The mission of The Florida Chapter of the Wildlife Society is to serve and represent wildlife professionals in promoting wildlife conservation, biodiversity, and resource stewardship.
The latest issue of our FL Chapter newsletter is out. It includes a message from the President, Wildlife Connections spotlight, news from our Fall workshop, 2024 scholarship and awards winners, Spring Conference announcement, and other important chapter news and announcements.
Click HERE for the newsletter
FLTWS is seeking applicants for:
The 2025 'Courtney Tye Graduate Student Memorial Scholarship' ($2,000)
The 2025 ‘Greater Everglades Undergraduate Student Memorial Scholarship’ ($1,500)
The 2025 ‘FLTWS Diversity Undergraduate Wildlife Student Scholarship’ ($1,500).
The deadline for applications is 1 December 2024; recipients will be contacted in early 2025; checks will be presented at the annual Spring meeting of the Chapter in April 2025 in Tallahassee.
Please visit our Scholarships page for more details.
UPDATE, NOV. 27th: REGISTRATION HAS NOW REOPENED for the “PRESCRIBED FIRE FOR WILDLIFE” class. The new dates and location are February 4-6, 2025, at Archbold Biological Station in Venus, Florida.
Class size is limited so early registration is encouraged. Basic Registration is $375.00 and full registration with all meals and lodging is $675.00. The Registration deadline is January 20th, 2025. Register online via http://fltws.org/shop credit cards or state or federal pcards accepted).
Click this news tab to view the full details.
This year our fall meeting will take place November 7th-8th at the Cuscowilla Nature and Retreat Center in Gainesville.
This workshop will focus on Florida Flora: the identification and conservation of Florida's native plants.
Topics will include:
Plant Identification Basics
Identification of Ferns and Trees
Graminoid ID - Grasses, Sedges, and their Relatives
FIELD TRIP to Prairie Creek Preserve to practice your new ID skills!
The Key Largo woodrat (Neotoma floridana smalli) is a nocturnal 7-9-ounce rodent that is reddish above, cinnamon on the sides, and has a cream or white belly coloration. Its forefeet are white to the wrist and hindfeet are white to the ankles. It has large ears, protuberant eyes, and a hairy tail...
Grasshopper sparrows (Ammodramus savannarum) are small, short-tailed birds with a white median stripe at the top of a flattened head. Twelve subspecies of the grasshopper sparrow occur in grasslands throughout North America, Central America and the West Indies. Only one subspecies, the Florida grasshopper sparrow (A. s. floridanus) breeds in Florida. Another subspecies, the Eastern grasshopper sparrow (A. s. pratensis) can also be found across the state in the winter months. During the breeding season, Florida grasshopper sparrows are isolated from the eastern subspecies in Georgia by more than 300 miles. Please visit the Florida Birding Trail website for tips on where to see Florida grasshopper sparrows.
The American crocodile (Crocodylus acutus) is the most widely distributed of the New World crocodiles, ranging from the southern tip of Florida, along both the Atlantic and Pacific coasts of southern Mexico, Central America, and northern South America, as well as the Caribbean islands of Cuba, Jamaica, and Hispaniola. It is one of two species of crocodilian native to Florida, the other being the American alligator (Alligator mississippiensis). Crocodiles inhabit brackish or saltwater areas and can be found in ponds, coves, and creeks in mangrove swamps.
Coyotes (Canis latrans) were sporadically introduced into Florida by hunters in the 1920s, but their natural range expansion from the western U.S. began in the 1970s. They have spread throughout the state from northwest Florida and will likely occur in every county within the next few years.
Coyotes are smart and resourceful. They are active during the day and night, and can flourish in most habitat types. They eat a wide variety of small invertebrate and vertebrate prey, but will also eat wild fruits and carrion. All of these characteristics make them very well suited for survival, even as Florida’s human population continues to grow.
The Wildlife Society’s Joshua Rapp reports on a recently published study where researchers “tracked the survival rates of gopher tortoises translocated to Nokuse, a 55,000-acre property on the Florida Panhandle near Panama City that hosts reintroduced gopher tortoises moved as mitigation measures and conducts longleaf pine restoration and other conservation work”. Click HERE to read the story.
Help biologists learn more about Florida’s wild turkey populations by reporting all wild turkeys you see during your normal daily activities from June 1 to Aug. 31.
We’re interested in sightings of hens with and without poults (young wild turkeys), and male birds (jakes and gobblers) from all regions of the state, including rural and developed areas. When reporting numbers of poults, be sure to look carefully because young birds may be difficult to see in tall grass or brush.
The Sunshine State is home to healthy wild turkey populations. They occur throughout Florida and prefer open forests and forest edges and openings. Our biologists conduct this survey each year to learn more about annual nesting success, brood survival, and distribution and abundance of wild turkeys.
Learn more about the FWC’s summer wild turkey survey.
Report your wild turkey sightings online: bit.ly/3qtVbVF OR by using the Survey123ArcGIS app: bit.ly/3OVVP8n
Today, Governor Ron DeSantis and the Cabinet approved an investment to protect nearly 28,000 acres of Florida’s natural lands and link existing conservation areas. Today’s actions also mark the first acquisition within the Caloosahatchee-Big Cypress Corridor, an important Everglades and panther habitat.
Click this news item to read more.
With more than 6 million acres of state-managed conservation lands, options for experiencing wild Florida can be difficult to narrow down. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) is proud to announce the WMA Recreation Finder, an interactive virtual map for Florida residents and visitors looking to find their perfect outdoor experience on public lands. Click this story to read more.
Help biologists learn more about Florida’s wild turkey populations by reporting all wild turkeys you see during your normal daily activities from June 1 to Aug. 31.
We’re interested in sightings of hens with and without poults (young wild turkeys), and male birds (jakes and gobblers) from all regions of the state, including rural and developed areas. When reporting numbers of poults, be sure to look carefully because young birds may be difficult to see in tall grass or brush.
The Sunshine State is home to healthy wild turkey populations. They occur throughout Florida and prefer open forests and forest edges and openings. Our biologists conduct this survey each year to learn more about annual nesting success, brood survival, and distribution and abundance of wild turkeys.
Learn more about the FWC’s summer wild turkey survey.
Report your wild turkey sightings online: bit.ly/3qtVbVF OR by using the Survey123ArcGIS app: bit.ly/3OVVP8n
Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission sent this bulletin at 11/17/2021 12:59 PM EST
For Immediate release: Nov. 17, 2021
Contact: Carli Segelson, 772-215-9459, Carli.Segelson@MyFWC.com
Michelle Kerr, 727-282-7642, Michelle.Kerr@MyFWC.com
Suggested Tweet: To modernize, align with @FishWildlife best management practices, @MyFWC is evaluating trapping rules. Public feedback welcome. https://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/FLFFWCC/bulletins/2fca46b #Florida
FWC evaluates trapping rules, seeks public input
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) is seeking public feedback as staff begin to evaluate rules addressing regulated wildlife trapping. Staff are exploring possible changes to modernize trapping rules to align with the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies’ best management practices in support of species-specific and humane trapping methods.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) has launched a new community science project aimed at learning more about Florida’s skunk populations.
The Sunshine State is home to two species of skunks, the striped skunk and the smaller eastern spotted skunk. Both are thought to be found throughout the state and biologists are hoping to involve the public in collecting observations to learn more about the distribution of both species and the types of habitats in which they are found.
Anybody that breathes air, drinks water, swims, fishes, hunts, enjoys wildlife watching or just visiting state and national parks should be concerned about the environmental setbacks that have occurred during the last few years. Wildlife and fish populations will likely decline from increased pollution and habitat destruction resulting from reduced protection for our waterways and public lands.
Harvard Law School’s Environmental and Energy Law Program (EELP) staff succinctly describe the history of more than 80 critically important environmental rollbacks, including current status on EELP's website: https://eelp.law.harvard.edu/regulatory-rollback-tracker/.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) wants to know the attitude of the public regarding the possession and management of venomous reptiles by zoos, as well as individual residents in their homes. FWC Captive Wildlife staff was directed by the Commission in November 2015 to evaluate existing regulations and develop a range of regulatory options for the Commission’s consideration. In order to effectively receive information and direction from the public, the agency has developed an online survey at www.surveymonkey.com/r/VR-Rule, and will be accepting survey responses and recommendations through July 27, 2016.
Sponsors
Your logo could go here.
Scroll to the bottom of our webpage for details.
JOBS
(click heading for full list)
BECOME OUR SPONSOR
If you have any questions about FLTWS sponsorship, please reach out to our Fundraising Committee members
Larry Perrin and Mark Ausley at fundraising@fltws.org
The dates and location for the 2025 Spring Conference have been announced!
SAVE THE DATE for April 16-18th in TALLAHASSEE.
The 2025 conference theme is:
"From Wetlands to Pine Forests: Conserving Florida’s Diverse Habitats for Future Generations"
Click on this news item for more information.