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*Endangered
species
Any
species of animal or plant whose ability to survive is seriously
in question. Human activities can contribute to such
endangerment:
for example, by purposeful extermination to protect livestock;
unrestricted
hunting to obtain hides, feathers, or food; or the use of
PESTICIDES
to protect crops. Humans have contributed to the
destruction
of entire habitats through, e.g., STRIP MINING, oil spills, water
POLLUTION,
and the draining of swamps and leveling of forests for
industrial
and residential development. Such destruction can endanger the lives
and
breeding grounds of a large number of species
simultaneously.
Since the 1970s environmentalists have pressed for the
establishment
of new WILDLIFE REFUGES and for land-use planning. In the U.S.
the
Endangered Species Acts of 1966, 1969,1973, and 1988 prohibit any trade
in endangered species or their products and require that federal
agencies assess the impact on wildlife of proposed projects.
The
Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES; 1973)
regulates
trade in endangered species and products from them, such as
ivory; the International Union for the Conservation of Nature
and
Natural Resources administers the pact.
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Endangered
Species Home Page, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
Endangered Species Home
Page, Links to the Endangered Species program, policies, listing
activities,
recovery activities, outreach activities, publications, and frequently
asked questions.
Their information regarding
our state.
Everglades
National Park
If you go in on their home page
they explain the
ecosystems, describe
plant communities, etc. This web site goes directly to Endangered
Species in the park.
Florida
State Parks,
a good place to go in any area of the state
to view endangered species.
Visit
a vanishing natural treasure
Florida
Scrub is one of the most interesting and one of the most
endangered
natural plant communities in the United States. Florida Scrub is a
unique
plant community that occurs in small patches scattered
across
the state. It is home to dozens of plant and animal
species
that occur nowhere else in the world.
FLORIDA FOREVER ACT
Thousands of acres of natural
Florida were protected in the 1990’s with the implementation of
Preservation
2000 and with many local environmental bond initiatives. This
spring
our state legislature passed the Florida Forever Act.
FUNDING FOR ENDANGERED LAND
Three billion dollars will
be spent over the next decade to protect Florida’s natural
resources.
All this was made possible by the voters who overwhelmingly supported a
constitutional revision last fall. Increased funding will go to
watershed
protection and green space protection near populated areas.
FLORIDA’S NATIONAL LEADERSHIP
Florida Forever will continue
Florida’s national leadership in the protection of public land, which
was
initiated with Preservation 2000.
HABITAT PROTECTION
Habitat protection is the
key to saving Florida’s rare and endangered plant and animal
species.
With more than 700 people moving to Florida each day, growth is eating
up natural habitats at an alarming rate.
CONTACT LOCAL LEGISLATORS
This is the time of year
that we can contact our local legislators to let them know our
feelings.
Make an appointment and sit with them face-to-face. When the
legislature
is in session, contact from someone they "know" will have much more
influence
on their support.
ACT NOW!
As members of the Florida
Federation of Garden Clubs, we must stand and be counted. It is
time
to ACT NOW! It is our responsibility to be informed about
endangered
habitats in our local areas, inform others about these habitats, and
initiate
measures to protect them.
News Release from Defenders
of Wildlife
BEARS:
Lawsuit Seeks to Protect Imperiled Florida Black Bear
Defenders of Wildlife
filed a law suit in August charging that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service
(FWS) had illegally failed to list the imperiled Florida black
bear
under the Endangered Species Act. This followed a decision by FWS in
December
of last year to not list the bear as a threatened species despite
FWS' admission that without further assistance as many as four of the
smaller
populations could be lost. Listed as threatened by the State of Florida
since 1974, the bear has been denied federal protection since it was
first
petitioned in 1992.
At the turn of the century,
up to 12,000 black bears roamed Florida, from the Keys to the
panhandle.
Today as few as 1500 of this distinct subspecies of the American black
bear survive in Florida's swamps and forested areas. Habitat loss,
habitat
fragmentation and roadkills, all by-products of Florida's rapidly
growing
human population, now threaten the survival of Florida's
bear.
If you haven't
guessed the name of the Plant that appears in the photo, here are a few
hints:
- These small trees are members
of the same plant family as citrus.
- The bark and seeds have long
been used in Indian and folk medicine as a treatment for rheumatism,
and
the sap has a numbing quality that gives it the common name.
- While the photo is one of
the more common species and not one of the endangered species, you can
learn more about this plant and it's rare varieties by clicking below.
Check your answer BY CLICKING HERE
Quick Quiz
Can
you identify these endangered plants
with the following hints?
- It is endemic to Florida
scrub land
- Usually solitary, the fragile
white flowers are about 2.5 cm. (1 in.) across with a funnel-shaped
corolla.
- The fruit is a capsule.
Check your answer BY CLICKING
HERE
- We associate it with Christmas
- It has stiff glossy leaves
and red berries
Check your answer BY CLICKING HERE
- Federally endangered and
endemic to central Florida
- Range: central
Florida:
Polk and Highlands Counties
- Habitat: Sand pine
scrub or white sand scrub
Check your answer BY
CLICKING HERE |
*Information courtesy of The
Nature Conservancy, an organization concerned with the
preservation
of endangered plants and animals.
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