The project is part of ongoing research by the Avian Research and Conservation Institute. The Institute's Executive Director Ken Meyer was the featured speaker at our 2020 Annual Meeting. Senior Researcher Gina Kent told us the Institute had a lot of challenges with tracking this year because the GSM/cell technology is changing rapidly and the birds' older trackers are not able to download data to the new technology. In spring, they had not heard from Suwannee's tracker in five months and feared the tracker's battery had died. That was not unexpected after three years, but still was sad news. Then, in June, Gina brought good news. After five months of silence, Suwannee contact a cell tower again. His tracker showed him to be safely back on the Lower Suwannee NWR. It turned out that the tracker could still communicate with the technology of our local cell towers. Within a few weeks, however, his tracker did stop functioning. Gina believes Suwannee is still out there alive. They know he nested this year. We are still sorry to lose touch with this old friend. The next batch of good news is that Friends has been able to help with a new tracker for a new bird, Suwannee II. He will continue to bring the data on Refuge use and flight patterns, and Friends will be able to continue to follow a Swallow-tailed Kite with whom we all have a semi-personal connection.
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Annually, the Refuge conducts a survey of nesting birds on Snake Key. Refuge staff, Friends, and other volunteers count specific birds for 3-5 days. Protocol is to start counting 90 minutes after sunrise, and count for two hours. Species counted include spoonbill, great blue heron, tricolored heron, little blue heron, black crowned night heron, snowy egret, great egret, reddish egret, white ibis, cormorant, and brown pelican. Other species of interest such as eagle, osprey and frigatebird are noted as well.
An interesting fact is that some species, such as ibis, fly considerable distances to fresh water (including the Lower Suwannee Refuge) to harvest food for their young, who are unable to digest food from saltwater. For the 2022 survey, one volunteer reported counting over 1,100 ibis flying into the island and over 550 flying out. Refuge staff are preparing a report that will be posted here. Photos taken by Ann Kamzelski. The Coalition of Refuge Friends and Advocates is a national nonprofit that supports all of the 250 Friends groups nationwide. It has a Facebook group where Friends can share ideas and issues. There is a monthly photo competition. April's competition theme was "refuge babies." We submitted a photo by our former deputy manager Larry Woodward The photo with the most "likes" during the month wins the competition. April's winner was announced today and is below. Aren't these mama and baby photos wonderful! The April Photo Contest winner was a photo by Les Heiserman of a Canada Goose and six goslings. Les captured the amazing image at the D.C Booth Historic National Fish Hatchery & Archives in Spearfish, South Dakota. Nancy Cole, Booth Society Friends Gift Shop Manager and Assistant Director submitted this winning photo. The pair of geese have been nesting on the island for at least the last 9 years. Visitors to the Hatchery eagerly await their arrival. Established in 1896, D.C. Booth Historic National Fish Hatchery and Archives, formerly Spearfish National Fish Hatchery, is one of the oldest operating hatcheries in the country dedicated to fish culture and resource management. Rain has become a reliable partner in Friends events, or so it seems. It stormed for both the Summer Solstice Celebration and the Winter Solstice Celebration. Again today, storms were with us. As the photos below by Friends member Molly Jubitz show, skies over Cedar Key were ominous when it was time to head out to the Refuge. Not at all deterred by the morning clouds, the midday deluge, and quite an abundance of no-see-ums, more than 110 members attended the 2022 Annual Meeting on the Refuge. It was the first in-person Annual Meeting in two years. The day started out cloudy, warm, and threatening. Members registered, shopped for Friends shirts and the new Butterflies of the Lower Suwannee Refuge guidebooks. Seeing each other for the first time since the February 2020 meeting, conversations were warm and happy. The rain held off until the program started about 10:00. Inside, Friends President Debbie Meeks welcomed everyone. Refuge Manager Andrew Gude gave an update on accomplishments of the past year and expectations for activities in the near future. Responding to a question from a member, Andrew described efforts to manage negative impacts on wildlife caused by airboat misuse on the Refuge. Debbie gave an update on the Friends accomplishments of the past year and plans for the coming one. She presented the slate of officers and directors, whom the members elected. She provided an overview of the financial status of the Friends. Members socialize over an indoor lunch. The nature walk to Vista in the pouring rain was cancelled. However, at the end of the lunch, catered by Ken and Rose McCain, Sandra Smith presented Andrew with a symbolic key to the Vista property. She and her sister Linda Alexander recently gave up their life estate on the property, turning full access over to the Refuge for future development as an interpretive center. It was delightful to meet back on the Refuge again.
Great news! The CDC Covid tracker now rates Levy County as LOW. Come join us RAIN or SHINE at the Friends Annual Meeting. Doors open at 9:30 a.m. for registration and for Friends merchandise. Presentations begin at 10:00. Updated April 1 Happily, we are meeting at the Refuge, in-person, for our Annual Meeting on Saturday, April 2. We re-scheduled from February to April because of the Covid situation. We know this is likely to make the Annual Meeting smaller, since so many of our members have returned to their other-season homes by now. But despite fewer attendees, our day's agenda is mostly back to pre-pandemic normal.
Wouldn't you know . . . the weather forecast, as of March 28, predicts a rainy day. That has happened before and the forecast improved by our meeting day. Indeed, the weather has tended to be good to us. Regardless, we will meet. Rain or shine. 9:30 a.m.
10:00 a.m.
11:00 a.m.
12:00 Lunch, catered by Ken and Rose McCain. Board Members are bringing desserts. If any members would like to also bring some, they would be welcome. It is hard to imagine "too many sweets." 1:00 Nature Walk to Vista (rides provided for those who prefer them). Annual Meeting participants will be able, in small groups, to walk through the main house at Vista for short visits, if they wish. Although everything will probably never be fully back to pre-pandemic normal, the great news is that the Covid-19 Community Level in Levy County has moved from High to Medium. There are no limits on the number of attendees at events at the Refuge. The CDC still recommends wearing a mask if you are at high risk of illness, staying up-to-date with Covid vaccines, and not attending an event when you have symptoms of being ill. Further changes are possible, of course. If they come up, we will send a News Brief to inform you. We also will post in this blog and on the homepage of this website. We look forward to seeing you on April 2 at the Refuge. Researcher Gina Kent brings good news. After 5 months, Suwannee uploaded data. He is safely back on the Lower Suwannee NWR. The Avian Research and Conservation Institute had a lot of challenges with tracking this year because the GSM/cell technology is changing rapidly and the birds are not able to upload data to the new technology. But they still are able to do so on the Lower Suwannee Refuge. We thought his tracker had died, but not so. He is here.
Historic logging (some 0f it very intensive) occurred on this land over 40 to 120 years, before it became the Lower Suwannee National Wildlife Refuge in the late 1970s. Since the land became the Refuge, forest restoration has been a primary goal. The forest is coming back with a vengeance. Our three-pronged forest restoration program uses prescribed fire, herbicides, and mechanical treatments.
We are grateful for the community's support in the work we do. If anyone has questions feel free to call me on my cell phone: 703.622.3896.
When Friends hosted the “Shell Mound - Plants and Peoples” walk with the Cedar Key Garden Club, we realized how many different resource items about Shell Mound are here on Friends website. Here is a summary:
Friends' Jeopardy Quiz
Member(s) that live the farthest from the Refuges Who are Heidi and Mark Sterk from Belgium? Number of U.S. States with LS&CKNWR Friends members What is 28 U.S. States? International Countries with LW&CKNWR Friends members What are Belgium and Canada? How did the Sterks happen upon our Refuges you ask? They came to the Nature Coast lured by the nature. They were fortunate enough to meet Friends members Richard and Anne Herman and go boating with them, Another Friends member, Mark Gluckman provided kayaking information about the Refuge and the nearby wild areas. They also were intrigued by the tracking of Suwannee, the swallow-tailed kite, that Friends sponsored. Like the Sterks from Belgium, several members from Canada make up our international contingency. On U.S. shores, 28 states are represented. Friends members come from far and wide to marvel at the Refuges’ diverse wildlife, hike the trails, kayak the waters, tour the islands, fish and hunt in the waters and woods, and learn the ways of the ancient ones who came before us. Many come solely to help protect all that is precious on these remote lands and waters. Working the Friends table at the Cedar Key Chamber’s Welcome Center, it quickly becomes apparent to the volunteers that visitors to the area are unaware of the geographic range of the Refuge lands surrounding them. These one-on-one conversations with visitors and even locals, is one of the best ways to get word out about the important activities and accomplishments that the Friends contribute to the Refuges. But that’s not the only way – the Friends website, word of mouth, participation in regional festivals, and annual meetings also help to spread the word and promote new members, which is the life blood of the organization. So please consider joining! The Refuge has scheduled 2 more Open Houses at Seahorse Key for 2022.
Open Houses are free once you arrive at the Refuge island. However, visitors must arrange their own transportation. Shuttles are provided for a fee by tour companies in Cedar Key, or visitors can arrive by private boat. Important Information Seahorse Key is an island almost 3 miles from Cedar Key. Access is only by boat. There are no amenities, such as food or water on the island. Rest room facilities are limited. Should there be a medical or other emergency requiring professional assistance or evacuation, response times could be lengthy. Please plan with this in mind. Friends members Scott and Beth Wright, like so many other Friends members, are also active in Cedar Keys Audubon. The interests and goals of our two organizations often parallel each other. Scott and Beth will give a lecture for Audubon about their manatee research. The talk is at the Cedar Key Community Center at 5 p.m. on Monday Feb. 28. The Audubon announcement is below. After a pause of two years in presentations due to Covid, Cedar Keys Audubon is pleased to announce the first in new talks this February. On Monday, February 28, the local Audubon chapter will be presenting “Manatees – a Species on the Brink” by manatee researchers Scott and Beth Wright. It will be held at the Cedar Key Community Center at 5pm. Scott and Beth both have had years of professional experience working with manatees. Scott worked as a research scientist and director of the Marine Mammal Pathobiology Laboratory for the state of Florida. Then he moved to Madison, Wisconsin as Chief of Disease Investigation at the USGS National Wildlife Health Center. Beth, whose early background was in wildlife biology, spent 17 years in the field monitoring manatees for the state of Florida and developed improved techniques for tagging manatees. Now in retirement, Scott and Beth, as volunteers for local manatee monitoring, are again applying their deep backgrounds. Their talk will explore the current work they’re doing to photo-identify individual manatees at Manatee and Fanning Springs State Parks as well as presenting interesting characteristics of general manatee biology. There will also be a discussion of the plight of the Florida east coast sub-population. Cedar Keys Audubon does ask, that if you decide to attend, that you be fully vaccinated and wear a mask.
Hunters with hogs Operation Outdoor Freedom, led by the Florida Forest Service, hosted a Special Refuge Wild Hog Hunt on the Lower Suwannee National Wildlife Refuge in Dixie County on January 18-21st. This event provided recreational and rehabilitative opportunities to wounded veterans throughout Florida. Participation in the Operation Outdoor Freedom Program requires veterans to either have a service-connected disability rating of 30 percent or greater from the United States Department of Veteran Affairs, or be a Purple Heart recipient. There were three participants in this year's guided event. All the hunters were successful, with a total of 5 hogs taken. The Refuge is grateful to be a part of Operation Outdoor Freedom, and thankful for the Florida Forest Service staff, guides, and others that make this event successful each year.
Our annual meetings are regularly held on the last Saturday of February. However, because of continuing concerns about Covid and because Refuge manager Andrew Gude cannot be sure that the refuge will be allowed to have an event in February with more than 50 attendees, we are postponing the meeting until Saturday, April 2, 2022. We still plan to hold the meeting in-person at the Refuge, following the Covid protocols in place at the time. Pre-program activities will start at 9:30, including signing-in, renewing your membership if you wish to do it that day rather than online, chatting with other members, and shopping for Friends merchandise.
Dr. Minno has studied the ecology, systematics, and biogeography of butterflies and moths for much of his life. He received a B.S. degree in entomology from Purdue University, a M.S. degree in entomology from the University of California at Davis, and a Ph.D. in zoology from the University of Florida. He currently works as an ecologist for Eco-Cognizant, Inc., a home-based consulting firm operated by spouse Maria Minno. Since moving to Florida in 1982, Marc and Maria Minno have worked toward conserving the state’s rare, unique, and imperiled plants and animals. Marc frequently gives presentations and workshops on butterflies to local chapters of the Florida Native Plant Society, North American Butterfly Association, Audubon Society, and other conservation groups. He is a past president of the Southern Lepidopterists’ Society and is a research associate with the McGuire Center at the Florida Museum of Natural History in Gainesville. (as described by Quick Reference Publishing) Lunch will be catered by Ken and Rose McCain. Following lunch we will have a field trip to visit the Vista property.
These links will bring you to posts about the in-person Annual Meeting 2020 and the Zoom Annual Meeting 2021. The Refuges have a new Deputy Manager, John Stark. He started working in the federal government in 1999 in the U.S. Army as a 63B20 “Light-Wheel Vehicle Mechanic” and operated an M936A2 5-ton recovery vehicle. He was stationed in Europe for most of his time on active duty, including a 202-day deployment with NATO into Kosovo (2000), and a 455-day deployment as Section Sergeant into Iraq (2003-2004). He was also briefly a Section Sergeant at MacDill Air Force base in Tampa. His work with U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service started at Alligator River NWR (2009), Subsequently, he worked at White River NWR in Arkansas, and most recently at St. Vincent NWR where he has been Deputy Refuge Manager since 2015. At St. Vincent, he worked with endangered red wolves and Asian elk, as well, he says, as with awesome Friends and other refuge supporters. We are happy to have you here. Welcome aboard, John.
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June 2024
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Friends of the Lower Suwannee & Cedar Keys National Wildlife Refuges
P. O. Box 532 Cedar Key, FL 32625 [email protected] We are a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. |
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