Sunday, April 24, 2011

Entry #4- Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary Field Trip

1.       In the beginning Corkscrew Sanctuary was established to protect the largest group of remaining cypress trees in the 1940’s. The Corkscrew Cypress Rookery Association was established in 1954 to continue to help protect the area. The sanctuary is also an important breeding area for the endangered Wood storks.

2.       It’s very important for us to continue to preserve the wetlands not only for the animals living in the environment, but also for us to protect ourselves. The wetlands stand to help keep the water quality natural thorough the cycle that nature intended it to follow. They continue to protect biodiversity, but helping to preserve both endangered plants and animals.

3.       Natural resource management is a priority at Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary. The roles of the most important things such as fire, water, and other natural events are important to maintain and observe continuously. At Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary they focus on five important components to their environment: Fire, Invasive species, hydrology, human access, and wildlife. When dealing with the water levels, they continuously gauge and analyze them so they are where they should be. They also know how important controlled burning is to an ecosystem, so typically between November and May they do controlled burns. Fires can actually benefit an ecosystem by creating more space and creating food abundance.

4.       At Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary you will find different habitats like the Pine Flatwoods, Wet Prairie, Pond Cypress, Bald Cypress, and Central Marsh. Throughout the habitats you can find a wide variety of plants and animals such as, birds, fish, reptiles, insects, mammals, fish, and many different plants. The reptiles like turtles and alligators tend to live in the wet and marshy areas along with fish. Most plants are found in the prairies and cypress areas.

Below are some of the pictures that I took at Corkscrew Swamp, including some wildlife like a bird, turtle, and even an alligator!






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