Discover the fascinating world of Cuban Treefrogs and join us for an exciting workshop aimed at effectively managing their invasion. Led by Dr. Steve Johnson, an expert on Cuban Treefrogs from UF/IFAS Extension, this workshop will provide you with valuable insights on recognizing these invasive frogs and exploring management options. In addition, attendees will have the opportunity to learn how to monitor and report data on Cuban Treefrog populations. Together, let’s take action to address the challenges posed by the invasion of Cuban Treefrogs! The Workshop will be held September 28th 9am – 3pm CDT at 2728 E14th St, Panama City, FL 32401Register Here
The Invasion of Cuban Treefrogs:
Originating from Cuba and introduced unintentionally to Florida in the 1920s, the Cuban Treefrog has rapidly established itself across various states, including Georgia and Louisiana. Believed to have arrived as stowaways in shipping crates, these non-native frogs have become a cause for concern due to their impacts on native treefrog and toad populations.
Understanding the Threat:
Cuban Treefrog adults and their tadpoles are known predators of native treefrogs and toads. Their presence poses a significant threat to the delicate balance of our ecosystems. Therefore, it is crucial to develop effective management strategies to curb their invasion and minimize their impact on our native species.
Workshop Highlights:
During the workshop, Dr. Steve Johnson, an esteemed authority on Cuban Treefrogs, will guide participants through the identification and management of these invasive frogs. Attendees will gain valuable knowledge and practical skills to recognize Cuban Treefrogs and explore options for effectively managing their populations. Participants will also build and take home their own treefrog house (refugia) made with PVC.
Contributing to Research:
In addition to learning about identification and management, workshop attendees will have the opportunity to play an active role in monitoring and reporting data on Cuban Treefrog populations. By actively participating in data collection efforts, you will contribute to scientific research and provide crucial insights into the distribution and behavior of these invasive frogs.
Join the Cause:
The invasion of Cuban Treefrogs is a pressing environmental issue that requires collective action. By attending our workshop, you can become an agent of change in addressing this invasive species. Let’s work together to protect our native treefrogs and toads by effectively managing the population of Cuban Treefrogs.
Don’t miss out on this unique opportunity to join Dr. Steve Johnson and fellow nature enthusiasts in our workshop focused on managing the invasion of Cuban Treefrogs. By acquiring knowledge, developing practical skills, and contributing to data collection efforts, you can actively participate in protecting our native species and preserving the delicate balance of our ecosystems. Together, let’s make a difference and tackle the challenges posed by the Cuban Treefrog invasion. Register now and be a part of this important environmental initiative!
An invasive Cuban Tree Frog specimen. Invasive species, amphibians and reptiles. frogs, pests. UF/IFAS Photo by Tyler Jones.
Summertime always makes me think of the supermarket. At least one time each of the past few summers, I clearly remember being at the supermarket during a rainstorm and watching the water wash over the parking lot, talking with all the other people debating whether to run to their car with a buggy full of food. Supermarkets, home goods stores, medical facilities, libraries, and shopping centers all provide important services that we depend on for our everyday life, but their development has altered the natural processes that control the movement of water from the landscape to creeks and ultimately to the bays and bayous around us (collectively referred to as receiving waters). Concrete, asphalt, and building roof surfaces are impervious, meaning that water cannot pass through them. As a result, more water washes off the rooftops, parking lots, driveways, and roads than before the area was developed. Less water sinks into the ground to move slowly toward receiving waters and to recharge aquifers. More impervious surface leads to more runoff to receiving waters, resulting in greater erosion and higher levels of pollutants like nitrogen, phosphorus, and silt in these waterways. These extra pollutants from the landscape and from eroding stream banks have harmful effects many types of organisms that call these waterways home.
New development in Florida is required to include features that “treat” a fraction of the surface water that runs off impervious surfaces before flowing into receiving waters. Treating surface water runoff means holding it back and preventing it from running quickly off the developed landscape; as it is held back, some pollutants may settle out or be consumed by plants. Treatment is commonly accomplished through features like dry retention basins or wet detention ponds, where water is stored and then slowly moves through soil pathways toward receiving waters. These features are common parts of our developed landscape: the big pond behind the supermarket or in front of the new truck stop, or the grassy pit next to the gas station. While these satisfy regulations, they occupy a considerable amount of land, typically are aesthetically lacking, and may not actually reduce pollutant runoff or stormwater volume as intended. They also can be neglected and become a nuisance in the landscape.
Nature-based stormwater infrastructure projects can play an important role in protecting communities in northwest Florida from the effects of heavy rainfall that occurs periodically in the region. Nature-based stormwater projects are designed primarily to incorporate the natural processes of infiltration that occur in undeveloped areas in the developed landscape, treating stormwater by reducing volumes of surface runoff and concentrations of pollution that could otherwise flow directly into receiving waters. Depending on their design, these features can also provide aesthetic enhancements that can increase the value of properties and the overall wellbeing of the communities where they are implemented. When used in coordination, nature-based projects such as roadside treatment swales, bioretention cells, rain gardens, green roofs, and porous pavement can provide similar levels of stormwater treatment as dry retention basins and detention ponds while also enhancing the aesthetic, recreational, or functional potential of the landscape.
Local government and extension staff across northwest Florida are working to introduce more nature-based stormwater projects into the panhandle landscape. To learn more about recent demonstration projects that have been implemented in our region, visit the WebGIS project https://arcg.is/1SWXTm0.
Rain garden/biofiltration cell at a medical office in Pensacola, Florida.
Bats get a bad rap. They give people the creeps and can show up in unwanted places (like attics and sheds). But collectively, the bats in our communities eat millions of mosquitoes and agricultural pests every night. Without them, we’d be overrun with insects, disease, and damaged crops.
Bats sometimes move into buildings when they can’t find the natural structures they prefer (caves and large trees with cavities).
As a mom, I also have the utmost respect for bat mothers. When a member of this acrobatic species gives birth, it’s done while hanging upside down by her feet. When the baby is born, mom catches it in her wings and the newborn crawls up to her abdomen. Bat babies are not tiny, either—at birth, they are typically up to a third of an adult bat’s weight. Can you imagine giving birth to a 50+ pound baby, while hanging from your feet? Thankfully, most births are single pups, but occasionally multiples are born. Through our local wildlife sanctuary, I once met an exhausted bat mother of triplets. She and her new brood were found together on the ground—mom was unable to carry all three with her as she flew.
A wildlife biologist feeds an overwhelmed mother bat and her young after they were found on the ground. Photo credit: Carrie Stevenson, UF IFAS Extension
Summer is maternity season for female bats, typically giving birth in May or June. Being fellow mammals, bats must stay near their newborns to nurse. It takes about three weeks for juvenile bats to learn to fly. During that time, they either cling to their mother, nursing on the road, or stay behind in a maternity colony as she feeds at night. For that reason, during the period from April 16-August 14, it is illegal to “exclude” or prevent bats from returning to their roost—even if it’s your attic. Blocking a bat’s re-entry during this time frame could result in helpless newborn bats getting trapped in a building.
So, if you have seen evidence of bats flying in and out of your attic—or another building that should not house them—you will need to wait until August 15 or later. Excluding bats from a building entails waiting for the bats to fly out at night and putting up some sort of barrier to prevent their return. This can be done using several different methods explained in this video or by using a reputable wildlife professional. The Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission has regulatory oversight for bat-related issues, and they will work with homeowners to arrange a positive outcome for both the homeowner and the animals involved.
The University of Florida bat houses on the Gainesville campus are home to hundreds of thousands of bats that emerge every evening. Florida Museum photo by Kristen Grace
On just about any spring or summer night at dusk, you can look up and see bats darting around, chasing and catching insects. If you are a total bat nerd like me, there are also several places around the southeast with large bat houses for public viewing. In Gainesville, the University of Florida bat houses are home to over 450,000 bats that leave the houses every night. An even larger colony in Austin, Texas (750,000-1.5 million bats) flies out at sunset every night to forage from their dwelling under a downtown bridge. Both are fascinating experiences, and worth a visit!
Building bat houses is a great family activity and helps provide much-needed habitat for bats. Photo credit: Carrie Stevenson, UF IFAS Extension
If you’re interested in building a bat house for your own backyard, reach out (ctsteven@ufl.edu); I have examples at the office and several sets of plans for building bat houses and installing them correctly. The publication, “Effective Bat Houses for Florida” goes through the best way to figure out where to place a house and includes a set of plans.
National Invasive Species Awareness Week (NISAW) is a national initiative where agencies and organizations provide information on invasive species issues to decision and policy makers. It can also be a time where we provide that information to the general public.
Invasive species are a global problem threatening biodiversity everywhere. Many create economic problems for the communities they invade, and management can be costly. The University of South Florida has estimated the cost to be around $21 billion a year in the U.S. alone. The most effective method of management is to detect the invader early and respond rapidly.
The Invasive Species Curve
Florida is certainly no stranger to invasive species. In fact, with our climate and international travel, we have some of the largest problems. The Burmese python is a well known, but we also have problems with lizards, frogs, snakes, fish, snails, insects, mussels, and a large variety of plants. The state is divided into 15 Cooperative Invasive Species Management Areas (CISMAs). Two of these – Six Rivers and the Apalachicola Regional Stewardship Alliance (ARSA) cover the panhandle. Members of these CISMAs (which includes UF IFAS Extension) conduct management and education projects on local invasive species within their areas and also have a EDRR list for that area. An EDRR list is the Early Detection Rapid Response – the ones to be on the look out for.
Over the next few days UF IFAS Extension Agents from across the panhandle will be posting articles about the larger threats in their counties. We will be posting these by county so that both decision makers and the general public will be able to see which species are of most concern in their region.
If you have questions about invasive species in your area, or how to manage them, you can contact your county extension office for help.
The colder part of the year is the best time to install hardy trees and shrubs. All their energy is in the root zone. They will establish much faster than if you wait until they are actively growing leaves.
The shaved rootball (right) is smaller than the rootball before shaving (left).
Photo: Shelia Dunning
However, planting them correctly is critical to their survival. The top three mistakes that people make are: (1) installing too deeply, (2) leaving the rootball undisturbed, and (3) not applying enough water all the way through establishment of the root system. Unfortunately, it may be years before the mistakes are noticed.
Here are the ten steps for successful planting:
1. Call 811 and have all underground utilities marked before digging the hole.
Hitting a line can be costly and life threatening.
2. Loosen all surrounding compacted soil within the potential root zone of the tree.
Tree roots are close to the surface and need to be able to push through the soil.
3. If the soil is extremely dry and sandy, amend with the entire area with organic material.
This is only needed in coastal regions.
4. Remove the container from the tree and find the top-most root.
All media covering the root flare must be removed.
5. Prepare the rootball by removing encircling roots and shaving the edges of the rootball.
The rootball should no longer be shaped like the container when complete.
6. Dig the hole slightly less shallow than the rootball.
Make sure the bottom of the hole is firm soil, so sinking will not occur.
7. Place the rootball in the ground with the main root showing just above the soil grade.
Oxygen must reach the roots for new roots to develop.
8. Back fill around the rootball with the surrounding loose soil.
Take care to not cover the root flare.
9. Mulch around the outside of the rootball without covering the rootball.
Apply at least 2-3 inches of organic mulch. No more than 4″.
10. Water immediately to settle soil and then on a regular schedule until established.
Minimum of 1 gal per 3 gal plant, every 2-4 days, for 20-28 weeks. Larger plants will require more water at each event.
Mulch should be spread about 3 inches thick around the rootball. No mulch should be spread over the rootball.
Photo: Shelia Dunning
