Worldwide Grassroots Science Initiative at Buck Island Ranch

Posted on by

sBetsey_Keith_Avarna

Collaboration is the key to successful science and conservation. Most of Archbold Biological Station’s research collaborations occur at local or regional scales, involving working with other scientists or institutions who can offer complementary expertise, or share facilities, resources, or study sites. Some questions, however, are best answered through larger collaborative networks. The Nutrient Network (NutNet) is bringing together grassland researchers from around the world to contribute location specific data to a multi-year planet-wide ecology experiment, and Archbold is part of the project.

Continue reading →

Overlooked and Imperiled Sparrow Gets the Spotlight

Posted on by
Florida Grasshopper Sparrow

Florida Grasshopper Sparrow. Photo: Dustin Angell

Newcomers to Highlands County are often impressed with the local bird life. Sandhill Cranes, Roseate Spoonbills, and Great Egrets dazzle with their size and beauty. Wood Storks feed in roadside ditches and Osprey nest in trees and on utility poles. Locals appreciate the delicate beauty of Tree Swallow flocks in the evening and know to await the appearance of Swallow-tailed Kites as one of the first signs of spring. Over 200 kinds of birds can be seen in Highlands County and some are better known than others. “There is one bird in Highlands County that most people who live or visit here have never heard of, and that’s unfortunate, because it’s Florida’s rarest and most imperiled one,” says Archbold’s Education Coordinator Dustin Angell. He aims to change that with a new photo essay called “Saving the Florida Grasshopper Sparrow.” Continue reading →

The Abduction of Tortoise #1721 (Part II)

Posted on by

Reflections on 1721’s Ordeal:  1721’s ordeal sparked strong emotions among Archbold researchers and other staff, the first obviously being a sense of outrage, not to mention extreme relief upon her safe return. For me, this was also mixed with a large dose of frustration. I am not naïve enough to think societal attitudes and cultural practices change overnight. However, I wish we could find ways to expedite human behavioral changes in response to new scientific knowledge. (Click here for Part I of this story)

Continue reading →

The Abduction of Tortoise #1721 (Part I)

Posted on by

Her Narrow Escape:  On Tuesday 8th November 2016, while our country was holding national elections, Gopher Tortoise #1721 was grazing along the entrance drive to Archbold Biological Station in Venus, Florida. She was sporting a painted “1721” on her shell, for easy observation, and also had a small transmitter glued to her shell—so Archbold scientists could monitor her whereabouts.

Continue reading →

Florida’s Ranchland Water Solution

Posted on by

Florida cattle ranches provide more than beef and beautiful views. Cattle share the land with a rich mix of wildlife, including birds like Crested Caracaras, Wild Turkeys, and Sandhill Cranes. Some ranchers are even helping solve Florida’s water management problems. They are working with the state government on controlling the flow of water on ranchlands to make things safer for people and wildlife downstream. Researchers from Archbold Biological Station are helping with the science.  Continue reading →

Stacy, Queen of Thorns

Posted on by

Imagine a species so rare and endangered that the person who named it thought it was extinct. What if you were one of the scientists chosen to save it from extinction? For the last ten years, that’s been the story for Stacy Smith, one of Archbold Biological Station’s plant ecologists. Last month she brought me along to see some science in action. Continue reading →

Meeting one of America’s rarest wild birds

Posted on by

If you want to find one of the rarest birds in America, you have to start early.  You also need to train your hearing.  The Florida Grasshopper Sparrow is hiding in a field of palmetto and grass, and the only way you’ll find him, without scaring him away, is to listen for a call that sounds remarkably like that of a grasshopper.  And to catch him, you must convince him you’re another male, come to claim his territory.

Continue reading →

Not All that Glitters is Nectar

Posted on by

There’s incredible beauty in nature; often you just have to get on your hands and knees to see it. While working at Archbold Biological Station, I often took walks that required me to step around a large puddle. It was probably because I was too preoccupied with not getting wet that it took me two months to realize that I had been tiptoeing over my favorite plants in the world: carnivorous plants. Continue reading →

Wetland Explorer

Posted on by

Most people think of Florida’s scrublands as high and dry, but field biologist Becca Tucker knows that’s not always the case.  Part of her job is to monitor some of the 350+ wetlands found at Archbold Biological Station.  Exploring seasonal ponds is one of my favorite things to do with students, so when Becca offered me the chance to tag along, I didn’t hesitate  to grab my camera and a pair of rubber boots. Continue reading →

Searching for Scrub-Jays

Posted on by

It’s a cold, windy morning at Archbold. The sun has not yet risen and the clouds are tinted purple. I’m riding with Dr. Reed Bowman, director of Archbold’s Avian Ecology Program, on the morning of the November 2014 Florida Scrub-Jay Census. This particular census is much colder and windier than usual, and Dr. Bowman and I are chilled even in our jackets and gloves. We know that finding the jays is going to be tough in this weather. Our mission is to locate all members of 18 scrub-jay families, using only a truck, binoculars, a notebook, and a jar of peanuts. In total, the census team is trying to locate over 200 birds in 85 families, all in one day!

Continue reading →

A Rare and Amazing Flower

Posted on by

As I was going for a sunset walk one evening I spotted a flower that I never thought I would get to see. I was so excited that I got up before sunrise to go photograph it the next morning. Meet the Dicerandra frutescens, aka Lake Placid Scrub Balm, one of the rarest plants at Archbold with one of the most amazing pollination stories. Continue reading →

Tortoise Tracking

Posted on by

Did you know that perched atop the highest point of Highlands County, Florida, there lives a well-studied colony of Gopher Tortoises? Twice a week, an Archbold biologist locates 18 adult tortoises that are part of a study on the movements and social behaviors of this threatened species. But how does she find 18 tortoises in a field the size of a baseball diamond? Keep on reading to find out! Continue reading →

Bird Battle!

Posted on by

You never know what you’ll observe during a walk at Archbold. As I was walking around the Explorer’s Loop one morning, I noticed some commotion in the distance. Looking with my binoculars, I saw a Blue Jay and a juvenile (young) Red-headed Woodpecker harassing an American Kestrel. I’m so glad that I was carrying my camera, because the battle about to begin was epic. Continue reading →

Controlled Chaos

Posted on by

When I got back to my room yesterday, I was pleasantly surprised to find my face covered in black soot. My eyes still stung from the  smoke and my cheeks felt slightly stiff from so many tears drying on them under the intense heat of fire. I put down my camera, which had been damaged by either smoke or heat, and took off my blackened Nomex jacket, which smelled strongly of burnt palmetto. I had participated in my first controlled burn.  Continue reading →