The Important Bird Areas of Florida - National Audubon Society

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The Important Bird Areas of Florida: 2000–2002 – Pranty – 2-Jul-02 2“Since the 1950s, Florida's population has risen at an annual rate of approximately four percent. In the [past] 50years, more than eight million acres of forest and wetland habitats (about 24 percent of the state) have been clearedto accommodate the expanding human population. In 1990, about 19 acres per hour of forest, wetland, andagricultural land [were] being converted for urban uses.”—History of Florida's Conservation Lands +()“Take ... 1500 acres of farm or forest, divide it into 300 lots, dig 300 wells, plant one septic tank on each plot, andadd a home for three people. You will have accommodated just one days' worth of immigrants to Florida.”—Problems, Prospects, and Strategies for Conservation by Ronald L. Myers and John J. Ewel in Ecosystems ofFlorida +(Myers and Ewel 1990)“Florida is a unique former-paradise, engulfed in monumental change. The Seminoles knew it as an unbrokenmosaic of wetlands, scrubs, seashores, prairies, and steamy forests. Mammoth oaks, palms, cypress, and mahoganyswere laced together from the panhandle to the keys by a nearly continuous forest of stately pines. A subtropicalpeninsula attached to an arctic continent, Florida served for eons as a prolific reservoir of biological diversity. ...Today ... the huge trees are gone. Wetlands are levied or drained, prairie grasses are replaced by domestic foragecrops, and almost every inch of seashore can be viewed from an upper-story window. The visual and biologicalimpacts of explosive human immigration dominate the landscape. As of 1990, Florida harbors eight of the tenfastest growing cities in the United States. Growth of Florida's human population seems destined to proceed inpermanent fast-forward. Birds will either adjust to the new human landscape or they will continue to perish in ourwake.”—Foreword by John W. Fitzpatrick in Florida Bird Records in American Birds and Audubon Field Notes 1947–1989 +(Loftin et al. 1991)“It all began with one man and one boat, protecting pelicans on a tiny five-acre island in Florida. From that humblebeginning arose the world's largest and most diverse network of lands dedicated to the protection and managementof a vast array of wildlife. America's National Wildlife Refuges now [encompass] over 93 million acres on over 500refuges. In 1903, Pelican Island became the center of an epic battle between conservationists and feather hunters.After years of relentless slaughter, many of our most majestic birds were at the brink of [extirpation]. Pelican Islandwas the last breeding ground for Brown Pelicans along the entire east coast of Florida and it was here that a standwas made. Urged on by a German immigrant named Paul Kroegel, many prominent people rallied around this smallisland to spearhead the protection of the last remaining areas vital to the survival of wildlife. Under the leadership ofPresident Theodore Roosevelt, wildlife protection became a national interest, and for the first time, was based onwildlife's intrinsic worth rather than its utilitarian value. With the stroke of a pen, on March 14, 1903, TeddyRoosevelt set in motion a commitment to the preservation of our wildlife heritage, and, in so doing, prevented manyspecies from certain extinction.”—Introduction to Pelican Island: Honoring a Legacy +(USFWS 1999)“Just as we now blame past generations for the extinction of the Passenger Pigeon, Carolina Parakeet, and IvorybilledWoodpecker, future Floridians will ultimately hold our generation responsible for the manner in which weconserve the species and natural resources we inherited. Perhaps the greatest insult we could ever bear would be todocument the problems that threaten some of Florida’s rarest plants and animals, propose solutions to theseproblems, and then fail to act with proper speed and resolve.”—Foreword of Closing the Gaps in Florida’s Wildlife Habitat Conservation System by James Cox, Randy Kautz,Maureen McLaughlin, and Terry Gilbert +(1994)
The Important Bird Areas of Florida: 2000–2002 – Pranty – 2-Jul-02 3TABLE OF CONTENTSALPHABETICAL LISTING OF ALL IBAs............................................................................................ 6FOREWORD .............................................................................................................................................. 7ACKNOWLEDGMENTS .......................................................................................................................... 8INTRODUCTION..................................................................................................................................... 10BACKGROUND OF THE IBA PROGRAM ......................................................................................... 11IBAs and Private Property.................................................................................................................... 12The “Important Birding Areas” Program ............................................................................................. 12METHODS ................................................................................................................................................ 13Site selection......................................................................................................................................... 13Table 1. Significant population numbers for IBA designation of Category 1 or Category 2 species orsubspecies with known or estimated statewide populations .......................................................... 16Avian Data............................................................................................................................................ 18Data Presentation.................................................................................................................................. 19Map Production .................................................................................................................................... 21Florida Habitats .................................................................................................................................... 21Land acquisition and management in Florida ......................................................................................27Site nomination procedures .................................................................................................................. 29RESULTS .................................................................................................................................................. 29Site nominations................................................................................................................................... 29Site selection......................................................................................................................................... 30Table 2. Global, Continental, and National IBAs in Florida................................................................ 31Table 3. The 13 most diverse IBAs in Florida ..................................................................................... 31Table 4. Approximate percentage of the statewide population of Endangered (E) and Threatened (T)species supported by Florida's IBAs.............................................................................................. 32Table 5. IBAs in Florida that are composed of at least 20% of lands held in private ownership......... 33Table 6. Site-selection criteria met by each of Florida’s IBAs............................................................. 34Threats.................................................................................................................................................. 38Limitations of the IBA Program........................................................................................................... 42Florida IBAs by County ....................................................................................................................... 44THE IMPORTANT BIRD AREAS OF FLORIDA............................................................................... 47Western Panhandle ............................................................................................................................ 48Bay County Beaches...................................................................................................................... 49Blackwater River State Forest ....................................................................................................... 51Eglin Air Force Base...................................................................................................................... 53Gulf Islands National Seashore and Adjacent Areas ..................................................................... 55St. Joseph Bay................................................................................................................................ 57Walton County Beaches................................................................................................................. 60Eastern Panhandle ............................................................................................................................. 62Apalachicola and Tates Hell Forests.............................................................................................. 63Dog Island–Lanark Reef................................................................................................................ 65Greater Apalachicola Bay.............................................................................................................. 67Lake Lafayette ............................................................................................................................... 71Red Hills Ecosystem...................................................................................................................... 72St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge ..............................................................................................74Wakulla Springs ............................................................................................................................. 76Northern Peninsula ............................................................................................................................ 78Alachua Lakes................................................................................................................................ 79Big Bend Ecosystem...................................................................................................................... 81Camp Blanding–Jennings .............................................................................................................. 85
Page 1 and 2: MemorandumBill Pranty, Florida IBA
Page 3 and 4: The Important Bird Areas of Florida
Page 5: THE IMPORTANTBIRD AREAS OFFLORIDA:
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(25) *pickerelweed (Pontedaria cord
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