Turning Leftovers into Valuable Fertilizer with Worms!
Nutrients found in food waste are too valuable to just toss away. Small scale composting and vermicomposting provide opportunity to recycle food waste even in limited spaces. UF/IFAS Photo by Camila Guillen. During the summer season, my house is filled with family and...
Are Blue-tailed Scorpions Poisonous
Well, the answer to this question should be obvious, right? However, when we take a closer look at these interesting creatures, the first impression created by their frightful name will likely evaporate completely. First, scorpions are considered venomous, rather than...
It’s Been a Terrific Terrapin Season So Far
As the Sea Grant Extension Agent in Escambia County, one of my program areas is to help restore a healthy estuary. To do this we focus on educating the public how to improve water quality, restore habitat, and manage invasive species, but we also focus on how to...
Seagrass Situation
Imagine… It is 1922 and you are rowing your wooden skiff from a small beach house near what will become the town of Gulf Breeze Florida across Santa Rosa Sound on your way to Santa Rosa Island. The water is 10-15 feet deep, and you can see the bottom. It is covered...
Identifying Riverine Turtles of the Florida Panhandle Workshop
The Florida panhandle has one of rich biodiversity. This goes for the variety of turtles found here as well. Many paddlers and hikers to our waterways see these turtles but have trouble identifying which they are looking. In response to request by outdoor...
Lionfish Meet Their Match
The northwest Florida area has been identified as having the highest concentration of invasive lionfish in the world. Lionfish pose a significant threat to our native wildlife and habitat with spearfishing the primary means of control. Lionfish tournaments are one...
Wildlife on the Beach in May
It is mid-spring and time of nesting for much of the wildlife in the area. It is also noticeably warmer than our previous hikes. Due to my work schedule, and the surveys for other nesting activity, I did this hike earlier in the month and later in the day, than I...
Six Rivers CISMA EDRR Species of the Month – Guinea Grass
EDRR Invasive Species Guinea Grass (Megathyrus maximum) Define Invasive Species: must have ALL of the following – Is non-native to the area, in our case northwest Florida Introduced by humans, whether intentional or accidental Causing either an...
Mercury Contamination in Local Fish
Imperiled (verb) – put at risk of being harmed, injured, or destroyed. In 2021 the Florida Department of Environmental Protection classified 44 area waterways in the Pensacola Bay System as imperiled. Such designations are based on an environmental parameter...
Box Turtle Reproduction, Home Range and Lifespan
Growing up, or even as an adult there is something exciting about seeing a turtle on the road! We always want to stop and check it out or even help it across. Box Turtles are common in all parts of the southeastern United States. There are four subspecies of box...