Super Fund dollars in the Sunshine State
A new partnership between the NWTF and Florida is cranking up the heat with a wide array of conservation projects to improve public lands
The NWTF and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission joined forces to initiate a cooperative cost-share program specifically designed to enhance public lands throughout the Sunshine State.
The NWTF and FWCC match available dollars for projects that improve wildlife habitat inside the borders of at least 45 public land locations. More than 60 local NWTF chapters in Florida — representing more than 15,000 members — host annual Hunting Heritage Banquets to raise money for the projects.
The state's Super Fund not only supports habitat improvement projects, it also funds community-based programs, including student scholarships, school archery programs, hunter safety education and Wheelin' Sportsmen events. The cost share program alone has generated more than $1.9 million to pay for more than 400 projects across the state.
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Photo by Travis Faulkner
The NWTF uses a network of trail cameras to help conduct turkey population surveys in the Green Swamp West Unit WMA. |
Green Swamp Wilderness Preserve
Green Swamp is 560,000 acres of scenic backcountry between Orlando and Tampa that encompasses miles of cypress swamps, marshes, pine flatwoods, sandhills and hardwood timber stands. Recently, the NWTF has focused programs on the Green Swamp West Unit Wildlife Management Area, which consists of more than 34,000 acres in Pasco County.
The Green Swamp West Unit WMA is part of the 110,000 acres that was purchased to protect the land and water resources of the swamp basin in central Florida. There are more than 42 miles of marked trails that offer easy access, and the Withlacoochee River gently winds across the WMA.
The NWTF and FWCC are closely watching the wild turkey populations in this remote area. Funding included $5,500 to begin extensive turkey surveys and monitoring through a network of strategically placed trail-cameras.
Fisheating Creek WMA
The name Fisheating Creek came from the Creek Thlothlopopka-hatchee meaning "the creek where fish are eaten." The Belle Glade people were the first known inhabitants in the area and subsisted by netting fish and harvesting turtles, snakes and alligators. The creek was also a canoe highway leading to Lake Okeechobee.
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Photo Courtesy Fisheating Creek WMA
NWTF Super Fund dollars are improving habitat and fighting invasive plant species in Fisheating Creek WMA. |
The Lykes brothers purchased much of the land surrounding the creek in the 1900s, and formed a cattle shipping business, still one of the largest producers of cattle and the biggest meat packer in Florida. The Lykes family prohibited development along the creek and ran a campground and a canoeing concession at Palmdale.
Eventually they closed the area in 1989, and following a long series of legal battles and negotiations, the state purchased 18,272 acres along the creek, which became the Fisheating Creek Wildlife Management Area.
The settlement agreement has a number of stipulations that determine recreational use of the area, including strict rules that prohibit the use of motor vehicles and jet-powered watercraft. Hunting is allowed west of U.S. Hwy. 27 by quota permit only and special opportunity spring turkey hunts are allowed east of the highway.
To enhance the wildlife habitat within the WMA, more than $21,000 was allotted for non-native species treatment, which will help eradicate invasive plant species detrimental to wildlife, especially wild turkeys. Hunters can visit MyFWC.com or call (850) 488-4676 for additional information. — Travis Faulkner