The Important Bird Areas of Florida - National Audubon Society

The Important Bird Areas of Florida: 2000–2002 – Pranty – 2-Jul-02 168LAKE MARY JANE–UPPER ECON MOSAICLake Lizzie Nature Preserve (918 acres; 367 ha), Lake Mary Jane (___acres; ___ ha), Moss Park(1551 acres; 620 ha), Split Oak Forest Mitigation Park Wildlife and Environmental Area (1689acres; 675 ha), and Upper Econ Mosaic CARL–FF Project (31,153 acres [12,461 ha] remaining)Orange and Osceola counties36,229 acres; (14,491 ha), with 4158 acres (1663 ha) acquired[This IBA needs additional data]LOCATION: in south-central Orange County and north-central Osceola County, between (but notextending to) Weewahootee Road and County Road 500-A, east of State Road 15. It is bordered onthe northwest by Lake Hart and on the south by Lake Lizzie and Bay Lake.DESCRIPTION: three small parks and preserves (two adjacent and the third about 5.7 miles [9.2 km] to thesouth) linked by a portion of the largest cattle ranch in Florida, which currently is sought for publicacquisition. This IBA is between the massively burgeoning cities of Orlando and Kissimmee/St.Cloud. It is a large expanse of habitats within the northern part of the Osceola Plain physiographicregion and supports a mosaic of natural communities. The IBA includes the Econlockhatchee RiverSwamp (the headwaters of the Econlockhatchee River), all of four large lakes and additional smallones, and portions of six other lakes.OWNERSHIP: State of Florida (Lake Mary Jane), Orange County (Moss Park), Osceola County (LakeLizzie Nature Preserve), Orange and Osceola counties (Split Oak Forest Mitigation Park Wildlife andEnvironmental Area; managed by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission), andprivate owners (unacquired acreage of the Upper Econ Mosaic CARL–FF Project)HABITATS (acreages exclude Moss Park and Split Oak Forest): *longleaf pine flatwoods (12,957 acres;5182 ha), *cypress and bay swamps (9928 acres; 3971 ha), *lacustrine, flag and sawgrass marshes(2614 acres; 1045 ha), xeric oak scrub and sand pine scrub (1814 acres; 725 ha), slash pine flatwoods(acreage included within longleaf pine flatwoods), temperate hammock (728 acres; 291 ha), riverine(50 acres; 20 ha), artificial.LAND USE: *grazing, *private (potential development), *conservation, recreationIBA CATEGORIES: significant populations of Endangered, Threatened, and Watch List species; andsignificant natural habitatsAVIAN DATA: Lake Mary Jane contains a 5-acre (2-ha) island that supports a significant wading birdrookery. Split Oak Forest and Lake Lizzie Nature Preserve both support small (i.e., non-viable)populations of Florida Scrub-Jays, but the CARL-FF Project contains 2500 acres (1000 ha) ofsuitable habitat and could potentially support nearly 100 scrub-jay groups with proper habitatrestoration and management.SPECIES DATES NUMBERS COMMENTSWood Stork 13 May 2000 >100 pairs Lake Mary Jane rookery; 1% (B)“Florida” Sandhill Crane Mar–May 1995 “several pairs” Upper Econ Mosaic; 30 birds Upper Econ Mosaic (R)Stork data by Roger and Sharon Robbins (___), 1995 data by Jim Cox and Katy NeSmith (Florida Natural AreasInventory), and scrub-jay data from +(Pranty 1996a).