next “decoration,” material (ranging from shredded pieces of debris, foil, flowers, coconut husks to feathers and feces of dogs) collected ... Read More »

Averaging ten feet in length and between 800 and 1,200 pounds as an adult, the West Indian Manatee, commonly see in the Marco Island canals, Marco River, the bays, inlets and Gulf of Mexico, is closely related to an elephant.  Scientists believe this mammal could have evolved from wading, plant eating mammals. One could almost see that, with the gray skin and large body.  Most of the visible likeness stops there.  This gentle giant, never leaving the water, has a large rounded gray body that tapers to a large paddle-shaped tail.  “Arms” are flippers that are used in coordination with ... Read More »

Many of Florida’s beach-nesting shorebirds and sea birds have experienced decline as a result of habitat loss and excessive disturbance at nests and colonies. In response, locally, a volunteer program has been initiated via Audubon, Rookery Bay and the City of Marco Island, to help protect shorebirds and their vulnerable habitats, both in the increasing beach pressures and in the face of the ever enlarging BP Deep Water Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. The Shorebird Stewards will be out on the Marco Island beach near posted nesting areas, offering educational information, opportunities to view birds and chicks ... Read More »

The commencement of Hurricane Season and especially an imminent threat of a hurricane have always added an environmental dimension of high anxiety and urgency to protect the coast – its beaches, inlets, and estuaries and all the species that depend on these fragile environments. The southwest coast of Florida is diverse, complicated and dynamic as one travels from Tampa Bay to Chokoloskee. Some aspects of this coast are so obvious – gorgeous sandy shores, soaring pelicans, multitudes of shells, graceful mangroves, or flagging sea oats. But there is much, much more alive at a closer look and much that must ... Read More »

Changes in latitude, changes in attitude: May is typically a month of changes on our Island – reduction in traffic congestion, weather is variable, and many of our busy schedules just slow down. It is also the month the protected Loggerhead sea turtles (Caretta caretta) will soon begin to return to our beach. Adult female sea turtles will begin nesting on our beaches between May and August with hatching of nests lasting through October. This brings another change: Mary Nelson, the sea turtle monitor for the Marco Island beach, starts patrolling for nests. This is the twentieth season Mary has ... Read More »

The City of Marco Island is part of the Florida Shorebird Alliance, a partnership that includes Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC), City of Naples, Collier County Government. and Sherriff’s Office, Rookery Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve (RBNERR), Sea Grant, The Conservancy of SW FL, Inc., Friends of Tigertail and Collier Audubon Society. The goal of this Alliance is to support these entities involved with volunteers management, materials and information to improve public outreach and education, while monitoring and protecting resting and nesting shorebird populations. Due to smaller staffs and budgets in all entities, the Alliance is an economic ... Read More »

Landscaping the Florida-Friendly way means using low maintenance plants and environmentally sustainable practices that also can save money. South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD), Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) and the University of Florida (UF-IFAS) are leading the effort in the State of Florida to incorporate Florida Friendly Landscaping (FFL) to protect natural resources, specifically ground and surface water protection and conservation. The City’s Landscape Ordinance (Section 30-432), references Xeriscape, a terminology originally coined in Colorado that refers to practices of irrigation and plant species choices that conserve water use. This practice has morphed into FFL which still incorporates ... Read More »

Out of the twenty-three woodpecker species listed in my Field Guide to the Birds of North America, eight of these species are seen in southwest Florida. Some are more common than others. Belonging to the scientific Family of Picidae, these birds have strong claws (tow toes forward, one toe back), short legs, and stiff tail feathers for tree trunk climbing with sharp bills to chisel for insect food and nests and drum territorial beats to rivals. They are a family of species that typically have contrasting black and white colored feathers with the males mostly having red heads. The eight ... Read More »

Conservation works and it is working in our back yards. One of the most beloved and symbolic birds in America was saved due to past and current conservation efforts. Conservation efforts that banned the use of certain chemicals, used habitat protection and regulation over development allowed the American Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) to regain its glory and repopulate its native lands. Biologists, who monitor and manage the American Bald Eagle population for the past thirty to forty years, have said that this species has made an astounding comeback all over the nation, but particularly in Florida. Florida, to date, has ... Read More »