by Les Harrison | Dec 8, 2017
A great walk or ride is close at hand on this trail which once supported a critical 19th century transportation link.
The typical image of a state park is that of a place where visitors enter through a front gate and enjoy the wonders of nature or some historic structure. The Tallahassee-St. Marks Historic Railroad State Trail, which is run by The Florida Division of Recreation and Parks, is truly an exception to the typical model.
While many parks have trails, this one runs 20.5 miles from Tallahassee to the coastal community of St. Marks. This area is the first rail-trail in the Florida’s system of greenways and trails to be paved providing a scenic experience for running, walking, bicycling and skating.
Additionally, horseback riding occurs on the adjacent unpaved trail. Because of its outstanding qualities, this state trail has been selected as a National Recreation Trail.
The origins of this 21st century recreational site date back to before Florida was a state. The Tallahassee Railroad Company was approved in 1835 by the territorial legislative council and received the first federal land grant to a railroad for construction of the line.
Cotton and other commodities moved from the Tallahassee region to the port of St. Marks for shipment to the north east U.S. and to Great Brittan. Raw cotton was the major generator of foreign exchange during the antebellum years, so this railroad was a critical economic link in the area’s development.
Fast forward to 1983, that is when the Seaboard Coastline filed the papers to abandon the line and end service. After 147 years, the longest-operating railroad in Florida was deemed economically unfeasible to operate.
It was not out of service for long. In 1984 the corridor was purchased by the Florida Department of Transportation, and the rest is history.
Visitors can access the trail in multiple locations along the way. Parking areas are provided at many locations along the trail with mileage markers make available distance information and the trail corridor is lined with trees providing plenty of shade.
Restroom facilities are placed at intervals along the trail. There are picnic pavilions and a playground at the Wakulla Station Trailhead.
The trail is open from 8:00 a.m. until sundown, 365 days a year and there is no use fee required. Donations which aid with the promotion and upkeep are accepted.
For more information on the St. Marks Trail, contact the park office at (850) 487-7989 or Tallahassee-St. Marks Historic Railroad State Trail.
While the historic structures are gone, it is a great way to enjoy nature’s wonders close to the coast.
by Sheila Dunning | Nov 3, 2017
Since we are approaching the peak dates in mid-October, it is time to get your gardens ready for migrating monarchs to fuel up on nectar sources. In their Mexican overwintering sites, these monarchs will have to survive on stored fat all winter. So they need to build up fat reserves by feeding on flowering plants along their migration route. Saltbush, Goldenrod, Narrowleaf Sunflower, Blanketflower and Milkweed are some of the nectar-rich blooms in the Florida Panhandle this time of year.
Monarchs begin leaving the northern US and Canada in mid-August. They usually fly for 4-6 hours during the day, coming down from the skies to feed in the afternoon and then find roosting sites for the night. Warmth and nectar enable butterflies to gain the energy needed to keep on flying. Monarchs cannot fly unless their flight muscles reach 55ºF. On a sunny day, they bask by extending their wings to allow the black scales on their bodies to absorb heat. But on a cloudy day, they generally don’t fly if it is below 60ºF.
These graceful insects capitalize on the warm air they encounter when they head south. Thermals are columns of rising air, caused by uneven heating of the earth. They form wherever the air is just a few degrees warmer than the air next to it. Thermals often form wherever large patches of dark ground are adjacent to lighter-colored ground, such as over parking lots, above farm fields, highways, and next to rivers and lakes. Monarchs are so light that they can easily be lifted by the rising air.
But they are not weightless. In order to stay in the air, they must move forward while also staying within the thermal. They do this by moving in a circle. At that point, the monarch glides forward in a south/southwesterly direction with the aid of the wind. It glides until it finds another thermal, and rides that column of rising air upwards again. Monarchs can glide forward 3-4 feet for every foot they drop in altitude. If they have favorable tail winds, monarchs can flap their wings once every 20-30 feet and still maintain altitude.
When winds are from the south, monarchs fly very low, often choosing to land and find cover or refuel on available nectar sources. They may wait for the winds to change direction, and as a result, can form large roosts as they accumulate in a protected location.
The average pace of the migration is around 20-30 miles per day. But tag recoveries have shown that monarchs can fly 150 miles or more in a single day if conditions are favorable. Monarchs migrate during the day, coming down at night to gather together in clusters in a protected area. In the south, they might choose oak or pecan trees, especially if the trees are overhanging a stream channel.
Monarchs migrate alone—they do not travel in flocks like birds do. So they often descend from the sky in the afternoon to feed, and then search for an appropriate roosting site. Most roosts last only 1 or 2 nights, but some may last a few weeks.
How do monarchs find their way to Mexico? We really don’t know for certain. We do know that monarchs have a sun compass in their brain, and a circadian clock in their antennae. The clock and compass are integrated in the brain to form a time-compensated sun compass. Using the sun and polarized light waves, monarchs can maintain a general S/SW heading throughout the day. Even with that, it is amazing that they can find the exact spot year after year.
by Rick O'Connor | Oct 31, 2017
In our continuing battle with invasive species, northwest Florida is now home to an invasive lizard. Known as both the Cuban and Brown Anole, this animal has been reported from Big Lagoon, East Hill, North Hill, and Gulf Breeze in the Pensacola area. I have seen it at almost every rest area on I-10 between here and Gainesville and in large numbers at some local nurseries.
This Cuban Anole was photographed on a public hiking trail near Perdido Key.
Photo: Jerry Patee
Who is this new invader to our area?
We will start with “new”.
Compared to the rest of the state, it is new. First reported in 1887, this lizard hitchhiked over from its native Cuba and Bahamas via boats. DNA studies suggest there were at least seven different “invasions” of the lizard to Florida. This is not surprising since the lizard is small (between 5-8 inches) and likes moist areas to lay eggs. A fan of warmth, vegetation, and insects – it did very well once it arrived. Like most invasive species, it quickly spreads into disturbed areas… and we have disturbed Florida in a major way. It is now found in all counties within the Florida peninsula and in many, it is the most common lizard seen.
Is it an “invader”?
Yes, in the sense that it moves into disturbed habitats quickly and competes with the native Green Anole (Anole carolinensis). Both lizards are beneficial to humans in that they consume great numbers of insects and spiders. However, the Cuban Anole will consume the eggs and juveniles of the Green Anole. Where the two co-exist, the Green Anole is forced to live higher up in the vegetation. This is a form of resource partitioning where each species is co-existing in the same area but not directly competing. However, biologists are not sure how this co-habitation of the two lizards will affect local ecology. It is currently listed as an invasive species in Florida.
So is it new to the panhandle?
Well, based on records – yes. Based on anecdotal comments – no. Some folks have seen it for some time now. The most probable means for dispersal have been with forms of transportation visiting the panhandle from south Florida and the transport of landscaping plants from south Florida nurseries. One local nursery had a greenhouse over-run with the lizard. If you view the invasive database EDDMaps. It shows 13 records between Alabama and the Aucilla River. There are certainly more than that. EDDMaps has the distribution broken down as:
| County |
Number of Cuban Anole Records |
| Bay |
1 |
| Calhoun |
0 |
| Escambia |
0 |
| Franklin |
0 |
| Gadsden |
0 |
| Gulf |
0 |
| Holmes |
0 |
| Jackson |
1 |
| Jefferson |
0 |
| Leon |
2 |
| Liberty |
0 |
| Okaloosa |
4 |
| Santa Rosa |
4 |
| Wakulla |
0 |
| Walton |
0 |
| Washington |
1 |
Several local residents have sent me photos of the Cuban Anole in Pensacola (used in this article). I will need to post these soon and we will need help from the public posting more. To report anoles, you will need to log into EDDMaps at www.EDDMaps.org. You will need an account, but it is free. You can also download their app “I’ve Got 1”, which can be found on the website. If you have questions about EDDMaps, please contact me at the Escambia County extension office (850) 475-5230.
This Cuban Anole was photographed at the east end of Big Lagoon near NAS Pensacola.
Photo: Carole Tebay
Until then, check your cars before heading back from south Florida and any plants you may buy from nurseries to be sure you are not bringing any friends home. If you are finding them in your yard and wish to control them, contact me at the Escambia County extension office.
References
Anoles. 2017. University of Florida IFAS Gardening Solutions. http://www.gardeningsolutions.ifas.ufl.edu/design/gardening-with-wildlife/anoles.html.
Brown Anole (Anole sageri) Introduced. Savannah River Ecological Laboratory. University of Georgia. http://srelherp.uga.edu/lizards/anosag.htm.
Dunning, S. 2017. The Cuban Anole. NISAW 2017. Panhandle Outdoors Electronic Newsletter. https://nwdistrict.ifas.ufl.edu/nat/2017/02/28/nisaw-2017-cuban-anole/.
EDDMaps. 2017. Distribution Map by County. http://www.eddmaps.org/distribution/uscounty.cfm?sub=18342.
Johnson, S.A. 2011. Focal Species: Cuban Brown Anole. The Invader Updater. Vol 3 (1). http://ufwildlife.ifas.ufl.edu/InvaderUpdater/pdfs/InvaderUpdater_Winter2011.pdf.
Nonnative Species: The Brown Anole. Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. http://myfwc.com/wildlifehabitats/nonnatives/reptiles/brown-anole/.
