Tag: coastal wildlife

Barrier Island Wildlife in the Florida Panhandle; Part 6 The Maritime Forest

by Rick O'Connor
January 12, 2023

For some the forest is a scary place; for some it is a magical one; and for others it is spiritual. For wildlife it is a popular place. There are many places to shelter and plenty of food. Though the forest of our barrier islands is not ... READ MORE

Category: Coasts & Marine, Natural Resources, Wildlife
Tags: Barrier Island Wildlife, Barrier Islands, Coastal Wildlife, Florida Panhandle, Florida Sea Grant

Weekly “What is it?”: Texas Horned Frogs

by Carrie Stevenson
January 11, 2023

Well, the TCU Horned Frogs didn’t make much of a splash during the college football championship earlier this week. Despite the outcome of the game, their unusual mascot is one of the more intriguing among universities. After noticing ... READ MORE

Category: Coasts & Marine, Natural Resources, Wildlife
Tags: Barrier Islands, Coastal Wildlife, Weekly What Is It, Wildlife

Weekly “What is it?”: Gulf Breeze Wetlands Boardwalk & Trails

by Carrie Stevenson
December 14, 2022

I am always on the lookout for easily accessible places to get out into nature. Much of my job entails leading other people outdoors and teaching them more about what they're seeing. I've found in my years with Extension that if someone ... READ MORE

Category: Conservation, Forests, Natural Resources, Recreation, Water, Wildlife
Tags: Coastal Wildlife, Environmental Education, Hiking, Snakes, Trees, Weekly What Is It

Weekly “What is it?”: Gulf Fritillary

by Carrie Stevenson
October 26, 2022

October is an important month for butterflies. The monarchs are making their epic migration towards Mexico, gracing us with their presence as they stop to feed on saltbush or milkweed plants along the coast. But our homegrown orange-and-black ... READ MORE

Category: Natural Resources, Wildlife
Tags: Coastal Wildlife, Weekly What Is It

Weekly “What is it?”: The Florida Trail

by Carrie Stevenson
October 12, 2022

Most of us are familiar with the Appalachian Trail, the popular hiking route that follows the mountains from Maine for nearly 2200 miles to north Georgia. But did you know you could set off from Fort Pickens at Pensacola Beach and follow ... READ MORE

Category: Coasts & Marine, Conservation, Forests, Natural Resources, Recreation, Water, Wildlife
Tags: Coastal Wildlife, Habitat Conservation, Hiking, Shrubs, Weekly What Is It, Wildlife

Weekly “What is it?”: Coastal groundcherry

by Carrie Stevenson
October 5, 2022

Back in the day, pirates would scour the beaches for hidden treasure. On a recent trip out with a group of botanists and biologists, we combed the dunes of Perdido Key for a specific plant that hosts a rare bee species. While not gold doubloons, ... READ MORE

Category: Coasts & Marine, Conservation, Natural Resources, Wildlife
Tags: Coastal Wildlife, Edibles, Florida Panhandle, Habitat Conservation, Weekly What Is It

Wildlife on the Beach in February

by Rick O'Connor
February 10, 2022

It is now mid-winter and much colder than our trip in January. During February’s hike the temperature was 44°F, compared to 62°F in January. It was overcast with a cold breeze from the northeast – again, colder. When conditions are ... READ MORE

Category: Coasts & Marine, Natural Resources
Tags: Coastal Wildlife, Florida Sea Grant, Nature Tourism

Life on the Beach in January

by Rick O'Connor
January 6, 2022

During 2022 I plan to make weekly hikes on Pensacola Beach to see what sort of wildlife, or other natural phenomena, I encounter each month. For the first January trip I did a short hike at Ft. Pickens on the west end of Santa Rosa Island. Ft. ... READ MORE

Category: Coasts & Marine, Natural Resources
Tags: Coastal Wildlife, Florida Sea Grant

Searching for Elusive Wildlife in Pensacola Bay

by Rick O'Connor
December 17, 2021

Recently I watched a documentary on TV entitled The Loneliest Whale; the search for 52. The title grabbed my attention and so, I checked it out. Seems a decade or so ago the U.S. Navy was doing SONAR work in the Pacific between Washington ... READ MORE

Category: Coasts & Marine, Natural Resources
Tags: Coastal Wildlife, Florida Sea Grant

Our “Seahawk”; the Osprey

by Rick O'Connor
August 8, 2018

As a kid growing up here along the Gulf Coast, I had never heard of an osprey. Now, there is at least one mating pair on almost every body of water in the Pensacola Bay area. Where did this once unknown bird come from? How has it successfully ... READ MORE

Category: Coasts & Marine, Natural Resources
Tags: Coastal Wildlife, Osprey

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