Author: Anne Reed

Posted on

Register today for our weekly guided walks at the Marsh Trails

It’s the almost November, which means cooler temperatures, blooming wildflowers and time to register for our weekly guided walks!

Volunteer naturalist and spider enthusiast Janet Bunch returns for her second season leading our Marsh Trail interpretive hikes. Her walk takes guests through pine flatwoods and oak hammocks to the observation tower overlooking the 5,000-acre sawgrass marsh before traversing the short boardwalk and heading back to the trailhead.

Guests will learn about the plants and animals that call the Corkscrew Regional Ecosystem Watershed their home and engage in lively, scholarly conversations with Janet and other CREW Trust Volunteers.

The walks are free but registration is required. Please visit our eventbrite page to register. Guided walks are held each Tuesday from 9 a.m.-12 p.m. November-March, excluding Christmas Day and New Year’s Day.

Posted on

SFWMD announces public invite to Water Resources Analysis Coalition’s (WRAC) quarterly Recreational Issues Forum

The following is a press release from South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD). The CREW Land & Water Trust encourages all people who enjoy using the CREW Project trails for recreational purposes to attend this meeting. 

Oct. 17, 2018
Public Invited to WRAC Forum to Provide Input
on Recreation Program at CREW Management Area
The quarterly Recreational Issues Forum will be on the road in Fort Myers next week
 
Several miles of trails provide a variety of recreational opportunities for all ages at the CREW Management Area. Click on the image for a larger version.
 
Fort Myers, FL – Outdoor enthusiasts will have an opportunity next week to provide input and support for the South Florida Water Management District’s (SFWMD) current recreation program at one of Southwest Florida’s premier public lands.
The Water Resources Analysis Coalition’s (WRAC) quarterly Recreational Issues Forum will focus on the Corkscrew Regional Ecosystem Watershed (CREW) Management Area. The CREW area offers several recreational activities, including hiking, bird watching, camping and hunting. The forum will be held:
Day:
 Monday, October 22, 2018
Time: 5 p.m.
Place:
SFWMD Fort Myers Service Center
2301 McGregor Blvd.
Fort Myers, FL 33901
SFWMD and its partners – representing environmental groups and governmental agencies – manage CREW for its numerous benefits to water storage and wildlife preservation.
In April, SFWMD completed restoration of 1,000 acres of Southern CREW in Lee County, allowing the area to return to its natural hydrological conditions of periodic inundation. The restoration project benefits the entire Southwest Florida ecosystem and its residents by restoring wetlands and historic sheetflow of water, improving regional flood protection, drainage and increasing water storage and aquifer recharge capability.
Posted on

Lee County Commissioners agree to move forward with acquisition of 7 parcels in CREW boundary

Lee County Commissioners voted Tuesday to move towards acquiring 7 parcels within the CREW Project boundary that are located in Flint Pen Strand.
This includes the Palm Tree Farm, an approximately 40-acre parcel that has been on the CREW Land & Water Trust wish list for years.
Ben Nelson, chairman of the CREW Trust Board of Trustees, spoke during the meeting and urged county commissioners to move forward with the purchase of the parcels, which were all nominated by willing sellers.
“These parcels may seem small compared to the earlier acquisitions within the CREW Project but they are just as important if not more so,” explained Brenda Brooks, executive director of the CREW Trust. “We’re coming down to the final stretch of acquiring the lands needed to complete the CREW Project, which has not only been part of our mission but also the vision of the CREW Land & Water Trust. I think of these parcels as the final pieces of a puzzle and until you have that final piece, the project still isn’t finished. However these seven parcels gets us closer and closer.”
Posted on

Chirp chirp CHECK! Take these wildlife checklists with you when you hit the CREW Trails.

Our volunteer naturalist of many years, Dick Brewer, is well known on our website, blogs and social media for his hours of work as a citizen scientist in the field and for his almost-weekly critter counts.

Now you, too, can complete a critter count! Even if you aren’t quite sure what animals are out there.

Dick has combed through years of observations by himself and others and created two wildlife checklists: one for Bird Rookery Swamp and one for the Cypress Dome Trails. The lists have everything from alligators to skippers, bitterns to bats. Check them out and print a copy for your next visit to the trails!

CYPRESS DOME TRAILS wildlife checklist

BIRD ROOKERY SWAMP Wildlife Checklist

Posted on

This week’s Bird Rookery Swamp critter count

Wondering what there is to see – or what may be seeing you – at Bird Rookery Swamp this week? Check out volunteer naturalist Dick Brewer’s critter count!

Bird Rookery Swamp

Monday, September 24 ~~ 7:05 AM – 1:25 PM

temperature: 76..0-93.8º ~~ RH 88.8-56.1%

sky: mostly sunny ~~ wind 0-5 mph

BIRDS

Anhinga – 5

Great Egret – 1

Snowy Egret – 1

Little Blue Heron – 2

Green Heron – 1

Black-crowned Night Heron – 3

White Ibis – 1

Black Vulture – 7

Turkey Vulture – 3

Red-shouldered Hawk – 20

Mourning Dove – 4

Common Ground Dove – 2

Belted Kingfisher – 2

Red-bellied Woodpecker – 26

Pileated Woodpecker – 6

Great-crested Flycatcher – 5

Eastern Wood Pewee – 1

unknown flycatcher – 1

Carolina Wren – 16

Blue Jay – 3

Tufted Titmouse – 6

Blue-gray Gnatcatcher – 3

Northern Mockingbird – 3

White-eyed Vireo – 29

Louisiana Waterthrush – 3

Northern Cardinal – 13

Common Grackle – 4

BUTTERFLIES

Tiger Swallowtail – 4

Palamedes Swallowtail – 23

Viceroy – 5

White Peacock – 49

Ruddy Daggerwing – 3

Phaon Crescent – 10

Cloudless Sulphur – 2

Barred Yellow – 1

Brazilian Skipper – 4

Eufala Skipper – 3

Three-spotted Skipper – 53

Tropical Checker – 13

Red-waisted Florella Moth – 2

DRAGONFLIES

Eastern Pondhawk – 22

Halloween Pennant – 12

Needham’s Skimmer – 3

Blue Dasher – 9

Eastern Amberwing – 1

Citrine Forktail – 3

HERPS

Alligator – 57

Brown Anole – 13

Pig Frog – 7

MAMMALS

White-tailed Deer – 3

Posted on

Ain’t no party like a BEAR CRASHING YOUR PARTY: How to properly host an event at the CREW pavillions

Often we find things on the trails and we get to use them as clues to interpret what happened.

Our most recent favorite find was in an email from Dick Brewer, our volunteer naturalist. Dick found a recently-killed alligator (or its parts) on the trail and, based on all of the clues he saw, deduced that a bobcat had taken down the gator.

That is a way more interesting find than the photo above, which was taken by one of FGCU’s awesome campus naturalists who was out on the CREW Marsh Trails.

In the photo you see what was once a storage shed that was located in the woods near Suzanne’s Pavillion. It sat empty this summer because, in the winter, we had incidences of hikers breaking into our plastic shed. I’m not sure what they hoped to find – gold, rare artifacts, maybe that’s where they think the panthers hide? We once stored field trip supplies in that shed, but those had to be moved and our volunteers built permanent storage solutions for those materials in order to avoid someone stealing our dip nets and plastic bins.

Now, it’s important to note that this photo didn’t suprise us. The day before this mess was found, we led a tour at the Marsh trails and Savannah and I found watermelon rinds thrown around the parking lot along with a few plastic forks. Then, out on the trails, we found pieces of blue balloons.

So this party photo – where somone decided to stash their garbage in our old storage shed?

Unsurprising. Sad, A total mess and worse – a wildlife hazard.

Who tore into that delicious trash? A bear. A bear that frequents the area, because we can see the scat when we do hikes. And now that bear has a new favorite place. I mean, if I found a storage shed full of leftover cake and watermelon, I would go back and look for more.

The stash of trash, plastic blue balloon pieces and food in the parking lot tells a story – and it’s not a good one. Someone planned a party, brought their supplies out, hiked to the pavillion, had a great time, cleaned up the trash, looked around for a garbage can, found our storage shed off the trail, busted into it and stashed their trash. Hiked back. Went home. Didn’t think about the ballons they let blow all over; didn’t think about the wildlife out there who might try and eat the balloon pieces, or the bear who would tear apart the shed to get to their garbage.

We practice leave no trace for a lot of reasons at our trails, and the number one reason is to protect wildlife. We can’t emphasize this enough – the land is there for water first, then wildlife, then humans. We come third.

So, how can someone host an event at the pavillion and avoid making a huge giant dangerous mess? Check out our suggestions below.

Only pack in what you can pack out

A big old sheet cake that requires forks, plates and napkins is going to be terribly difficult to cart to the pavillion and that’s an approximately one mile hike at the Marsh Trails. Instead, take a box of cupcakes and a plastic bag. Eat the cupcakes, put your cupcake wrappers and  cardboard box cupcake carrier into your small trash bag and stash it in your backpack. Then go enjoy the trails. Or grab birthday-cake flavored snack bars. Or pack fruit! Anything that doesn’t leave you with a bunch of waste is a great idea.

Release joy, not balloons

Instead of bringing balloons to celebrate or decorate,  opt for singing a birthday song to celebrate. Bonus if the songbirds join in. Or, if you reall need something to set the birthday boy/girl apart from the crowd, decorate their hiking stick for the day. Just not with balloons. Please.

Hike, then eat

Instead of taking all of your food out to the pavillion, opt instead to eat at our convenient ring of benches at the trailhead in the parking lot. It’s a very cool, shaded spot, and your food and drinks can stay nice and cool in a cooler in your car. That’s much better than trying to heat lunch that is boiling lava hot after hiking in the Florida sun for an hour or more. And then you are very close to your car so you can toss your waste in a trash bag that you brought, put the garbage in your trunk and drive home.

We do want everyone to enjoy the pavillions, which are a fabulous resource that we use for all of our field trips and many Strolling Science Seminars. We hope you do so respectfully and, if you need assistance or tips about how to use them appropriately, please contact our office.

A special thank you to FGCU colloquium and Brenda Thomas; the class cleaned up the garbage and the shed and hiked it all out to the trail head during their class field trip.

 

Posted on

Tee off for a great cause

Rattlesnakes, bobcats, alligators and bears don’t golf – but humans do!

Join one of our wildlife-named teams and hit the links to support the CREW Trust on Friday, October 26, 2018.

This fun, scramble-format tournament takes place at Old Corkscrew Golf Club and attracts local golf superintendents, businesses and friends of the CREW Trust. It is our fastest growing fundraiser and last year raised $16,000.

Visit our Golf Tournament page for information on how to register and, if you don’t golf, how to be a sponsor.

For a gallery of recap of last year’s event, and a list of sponsors, please click HERE.

Posted on

Meet Savannah DeBarr, our new Education Coordinator!

We’re very excited to introduce the newest member of the CREW Land & Water Trust Staff!

Savannah DeBarr is a graduate of Florida Gulf Coast University with a B.A. in Environmental Studies and completed an internship with the CREW Trust in summer 2017. Savannah also completed an internship with Lee County Mosquito Control’s education program and worked with kindergarden students.

Checking rain gauges in the sawgrass marsh with Savannah DeBarr

 

Want to know more? Check out her answers to a few of our questions below.

Hometown: Stone Mountain, GA

Favorite nature experience as a kid: We had a lot of woods behind our house in Georgia and we built a little bridge over the creek – so we would always play out there.

Family: Engaged with one fur kid, Daisy, an Australian Shepherd.

Savannah’s dog, Daisy, on the boardwalk enjoying the CREW Marsh Trails

 

Favorite Florida Wildflower: Pine lily! I saw my first one today at the CREW Marsh Trails.

Wildlife bucket list: I feel like everyone says it, but a panther.

Favorite part of your internship with the CREW Trust?  I loved all of it. Probably just getting to be out in nature with the kids.

What is one thing you are looking forward to in your new role?  Helping people understand the importance of CREW. Most people don’t know that the watershed has an impact on our drinking water. I’m looking forward to teaching students of all ages about the water and wildlife on the CREW trails.

Posted on

CREW Trust announces 2018-2109 Season Programs

We’re very excited for this season’s programs and crossing our fingers for no large weather events and good trail conditions!

Registration for our 2018-2019 programs will open on Tuesday, September 4 for all CREW Trust Members. Non-member registration will open one week later on Tuesday, September 11. You must be a current CREW Trust member to register during our first week, so please make sure your membership is up to date or join today online at crewtrust.org/become-a-member/.

Hikers at Bird Rookery Swamp by Bill Zaino

 

Strolling Science Seminars

Our scholarly walks for ages 18 and older are always a hit and sell-out quickly! This year we have four set dates and will have a pop-up Strolling Science Seminar on Prescribed Burning when conditions are conducive to hosting that event.

November 8: Mad Batters of CREW: Join CREW FWC biologist and bat expert Kathleen Smith for a batty evening at Bird Rookery Swamp! This a hands-on experience for a small group of participants. We will set up and monitor mist nets and learn about the different bats that call Bird Rookery Swamp home.

November 10: Not-So-Naked-and-Afraid: Roger Hammer, wildflower expert, amazing story teller and friend of CREW has also worked as a consultant on the television series Naked and Afraid. Think you could survive 21 days with no clothes and no supplies in the wilds of CREW? Roger will tell you what to do – and what not to do – along with a lot of stories from his time on the trails and time working on the shows.

December 7: Exploring the Outdoors with your Inner Child: Our weekly guided walk guests at the CREW Marsh trails often see Ricky Pires’ field trips or the CREW Trust’s field trips in action and ask us “What are those kids doing?” If you want to learn about CREW from a kid’s point of view, join Ricky and Jessi Drummond, our former education coordinator, for dip netting, scent stations and more! Plus you’ll get to play some games like Oh Deer! and Save the Wildlife Bingo.

February 23: Descent with Modification: Natural Selection: On this walk with Jack Berninger, participants will discuss the foundation principles that explain how all life developed on planet Earth. The pillars of this foundation are variations; reproduction, selection and time. These supports will be viewed in the flora and fauna as you stroll the trails.

Prescribed Fire: Thaddeus Penfield and Joe Bozzo, our CREW South Florida Water Management friends, will lead a pop-up strolling science seminar in January or February on prescribed burning. They will discuss the role of fire in the natural history of the landscape and show how they use fire today to manage the acres within the CREW Project.

 

Specialty Walks

October 20: Fall Wildflower Walk: Join Brenda Thomas for a stroll along the trails where you’ll see the bounty of Florida’s fall wildflowers! And, if you’re lucky, it might be pine lily time.

January 26 and March 9: Birding with the Master: It’s the return of Dr. Bernie Master! After a year spent travelling the world, Dr. Master is back and leading two birding sessions in Bird Rookery Swamp. These sessions are for everyone from serious birders to beginners.

April 13: Spring Wildflower Walk: Springtime means a new rush of color on the trails! Participants will stroll through the CREW Marsh Trails with Roger Hammer, author of several wildflower books including The Complete Guide to Florida Wildflowers. 

 

Free Guided Walks

Our free guided walks schedule has changed this year and walks will be offered on select dates at Bird Rookery Swamp and the CREW Marsh Trails.

Save the Date: 2019 CREW Concert Under The Stars & Silent Eco Auction: February 16, 2019 5-9 p.m. featuring the High Voltage Band at Riverside Park in Bonita Springs.

Registration for members opens on September 4; for non-members on September 11. All programs require registration; visit eventbrite.com after registration opens. CREW Trust members will receive an email on September 4 when registration opens.