Gulf toadfish (Opsanus beta) are among those species that only a mother could love. Squat and bumpy, big-headed, scaleless, slow, and unwieldy, they truly resemble land-based amphibians more than the sleek, fast fish to which we are accustomed. ... READ MORE
Category: Natural Resources, Wildlife
Despite the issues with modern agriculture, we still need food, and we need it for a lot of humans. So, what can be done to help improve things? Let’s look at some ideas that were suggested when I was teaching the class. Pesticides. ... READ MORE
Category: Conservation, Natural Resources
For a very long time, direct access to Pensacola Bay has been difficult for anyone not living right on the water. With busy Bayfront Parkway/Main Street and the Port blocking foot traffic from Palafox to the Bay Bridge along with industrial ... READ MORE
Category: Natural Resources
Snails and slugs belong to one of the largest phyla of animals on the planet – the mollusks. Mollusks are known for their calcium carbonate shells and seashell collecting along the shoreline has been a popular hobby for centuries. There ... READ MORE
Category: Coasts & Marine, Natural ResourcesLet’s begin with crops. In 2011 it was reported that 77% of the world's food was coming from grains being grown on 11% of the worlds land. Rice, wheat, and corn were/are the big players. We mentioned in Part 8 of this series that industrial ... READ MORE
Category: Conservation, Natural Resources
The gloriosa lilies are in full glory, so to speak, in our garden at the Extension office right now. While photographing them, I noticed a tiny visitor hidden in plain sight among the flower’s frilly petals and stamen. A bright green juvenile ... READ MORE
Category: Natural Resources
I first became acquainted with the lovely Stokes’ aster (Stokesia laevis) when we were designing a landscape for the county’s green roof. A rather daunting project, the 33,000 square foot roof is the largest of its kind in Florida. Our ... READ MORE
Category: HOME LANDSCAPES, Natural ResourcesAs far as familiarity goes – everyone knows about worms. As far as seeing them – these are rarely, if ever seen by visitors to the northern Gulf. Most know worms as creatures that live beneath the sand – out of sight and doing what ... READ MORE
Category: Coasts & Marine, Natural Resources
Some weeks, I plan well ahead for a blog topic, and others are chosen completely by chance. Like today’s subject—I walked out of my office the other day and into the building lobby, when I noticed an unusual visitor. An inch-long wolf ... READ MORE
Category: Natural Resources, Wildlife
When I began working with terrapins 20 years ago, very few people in the Florida panhandle knew what they were – unless they had moved here from the Mid-Atlantic states. Since we initiated the Panhandle Terrapin Project in 2005 many more ... READ MORE
Category: Coasts & Marine, Natural Resources, Wildlife