Defenders of Wildlife Blog

I relish the opportunity to get out and experience firsthand the places—and wildlife—that we at Defenders work so hard to protect. To spend a day exploring the habitat of panthers and bears, butterflies and salamanders, pines, palms and orchids, is truly a delight, and I know that not everyone is so lucky to have a job that combines their passion and their profession.

This month my work allowed me to join environmental photojournalist Carlton Ward Jr, bear biologist Joe Guthrie, filmmaker Elam Stoltzfuz, and refuge complex superintendent Kevin Godsea for a hike through the uplands and swamps of the Florida Panther National Wildlife Refuge. The 11 miles we trekked were just a small part of the 100-day, 1000-mile journey the men are taking through some of the state’s most wild places on what they call the Florida Wildlife Corridor Expedition.

The expedition is an effort to increase public awareness and generate support for establishing a Florida wildlife corridor that would protect and restore connected landscapes throughout the Florida Peninsula in order to create a viable link from the Everglades to Georgia. Such a corridor is critical for Florida wildlife like black bears and panthers, which need lots of room to roam. Unfortunately, that amount of land is no short order in an ever-developing Sunshine State, and the challenges involved are many. The good news is that many landowners are interested in maintaining their ranches in ways that also provide valuable wildlife habitat; the expedition hopes to increase awareness and support of ways to do so.

The expedition began on January 17 in Everglades National Park, and will take the travelers north through the state of Florida, ending in Georgia, just across the Florida border, at the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge. Defenders supports this bold adventure as it inspires citizens and visitors to join all of us who are working to save the state’s native wildlife and the network of habitat they and we depend upon. Check out my footage from my incredible day on the trail and learn more about how you can follow the crew along their journey!

Learn more:

Visit the expedition website to learn more and follow the crew throughout their journey.

In March, Laurie and the rest Defenders’ Florida staff will welcome the crew of the Florida Wildlife Corridor Expedition to the annual Florida Black Bear Festival in Umatilla. Stay tuned for details about the festival and the opportunity to hear from the trekkers themselves!

It’s been a chilly new year for Florida manatees, bad news for the temperature-sensitive marine mammals. Fortunately, Florida Power & Light officials came to the rescue during last week’s temperature lows, turning on the heater at the site of their former power plant in Riviera Beach, near the Palm Beach inlet.

Manatees are known to aggregate in warm-water outfalls at power plants on cold winter days, and those in the area didn’t waste any time in flocking to this site—check out some amazing footage below of the gathering. (Hint: watch until 0:47 to see some synchronized sea cow swimming!)

Loss of warm-water habitat now poses the greatest long-term threat to manatee survival. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) reported last week that a cold-related die-off of manatees in early 2011 contributed to the high numbers of deaths for the species for the year. Scientists predict cold weather will continue to be a problem for the manatee population over the next few decades when aging electric power plants will be shutting down. The FPL plant itself was demolished last year, but the power company is required to warm the water when it falls below 65 degrees until it completes construction of its new natural gas facility in 2014.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is working on an emergency rule to expand protected areas for Florida manatees, creating a refuge that includes all of Kings Bay in Crystal River. The rules will ensure the sea cows will have greater access to critical warm water areas during the winter months and address public concerns associated with local, wintertime manatee viewing activities. Learn more about the Kings Bay proposed rule.

Manatee Awareness Month is underway! And this week, the gentle giants begin their annual migration to warmer waters, where they’ll spend the winter months. Highly sensitive to cold, these marine mammals head for the heat once the thermometer drops below 50 degrees (68 degrees below the surface).

Florida manatees aren’t the only ones enjoying the south seas, and fast-moving boats continue to be a major threat to these endangered animals. 2010 was a deadly year for manatees, with a total of 83 killed in collisions with watercraft. This year promises to be equally unlucky, and by November 4, at least 77 of the animals had met a similar fate.

Fortunately, with manatee season comes safety measures. From now until March 31, when manatees return to their summer habitat, wintering hot spots such as those in Kings Bay, Florida (popular due to its naturally occurring warm water springs) are designated “manatee sanctuaries.” In these areas, many waterborne activities are prohibited, making them safer for the hundreds of manatees gathering there. Soon, these much-needed protections may get a boost — a rule being considered by the Fish and Wildlife Service would allow for national wildlife refuge managers to increase the size of the protected areas to accommodate manatees if need be, and make all of Kings Bay a manatee refuge.

To kick off manatee season, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and others are hosting a public open house at Three Sisters Springs this Saturday. Three Sisters is one of seven manatee sanctuaries in Kings Bay, and the only place in the Crystal River National Wildlife Refuge to view manatees from the land. Participants will have the chance to watch gathering manatees from the new boardwalk while hearing about what the future holds for Three Sisters Springs. (For Floridians looking for more information about the event, contact Ivan Vicente, US Fish and Wildlife Service, at 352-563-2088, ext. 211.)

In the meantime, there are lots of ways to reduce the risk of collisions with manatees. Boaters and personal watercraft operators should scan the water near or in front of their vessels and look for the signs that manatees are close by, including swirls resembling a large footprint, a repetitive line of half-moon swirls, a mud trail, or a snout or tail breaking the water’s surface. Remember to keep vessels in marked channels and wear polarized sunglasses for better viewing. Most importantly, always obey posted boat speed zones. Moving slow gives boaters and manatees alike more time to avoid one another, and may save one of these slow-moving mammal’s lives.

Learn more:

See manatees moving gracefully through their watery home! Watch video footage provided by our friends at the Save the Manatee Club.

Get more information about the proposed rules in Kings Bay and what they mean for manatees.

“You are making a difference! We’ve made a lot of progress, but we need you to stand strong!” That was the call to arms issued by Senator Ben Cardin (D-MD) to 16 “citizen lobbyists” amassed for a Capitol Hill reception last week hosted by Cardin and longtime wildlife champion Representative Norm Dicks (WA-6).

The 100-person gathering was the culmination of a two-day lobbying marathon organized by Defenders and other conservation groups to help secure funding for wildlife conservation programs. In all, the heads of seven different enviornmental groups partiipated in the lobbying push along with countless other staff. And the 16 citizen lobbyists? They were the stars of the show, all having agreed last minute to put their personal lives on hold, fly to D.C. and speak from the heart about the importance of wildlife conservation funding to their local regions and economies.

They hailed from all walks of life—refuge managers, environmental activists, and local eco-business owners. And each had a unique story to tell about the importance of wildlife conservation in their area. Nathan Varley, owner and operator of The Wild Side, a wildlife tourism business, spoke to the crowd about how important wildlife is to his business and many others. “Put simply,” he said, “take away the wildlife and I don’t have a business and my employees don’t have jobs.”

Nathan’s plea was an apt one considering the total contribution from outdoor sports in the United States is nearly $821 billion a year, generating more than 6.4 million jobs and close to $100 billion in federal and state tax revenue. Wildlife viewing alone brought in close to $49 billion, including nearly half a million jobs and people visiting national wildlife refuges, parks, and other
recreation areas added another $47 billion.

“These programs are so vital to our natural heritage,” said Jamie Rappaport Clark, President of Defenders of Wildlife and emcee for the evening. “But we also must remember what they mean for jobs and so many local economies.”

With such earnest citizen lobbyists speaking out in favor of such programs, it’s not a lesson anyone is likely to forget soon.

It’s Halloween and Congress is eyeing some downright scary cuts to vital wildlife conservation programs as part of its budget cutting frenzy. But while these programs may seem like easy targets for cuts, there is a lot more to the story.

Hundreds of thousands of people have jobs because the federal government funds programs like National Parks and the National Wildlife Refuge System. And everyone who visits these special places—to hike, photograph, hunt, fish, camp, bike, etc—spends money on their chosen method of recreation. So when you cut funding for wildlife conservation programs like wildlife refuges, it’s important for Congress to remember that you also risk losing jobs and further hindering our economic recovery in addition to the damage done to our natural heritage, damage that will be costlier to repair later than it is to prevent now.

This week, citizens from across the nation are coming to Washington D.C. to remind lawmakers on Capitol Hill of this very fact.  And the leaders of many groups, including Defenders of Wildlife, are meeting with members of Congress.  Groups are also running ads in key Capitol Hill media outlets and holding a reception to further our message.

Congress will never be able to come close to balancing the budget by cutting funding for wildlife conservation programs.

And what is that message? Simple: wildlife conservation and wildlife-related activities are big business. In 2006, the total contribution from outdoor recreation—hunting, fishing, wildlife viewing, hiking, camping, skiing, and bicycling—in the United States was over $730 billion a year. That translates into about 6,435,000 U.S. jobs and $88 billion in federal and state tax revenues.

Indeed, the main engine driving the economy of many local communities in and around national parks, wildlife refuges, and other federal conservation areas is wildlife-related tourism and activity. Just visit any small town or city around wildlife refuges, national parks and other outdoor recreation areas and you will see what I mean.

Moreover, these programs are an investment. Funding these programs and conserving wildlife now is a lot cheaper  and smarter than rescuing imperiled animals down the road, when their numbers plummet and the situation becomes critical or restoring degraded lands allowed to deteriorate without basic maintenance support. That’s when more drastic and costly measures are needed; similar to repairing a bridge now vs. replacing the bridge after it collapses. Sadly, this simple equation seems to escape some in Congress, many of whom are the first to complain when the bridge collapses.

Congress will never be able to come close to balancing the budget by cutting funding for wildlife conservation programs. Yet there are some in Congress who would target these programs first. They do so not out some long term fealty to fiscal discipline, but largely because they never valued these conservation programs to begin with.  Many would rather promote increased oil and gas drilling, logging, and development; the economic downturn just gives them the excuse they needed to defund wildlife programs they have long held in low regard.

But doing so is extremely short-sighted. Wildlife conservation is not a luxury, it’s an investment and a key building block of what makes our country healthy and strong. Yes, when you conserve wildlife you are preserving a key slice of our natural heritage for future generations. But you are also preserving jobs and helping to keep the economic engine that keeps so many local, hard-hit communities running. And you are making a smart money play, chipping in now to avoid having to pay more later.

These are tough budgetary times and everyone should be expected to sacrifice a little. But in our zeal to cut, let’s not let those who oppose federal environmental protections in general use this crisis as an excuse to slash wildlife conservation programs that are both a smart economic investment and a down payment on the preservation of our natural heritage. And let’s be sure to call out those who hypocritically seek to weaken wildlife programs only to complain later when animals are pushed to the brink and more stringent and costly measures are required to rescue them from extinction.

The temperature has begun to drop. Apple cider is appearing on grocery store shelves. All around us, trees are exploding into fiery reds, yellows and oranges. It’s officially fall! And what better way to enjoy the sound of leaves crunching underfoot than exploring your favorite national wildlife refuge?

Visit a National Wildlife Refuge Near You

This week, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is celebrating National Wildlife Refuge Week, an occasion that recognizes the 555 national wildlife refuges dedicated to the protection of wildlife and habitats, and encourages you to get out and enjoy them! Last year, some 45 million Americans visited a national wildlife refuge, which are located in every state and within an hour’s drive of most major cities.

Protect a National Wildlife Refuge Far Away

But a walk in the woods (or prairie, wetland or coastline) isn’t the only way to show your appreciation for these treasured lands. In fact, you have the opportunity right now to celebrate a national wildlife refuge most people may never see with their own eyes: the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.

The Arctic refuge is one of America’s most important natural treasures, supporting a wide array of wildlife including arctic foxes, grizzly bears, muskoxen, Dall sheep, wolves and wolverines. Its coastal plain is the most important onshore denning habitat for America’s vanishing polar bears, as well as the calving ground of the Porcupine caribou herd. But Big Oil continues to threaten this remarkable area, falsely claiming that the amount of oil that lies beneath the refuge will solve our country’s energy crisis.

You can help prevent industrial-scale oil and gas development that would destroy the pristine nature of the Arctic refuge’s coastal plain forever. By asking the US Fish and Wildlife Service to recommend that Congress designate the refuge’s coastal plain a wilderness area, you can help bring us one step closer to protecting the coastal plain and the wildlife that it protects for good. Don’t let National Wildlife Refuge Week go by without taking action - stand up and be heard!