Clean water = healthy economies. Yesterday, our Preserving Paradise participants discussed the lasting impacts of the 2018 red tide crisis, water quality advocacy, & more, emerging with a stronger shared passion to protect our coastal ecosystems. 🔗: sccf.org/blog/2024/08/2…

🚨 Help Us Protect Florida’s State Parks from Development! 🚨 DEP announced plans to make major changes at nine state parks to allow for construction of golf courses, lodges, pickleball & disc golf courses, new cabins & more on conservation land. Petition: floridawildlifefederation.org/action-state-p…

⚠️ Developing our state parks is NOT the right answer. SCCF is actively working with partners to assess this threat to Florida's state parks, which contain important wildlife habitats, and to prevent changes from moving forward. Take action: floridawildlifefederation.org/action-state-p…

Many birds on #Sanibel are just passing through, kind of like stopping for gas on a long road trip! That’s what 4MC, a banded sanderling, was doing when SCCF’s shorebird team re-sighted the bird for the second time since 2022! 🔗sccf.org/blog/2024/08/1…

Adding golf courses, lodges, & other high-impact amenities as proposed in 9 FL state parks sets a dangerous precedent for how we treat our conservation lands. SCCF joins its many partners in asking state leaders to abandon these changes. Take action: p2a.co/29zfgbV

Due to the overwhelming interest with the 2024-25 Great Outdoors Initiative, DEP is looking for new venues to accommodate the public. We want to ensure everyone has the opportunity to participate. Public input is vital to DEP decision-making. To gather feedback on your favorite

From public hearings being delayed to golf course proposals being withdrawn, the conservation community's outcry to development plans in nine #FloridaStateParks is having an impact. Let's keep the pressure on! Voice your opposition: survey.alchemer.com/s3/7983173/Gre…

When your hunting skills look more like a ballet. 🩰 Did you know the #ReddishEgret is the rarest heron in North America? Florida supports only around 400 breeding pairs, & we’re lucky to have a small population in Southwest Florida! Learn more: sccf.org/blog/2024/08/1…

Problems tend to melt away any time you see a #seaturtle. 💚 15,309 #loggerhead hatchlings have emerged on Sanibel and Captiva Islands this year! SCCF Sea Turtle Hotline: 978-728-3663

Gov. DeSantis plans to pause any proposed changes to nine of Florida's state parks until 2025. Thanks to everyone who gave their input and advocated for the preservation of our natural resources to help delay this plan! Read more: abcactionnews.com/news/state/des…

Flora Friday! 🌼💃 Meet the state-threatened Bahama cassia, a flowering shrub native to South Florida. This showy plant blooms multiple times throughout the year and provides a food source for native pollinators. Learn more: sccf.org/blog/2024/08/2…

Weekly SWFL water conditions 💧 Average flows to the Caloosahatchee are in the stress flow envelope, following 20+ days in the damaging envelope. Learn more: conta.cc/4dFUxYF

If you're heading to the beach for Labor Day Weekend, please remember to be respectful of the local wildlife, especially the sea turtles who are still nesting and hatching right now 🐢🐢🐢

Happy #LaborDay! As September begins, more and more shorebirds are migrating back to Sanibel & Captiva. Remember to give these birds space to let them refuel from their long journeys! 📷: Piping plover (Charadrius melodus)

Lunch time! 🥪🐦 SCCF biologists recently spotted a banded sandwich tern from NC asking its parent for fish. Migratory shorebirds have traveled hundreds of miles to reach their wintering grounds, so it’s important to give them space and allow them to rest! #NationalWildlifeDay

Yesterday, our Preserving Paradise participants got out on the water to learn about SCCF's water quality monitoring & oyster restoration! Preserving Paradise is an initiative between SCCF, Captains4CleanWater, The Everglades Foundation, & Sanibel & Captiva. Details: sccf.org/blog/2024/09/0…

Nighttime #SeaTurtle tagging recap on Sanibel! 🐢 353 sea turtle encounters 🐢 187 unique sea turtles 🐢 137 turtles new to Sanibel 🐢 1,196 sea turtle encounters on Sanibel since 2016! Read more: sccf.org/blog/2024/09/0…

SWFL Water Conditions Update💧 Lake Okeechobee has increased in height by 0.21 feet in the last week, average flows to the Caloosahatchee are in the stress flow envelope, and blue-green algae is remaining at bay. Learn more: conta.cc/47hmmV9

For #WorldShorebirdsDay, we’re recapping some wins & losses SCCF documented this year. Snowy plovers were challenged by beach renourishment on Sanibel, and least terns successfully nested on the Causeway Islands for the first time in 30+ years. 🔗 sccf.org/blog/2024/09/0…