MEDIA ADVISORY: Jan. 13, 2014

CONTACT: DEP Press Office, 850.245.2112, DEPNews@dep.state.fl.us

ROOKERY BAY RESERVE HOSTS THE 10TH ANNUAL SOUTHWEST FLORIDA NATURE FESTIVAL JAN. 17-19

~Festival featuring dozens of guided field trips, lectures, environmental education~

Festival attendees canoe through the wilderness during one of the guided tours last year.

NAPLES–The Rookery Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve invites you to participate in the 10th Annual Southwest Florida Nature Festival Jan. 17-19, an event that features nearly 40 guided field trips to diverse habitats led by local experts.

The annual festival offers three full days of trips led by Reserve staff and community partners, which include Big Cypress National Preserve, Collier County Parks & Recreation, Collier-Seminole State Park, Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary, Picayune Strand State Forest, and others.

The field trips cover a variety of transportation modes, from bicycles and kayaks to beach walks and boat tours. Many trips have pre-dawn meet times and delve deep into the wilderness of nearby conservation lands. Take advantage of opportunities to explore off-the-beaten-path locations, such as Sandfly Island in Everglades National Park, CREW Bird Rookery Swamp and Big Cypress National Preserve. Get to know the wildlife on Marco Island, from burrowing owls you can see from your car, to creatures from the green lagoon. Some tours even visit sites that are not open to the public at any other time of year. 

In celebration of the festival, the Rookery Bay Environmental Learning Center is offering “buy one, get one free admission” from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 17. On Saturday, Jan. 18, the cost of admission is $10 and includes four expert lectures:

• 12 p.m. “Wildlife in Need” Jessica Bender, Wildlife Rehabilitation Specialist with the Conservancy of Southwest Florida
• 1 p.m. “Ospreys in Southwest Florida” Ted Below, avian expert and former National Audubon Sarden
• 2 p.m. “Native Landscaping for South Florida” Chad Washburn, Director of Conservation and Education with the Naples Botanical Garden
• 3 p.m. “The Mountains of Big Cypress” Luke Gommerman, Park Ranger of Environmental Education and Interpretation at Big Cypress National Preserve

Don’t miss the keynote lecture on Saturday evening, Jan. 18. Dr. Elizabeth Forys, Professor of Environmental Science & Biology from Eckerd College, will give the lecture: “Trying to reverse a ‘downtern:’ Creative management ideas for least terns.” Least terns are small, colonial nesting seabirds that breed along portions of both the eastern and western coasts of North America. In this lecture, Forys will describe efforts to manage alternative least tern habitat, creation of new alternative habitat, and experiments with novel methods to discourage disturbance of nesting least terns on Florida’s southwest coast. Cost is $15 to attend the lecture and includes refreshments. Refreshments will be available at 5:30 p.m. and the lecture will begin at 6 p.m.

For additional festival details and for field trip registration visit www.rookerybay.org/learn/swfl-nature-festival.html

About the Rookery Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve

Rookery Bay Reserve was established in 1978 as a partnership between the state of Florida and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The reserve is one of 28 research reserves operating across the nation. DEP’s Office of Coastal and Aquatic Managed Areas (CAMA) manages Rookery Bay Reserve along with 41 aquatic preserves, two other National Estuarine Research Reserves and the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary. CAMA’s programs and activities are designed to help Floridians better understand and conserve the state’s resources through research, education and conservation.  For more information about the reserve, please visit www.rookerybay.org.  For more information on DEP’s Office of Coastal and Aquatic Managed Areas, visit http://www.dep.state.fl.us/coastal.

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