PULSE / Featured Cause
Track and Tag Technologies Changing the Way SWFL Preserves Wildlife
written by: Chris Harrison
thirty years. Thankfully, the outstanding wildlife that surrounds our communities hasn’t been completely destroyed in the process. The wetlands, swamps, forests and mangroves that make up the region- al ecosystem aren’t always left untouched by educated and respon- sible developers. On the contrary; continued preservation efforts have battled against urban encroachment and pollution. Many of SWFL’s non-profit groups and government policies are the saviors of our landscape. Here we take a closer look at two such dedicated programs, focusing on sea turtles and panthers, that have been in effect since the early 1980s. Preservationist public policies depend on evidence. Tag-and-
T
track technologies are the primary method of data collection. Ani- mals are captured temporarily, tagged with radio-collars or plates and then released back into their territories. The data gathered through these efforts have a huge impact on the survival of endan- gered native species. The sea turtle program began in 1982 and is based on Keeway-
din Island. To date, over 245,000 hatchlings have been registered, helping to adapt and minimize beach-front impact. Conservancy Research Manager Dr. Jeff Schmid studies the world’s most threat- ened sea turtle species, the Kemp’s Ridley. With only 1 in 1,000 turtlecs reaching adulthood, it is essential to protect their nesting grounds, or risk losing this icon of the Gulf forever. Between 2009-2011, the Conservancy team has placed satellite
tags on 22 female turtles while they’re nesting onshore. The tags are activated when the turtle comes to the water surface for a breath of air, signaling an orbiting satellite that determines their exact loca- tions.
Dave Addison, Conservancy Science Co-Director and Lead
Biologist, has been with the program since the start. “Thanks to the satellite tags, we will be able to identify migratory pathways and the areas where they forage. We also hope to determine if individual females return to the same foraging area, just as they return to the same nesting beach year after year. We noted 238 nests in 2011 and
18 | Pulse Magazine SWFL he population of SW Florida has boomed over the last
a total of 13,596 hatchlings. We believe fewer severe storms in 2011 contributed greatly to the number of hatchling that reached the Gulf last summer. We are hopeful for the same in 2012.” Tag-and- tracking occurs nightly from May to November each summer.
Another tag-and-track program supports Southwest Florida’s
wild panther population. This species has been one of the most negatively impacted animals in the state. You can actually watch the entire tag-and-track process at the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s panther webpage. Researchers have also set up remote cameras as a part of their tracking system to spot panthers in the wild. Darrell Land is FWC’s Panther Team Leader. “The panther was
first classified as an endangered species in 1967, listed as such fol- lowing the Endangered Species Act in 1973. The program started in 1981. Little was known about Florida panthers. We needed to collect basic information in order to save panthers from extinction. We use
PHOTOGRAPHY BY DAVID SHINDLE
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