Wildlife

With Apalachicola Bay oysters continuing to suffer, state further tightens harvesting

1 Comment / Misc, Water, Wildlife /

By BRUCE RITCHIE FLORIDAENVIRONMENTS.COM APALACHICOLA — The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission is sharply reducing the number of oysters that can be taken from Apalachicola Bay because the oyster population there remains low. And some seafood workers are warning that oysters soon could be wiped out in a key harvesting area. State officials in […]

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Environmentalists and hunter agree on no bear hunting now

1 Comment / Conservation, Wildlife /

By BRUCE RITCHIE Floridaenvironments.com Representatives of environmental and hunting groups say they agree that now is not the time to talk about resuming hunts for Florida black bears. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission on Thursday released a draft plan for maintaining black bear populations. The proposal represents a success story, state officials said.

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Feds reviewing plight of more than 100 species as two declared extinct

Conservation, Wildlife /

BY BRUCE RITCHIE You won’t probably find a South Florida rainbow snake or a Florida fairy shrimp no matter how hard you look. Those species are gone forever, federal wildlife officials say. The U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service earlier this month declared both species to be extinct. That was just one of three actions

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Gopher tortoises become candidate for federal protection

1 Comment / Wildlife /

The U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service said Tuesday that gopher tortoises warrant federal Endangered Species Act protection in Florida and Southern states east of the Mississippi. The tortoise will become a candidate for listing as threatened and endangered east of the Mississippi River including Florida. But the gopher tortoises won’t be listed for protection

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Commission faces heat for considering increase in redfish catch

Federal Agencies, Government, Wildlife /

A proposal by state fisheries managers to increase the daily recreational catch for red drum in North Florida recalls the “redfish wars” of the late 1980s, according to a veteran recreational fishing activist. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission on Wednesday will consider raising the limit for red drum from one to two in

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Walton County bill raises statewide concerns for sea turtles

2011 Legislature, Government, Growth Management, Land-use Planning, Wildlife /

Some environmentalists are asking the Legislature to take a closer look at a local bill for Walton County that could allow sea walls to remain in place without state permits. Following extensive beach erosion caused by Hurricane Dennis in 2005, Walton County authorized the construction of between 250 and 275 sea walls along 26 miles

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Groups want panther back in North Florida, South Georgia

Advocacy, Conservation, Wildlife /

Environmental groups are asking federal wildlife officials to reintroduce panthers into North Florida and South Georgia to help save the endangered species. Panthers once ranged across the southeast but are now limited to South Florida, where there are fewer than 130 living in the wild. Threats to their survival habitat loss, highways, lack of genetic

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Senators warn wildlife officials on hunting requirement

1 Comment / 2011 Legislature, Government, Wildlife /

Members of a Senate committee said Wednesday they want state wildlife officials to explain at their next committee meeting why they are considering requiring deer hunters to report their kills. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission will consider the reporting requirement when it meets next month in Apalachicola, said Tim Breault, director of the

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Lawsuit says pesticides threaten Florida wildlife species

Forests & Agriculture, Misc, Wildlife /

Two national environmental groups on Thursday filed a lawsuit claiming that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency had failed to consult with wildlife agencies on regulating pesticides that are harmful to endangered species, including the Florida panther. The lawsuit, filed in San Francisco by the Center for Biological Diversity and the Pesticide Action Network, cites the

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Cold weather pushes manatee deaths past last year’s record

2010 archive, Conservation, Wildlife /

This manatee was rescued from Wakulla Springs during a cold weather snap in February 2008. The number of manatee deaths in 2010 is already more than 50 percent higher than the record number that died in 2009 — with cold weather this year having taken a heavy toll on the lumbering sea cows, Florida wildlife

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