Category: Wildlife & Plants

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Wild File Q&A: What causes the small brown and yellow patches on healthy plant leaves?

Q: What causes the small brown and yellow patches on healthy plant leaves?

An Alligator Flag leaf by the Bird Rookery Swamp boardwalk protects itself from further damage by isolating an invasive pathogen.
An Alligator Flag leaf by the Bird Rookery Swamp
boardwalk protects itself from further damage by isolating an invasive
pathogen.

A:   

It’s often apoptosis, a term that comes from plant kingdom where the Greek apoptosis originally meant the loss of petals of leaves. Now, it can refer to both the plant and animal kingdoms and is also called Programmed Cell Death (PCD).

Cells in plants and animals can self-destruct when they are no longer needed or if they are damaged. For plants, this achieves and maintains stability within the internal environment when it is dealing with external changes.

Natural PCD (not caused by external factors) includes the timely death of petals after fertilization and the senescence of leaves. Host-controlled PCD is also a means of resistance to pathogens. Cells challenged by pathogens initiate a hypersensitive response, which is a rapid PCD process that is activated in order to inhibit the spread of invading pathogen.

PCD in plants has a number of molecular similarities to animal apoptosis, but it also has differences. The most obvious is the lack of an immune system to remove the pieces of the dead cell.

Greatly simplified, instead of an immune response, an enzyme is activated that destroys the central vacuole (a bubble-like cavity) in the plant cell, which is followed by disintegration of the rest of the cell. This creates a protective, dead “envelope” around the pathogen to limit its spread. This is what may appear on some leaves as a yellow and brown blotch.

Some examples of apoptosis in the animal kingdom include the resorption of the tadpole tail at the time of its metamorphosis into a frog, the removal of tissue between fingers and toes of the fetus as it develops, the elimination of T cells that might otherwise mount an autoimmune attack on the body, and during the pupal stage of insects that undergo a complete metamorphosis, the death of most of the cells of the larva which provide nutrients for the development of the adult structures.

For more than you would ever want to know about apoptosis, visit
http://jcmb.halic.edu.tr/pdf/4-1/Programmed.pdf

For a simpler explanation of apoptosis, visit
http://science.howstuffworks.com/life/cellular-microscopic/apoptosis.htm

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Identify the Plant and Give the Gift of Education

Can you identify the plant in this photo?

dog fennel

This plant, with its feathery foliage and towering stature, grows alongside the trail out at the CREW Marsh Trails. The trails get a lot of visitors this time of year, especially 3rd graders from Collier County as part of their field trips to CREW. Schoolchildren visit CREW with their teachers and spend half of their morning on a nature hike, guided by our very own Jessi Drummond, who leads them through stops that feature explanations about prescribed burns, how to identify poison ivy and why it’s an important food source for deer, and even, if they are lucky, investigating scat (most often Bobcat scat). The other half of their field trip is spent dip netting and identifying the different living organisms in their water samples. The kids then have lunch, and leave- hopefully- with a pretty clear idea of why the watershed is important, with discussions that focus on habitat, the water cycle, and how the marshlands help clean our water.

This plant that is pictured above is one of our sensory teaching tools. Jessi stops with the students, takes off a few leaves, and passes them around to the students. “What do you smell?” she asks as little hands eagerly shoot up in the air. The students share that they smell everything from licorice to mint, and Jessi then lets them know that she smells pickles when she smells this plant which is Dog Fennel. Tying in their senses- hearing, touch, smell, sight- is an important part of the field trip for so many kids who just don’t spend enough time outside.

Education is a very important part of our mission at CREW, and this year, we’ve got a fundraising campaign for the month of December. Our goal is to raise $25,000, and an end-of-year gift from you, our supporters and members, can make that happen. It’s part of #GivingTuesday, an effort by many non-profits nationwide to remind everyone that after Black Friday and Cyper Monday, sometimes it’s nice to find a way to give back and pay it forward. Your donation will help further our education efforts at CREW and support all of our educational programs, including our field trips.

You can find out more about our #GivingTuesday campaign on our website (https://crewtrus.mystagingwebsite.com/2014/11/10/6996/). All donors receive a link to a special set of photographs of our CREW wildlife and donors at higher levels can receive special goodies, like tickets to our Concert and Silent Eco-Auction in March.

Next time you are out on the CREW Marsh Trails, watch out for the Dog Fennel, and take a moment to appreciate how this plant on the side of the trail has such a huge impact on 3rd graders in Collier County.

– Anne Reed

group of students on the CREW trails

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Wild File Q& A: Are African honey bees here? Are they dangerous?

Q: Are African honey bees here? Are they dangerous?

Af_bees
A colony of African honey bees chose to settle on a high tree limb along the Marsh Trail, where they do not pose a threat.

 

    A: According to Dr. Jamie Ellis, entomologist at the University of Florida, approximately eight out of ten wild honey bee colonies in Florida south of a line from Tampa to Daytona are the African honey bees, often referred to as the killer bees.

No honey bees are native to North or South America. European settlers brought a temperate European subspecies with them when they colonized the Western hemisphere, and that species is the common honey bee. The African honey bee was first imported to Brazil in the 1970s by a beekeeper hoping that using a tropical subspecies from Africa would provide more productive honey producers in tropical Brazil.

Escaped queens enabled the subspecies to spread across South America, Central America, and the southern and southwestern United States in just 30 years. It is the most biological successful invasive species.

There are no visual differences between the European and African honey bees. The African honey bee is slightly smaller and has slightly less venom, but the two are so close that the only way to distinguish them individually is to send a sample to the University of Florida’s
lab for dissection.

Both subspecies defend the territory around their colonies, which is the only time the bees will be aggressive as a group. But when a European colony is disturbed, on average only 10-15 bees attack. When an African colony is disturbed, 10,000-12,000 bees attack.

Bees in a colony can detect vibrations in the ground up to 50 feet away from the actual colony, and the African bees can detect vibrations from heavy machinery such as tractors up to 100 feet away. However, colonies located more than 30 feet above the ground do not
usually pose any sort of risk.

When bees attack, it is always to defend the colony. Dr. Ellis said that the ONLY defense is to run away as fast as possible. Once out of the bees’ territory, the attack stops. Several dozen stings will be painful but not lethal.

Running is the only defense, and most people can outrun a bee. Do not stay and swat! The colony is probably close and attacking bees are attracted to movement, so swatting just attracts more bees. Don’t hide in underbrush because the bees can fit in there too, and don’t jump in water. Bees may stay agitated for up to 30 minutes after the colony is
disturbed, which is a lot longer than people can hold their breath under water.

If an attack occurs, survival is the only concern. It takes 5-10 stings per pound of body weight before the attack may be lethal, so barring allergies to bee stings, a 100-pound person could survive up to 1,000 stings.

Seek shelter in a building or vehicle. Some stinging bees may make it in too, but the number will be limited and once they sting, they die. If you see someone else being attacked, yell at them to RUN. If they don’t, do not try a rescue yourself because then there would be two
victims instead of one. Call 911.

By: Dick Brewer

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Small Game Season Opens December 6th at CREW

 

Raccoon (photo by George Luther)
Raccoon (photo by George Luther)

Small Game Hunting Season at CREW opens December 7th and runs through January 4th, 2014 at the CREW Cypress Dome Trails, Caracara Prairie Preserve, and in portions of the Flint Pen Strand unit of CREW. Specific Small Game season regulations for CREW are listed below. Complete regs can be accessed at the Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission website.

The Cypress Dome Trails will remain open to other users – hikers, bikers, geocachers, campers and horseback riders – during hunting seasons. Trail hikers are encouraged to wear bright colors (hunter orange) when hiking during hunting seasons. No hunting is allowed at the CREW Marsh Trails or at the Bird Rookery Swamp Trails.

Small Game Season:December 6 through January 3.

Permit, Stamp and License Requirements – Hunting license, management area permit, migratory bird permit (if hunting migratory birds), and state waterfowl permit and federal duck stamp (if hunting waterfowl).

Legal to Hunt – Gray squirrel, quail, rabbit, raccoon, opossum, armadillo, beaver, coyote, skunk, nutria and migratory birds in season.

Regulations Unique to Small Game Season-
Hunting with bird dogs and retrievers is allowed.
Hunting with centerfire and rimfire rifles is prohibited.

The CREW lands are open to a variety of public recreational use activities. One of the most historical and storied recreational uses of CREW is hunting. Hunting is an important wildlife management tool and provides many sportsmen and sportswomen a way to enjoy the outdoors and put food on their tables. The Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission has designated CREW as a Wildlife & Environmental Area (WEA) and regulates the hunting rules and seasons on CREW lands. FWC law enforcement officers patrol CREW lands all year long.

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Mosquitoes of the Marsh: A CREW Strolling Science Seminar- December 5th

Join Neil Wilkinson – FGCU instructor and current President of the Florida Mosquito Control Association – for our second strolling science seminar of the season, Mosquitoes of the Marsh: The Good, the Bad, & the Ugly – on Friday, December 5th, 9 AM to noon at the CREW Marsh Trails. Registration is required. Register on our Eventbrite page here.

This seminar is about one of Florida’s most famous living creatures – mosquitoes. Learn the life histories of fresh floodwater and natural container species of mosquitoes common to southwest Florida. You will be surprised by the fascinating diversity of species and behaviors. We will begin with samples of adult and larval mosquitoes and learn about their life histories then hike into the preserve to check  for adult mosquitoes caught in traps set the night before. We will use aquatic dip nets to survey for mosquito predators in ditches and depressions and be on the lookout for other amazing wildlife that the CREW marsh protects.

Enhanced knowledge at the species level is the basis for a greater understanding of the whole watershed system. We will have ample time to discuss issues related to controlling mosquitoes, types of control, and consider the impact of NextGen mosquito control products. Mosquito control, like watershed management is a classic environmental science case study. Humans impact the environment, often in harmful ways and as awareness and science progresses new options arise for ameliorating our actions.

Neil Wilkinson

Neil Wilkinson, is an instructor in the Department of Marine and Ecological Sciences at Florida Gulf Coast University. Wilkinson is currently the president of the Florida Mosquito Control Association. He is an environmental educator with extensive classroom and field teaching experience at the elementary, middle, high, and university levels. He spends half of his time teaching a science outreach program to classes in the local school district. He acts as a liaison between FGCU, the Lee County School District’s Environmental Education Program, and the Lee County Mosquito Control District facilitating interagency cooperative and collaborative efforts among students, faculty, and staff.

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Wild File Q&A: If raccoons are out in the daytime, are they dangerous?

Q: If raccoons are out in the daytime, are they dangerous?

Racccon climbing a tree
Raccoons are destructive little creatures whose only saving grace is that they can be cute. They are wild animals and should be treated as such. Photo and caption by Dick Brewer.

 

A: Raccoons are often seen during the day, causing some people to ask, “I thought raccoons here only active at night and the only ones out in the day were rabid. Is it safe here?”

Raccoons are wild animals, and like all wild animals, from small snakes to big bears, they  should be regarded with caution and treated with respect. But they are not inherently dangerous. It’s all about predator avoidance.

Raccoons, like all animals, want to survive. They want to get food rather than to be food, so they must minimize the chances of being killed by predators while foraging.

In the more peopled areas, raccoons tend to be more active at night because that’s when they encounter fewer predators and obstacles to getting food such as people, cars, big dogs, and more.

In Florida’s wild areas, their most dangerous predators — alligators, panthers, and bobcats — are most active and most efficient at night. In those habitats, the best chance for a raccoon to survive is to hunt during the day.

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Wild File Q&A: Why don’t birds fall off their perches when they’re sleeping or napping?

by CREW Volunteer Naturalist, Dick Brewer

Q:      Why don’t birds fall of their perches when they’re sleeping or napping?

A:      From small wrens and warblers to large herons and egrets, birds have a seemingly uncanny ability to sleep in trees and other vegetation without ever falling off of their perches.  How do they do that?

It’s not magic. The bird’s toes lock around the branch automatically; no conscious action is needed by the bird whether awake or asleep. Tendons pass from the muscle at the back of the bird’s leg, down around the back of its ankle, and to the inside of its toes. When a bird settles its weight on a branch, the legs bend. That tightens the tendons so much that the toes are automatically pulled tight and clamped around the perch. All conscious or controllable actions are bypassed, so even when it’s asleep, the bird cannot possibly move from the perch.          When the bird straightens its legs, the tendons relax and the grip is released. That’s why a bird often seems to ‘spring’ off of its perch — it’s just unlocking its hold. Even if it’s resting on just one leg, the bird is locked onto its perch.

Barred Owl Perched by Dick Brewer
A Barred Owl naps, one leg tucked in and the other firmly locked around the branch. (Photo by Dick Brewer)
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CREW Strolling Science Seminar Series Resumes November 13th

Strolling Science Seminars 2013 - 2014On November 13th, 2014, the fourth year of CREW’s popular Strolling Science Seminar series for adults will launch with a much-requested repeat of “Mad Batters of CREW” – a science workshop about bats, led by Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission biologist Kathleen Smith.

This seminar will take place at Bird Rookery Swamp from 4:30 – 7:30 PM. Space is limited, so register early at https://crewbatsss2014.eventbrite.com .

The full Strolling Science Seminar series includes:

  • November 13, 2014 – Mad Batters of CREW (Bats) w/ Kathleen Smith
  • December 5, 2014 – Mosquitoes of the Marsh with Neil WIlkinson
  • January 9, 2015 – Fire & Water: Primal Forces Shaping CREW Wildlife Habitats with Jim Schortemeyer & Joe Bozzo
  • February 7, 2015 – The Gopher Tortoise: How Protecting One Species Actually Protests Hundreds with Dr.John Herman
  • March 10, 2015 – Birding with the Master with Dr. Bernie Master & Tiffany Thornhill

Each seminar includes hands-on activities and in-depth scholarly discussions about the science of the topics and their relationships to the CREW watershed and southwest Florida. Registration is open for all the strolling science seminars at http://crewtrust.eventbrite.com . CREW Strolling Science Seminars are for adults 18 years and older.

 

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Fall Wildflower Walk Scheduled for October 18th

Pine lily
Pine lily

On October 18th, Brenda Thomas – FGCU instructor and former EE Specialist for CREW – will be leading a fall wildflower walk at the CREW Trails. Fall blooms are special because they include such rarities as the endangered Pine Lily (also known as the Catesby’s Lily) and many grasses which seed out only during the autumn months. Come learn from an expert, enjoy a cooler fall day on the trails, and feel the magic of the seasons changing.

To register for the fall wildflower walk, go to http://crewfallflowers.eventbrite.com

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Wild File Q & A: How can snakes climb trees?

This month’s Q & A post by CREW volunteer naturalist Dick Brewer

 

Q: How can snakes climb up trees?

A: Snakes use “concertina locomotion” to climb trees – the act of gripping with some parts of the body while pulling or pushing with other parts of the body in the general direction of movement. Ripples of muscle travel along the snake’s length while the spaces in between
inch forward.

Concertina locomotion is very irregular and appears to be quite strenuous. So, it takes snakes much longer to climb a tree than they could move on the ground or in the water.

This push/pull motion is made possible by scales that are keeled, or ridged. Think of the keel on the bottom of a boat. Unlike smooth scales, keeled scales have raised ridges on the center of each scale which enables the snake to get a grip on rough surfaces, much like a tire with a good tread grips the road better than a bald tire.

Snakes cannot stick to smooth walls the way insects and lizards often do; the snake must have something for the keel to rest on in order to push up. So working in concert with the body  muscles, the keeled scales lodged in bark crevices help the snake push against the bark on the tree and inch upward. And yes, sometimes snakes do lose their grip and fall out of a tree.

All snakes either have smooth or keeled scales, and one way to distinguish is that smooth scales typically reflect light, making the color pattern of these snakes shiny, glossy, or iridescent, whereas keeled scales tend to make snakes appear dull and non-reflective because of the raised ridge. Because snakes climb with their bellies to the tree trunk, the scales on their undersides of some snakes may be keeled while the scales on the topside may not be.

snake climbing tree
The Yellow Rat Snake is the best tree climbing snake in Florida. (Photo by Dick Brewer)