Category: Wildlife

Florida Land Steward Update, March 7, 2025

by Chris Demers
March 7, 2025

NATIONAL GROUNDWATER AWARENESS WEEK, MARCH 9-15, 2025 Forests play an important role in regulating the water cycle and reducing the impacts of flood from storms. They filter and regulate the flow of water, intercept rainfall, and absorb precipitation ... READ MORE

Category: Conservation, Forests, Invasive Species, Natural Resources, Recreation, SFYL Hot Topic, Water, Wildlife
Tags: Award, Family Forest, Florida Land Steward Program, Forest, Groundwater, Longleaf Pine, Natural Resource Conservation, Natural Resources, Online Course, School Of Forest Fisheries And Geomatics Sciences, Tax Tips, Tree Farm

Gulf Coast Catch and Cook March: Sheepshead

by Dr. Megan Moore
March 5, 2025

The featured Gulf catch and cook species for March 2025 is the Sheepshead! Sheepshead are fun to catch and delicious to eat! Sheepshead can be caught in the Gulf year-round! Read on to learn how to catch Sheepshead and make a delicious ... READ MORE

Category: Coasts & Marine, Conservation, Natural Resources, Recreation, UF/IFAS, UF/IFAS Extension, Water, Wildlife
Tags: Catch And Cook, Fisheries, Fishing, Florida Sea Grant, Recreational Fishing, Sheepshead, Spearfishing, UF/IFAS Pasco Extension Office
A smalltooth sawfish that has a tag in its dorsal fin swimming in the water.

Smalltooth Sawfish in the Indian River Lagoon

by Holly Abeels
March 5, 2025

In February 2025, I attended the Indian River Lagoon Symposium. Every year the symposium aims to present the latest knowledge and research about the Indian River Lagoon (IRL) and its management. If you’re interested in learning more about ... READ MORE

Category: Coasts & Marine, Community Volunteers, Conservation, Natural Resources, UF/IFAS Extension, Water, Wildlife
Tags: Citizen Science, Conservation, Environment, Fish, Florida Sea Grant, Indian River Lagoon
image, Florida 4-H from Broward provide snack to pet lamb.

From city life to pastures: How Florida 4-H cultivates tomorrow’s land stewards and sustainable livestock leaders

by Lourdes Mederos
March 3, 2025

Growing up in the big city is worlds apart from living the ranch life. So how do you equip urban youth with the skills needed to transition to a life as thriving livestock owners and land stewards? Aiden Andrews, 15, and brothers Matthew ... READ MORE

Category: 4-H & Youth, SFYL Hot Topic, UF/IFAS, UF/IFAS Extension, Wildlife
Tags: Agricultural Legacy, Aiden Andrews, Animal Care, Animal Sciences, City, Conservation, Farming, Florida 4-H, Hog, Jabob Ryle, Kenan Bridges, Lamb, Land Steward, Livestock, Matthew Ryle, Miami-Dade County Fair And Exhibition, Miami-Dade Youth Fair, News, Project Stable, Ranch, Sheep, Sustainable Food, UF-IFAS, UF/IFAS Extension, UF/IFAS Extension Broward County, Urban, Urbanization, Workfroce Development, Youth Development

Planting for Our Future

by Donna Corbelli Castro
March 3, 2025

Broward County celebrates its annual Water Matters Day, March 8th at Tree Tops Park. Question: When is the best time to plant a tree? Answer: 20 years ago Time is our most precious resource and when it comes to planting trees, the time ... READ MORE

Category: Conservation, Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Home Landscapes, Home Management, Horticulture, UF/IFAS Extension, , Water, Wildlife, Work & Life
Tags: Broward County, Florida-Friendly Landscapes, Free Trees, Native Trees, Urban Canopy, Water Conservation, Watter Matters Day

Florida Land Steward Update, February 28, 2025

by Chris Demers
February 28, 2025

NATIONAL INVASIVE SPECIES AWARENESS WEEK (NISAW), FEBRUARY 24-28, 2025 NISAW is a nation-wide event to raise awareness about invasive species, the threat that they pose, and what can be done to prevent their spread. There are many events and ... READ MORE

Category: Conservation, Forests, Invasive Species, Natural Resources, Recreation, SFYL Hot Topic, Water, Wildlife
Tags: Award, Conservation Easements, Family Forest, Florida Land Steward Program, Forest, Forest Health, Invasive Species, Longleaf Pine, Natural Resources, NISAW, Online Course, Prescribed Fires, School Of Forest Fisheries And Geomatics Sciences, Tax Tips, Tree Farm, Wildlife
A banner of the Florida Master Naturalist Program logo to the left of a flying Roseate Spoonbill.

The purpose of the Florida Master Naturalist Program

by martinmain
February 26, 2025

I'm sometimes asked why I created the Florida Master Naturalist Program (FMNP), which has been offering courses since 2001 and has awarded in excess of 25,000 FMNP graduate certificates since. The simple answer to that question is that my interests, ... READ MORE

Category: Coasts & Marine, Conservation, Forests, Invasive Species, Natural Resources, Recreation, UF/IFAS Extension, Water, Wildlife
Tags: Conservation, FMNP, Natural Resources
Fallen log

Dead wood: Nature’s invitation to your yard

by Megan Winslow
February 24, 2025

Katy Deitz’s laurel oak was decades old, the trunk half the length of her body, when the hollowing effects of heart-rot decay rendered the tree unsafe to stand. Arborists felled the oak, and Deitz intended to grind the stump. “I’m ... READ MORE

Category: Conservation, Forests, UF/IFAS Research, Wildlife
Tags: Arborist, Ask IFAS, Dead Wood, Ecological, Environment, Forest Entomology, IFAS, Institute Of Food And Agricultural Sciences, Jiri Hulcr, Katy Deitz, Master Gardener Volunteer, Megan Winslow, Natural, Nature, Neighborwood Watch, Plant Pathology Department, School Of Forest, School Of Forest Fisheries And Geomatics Sciences, SFFGS, Snag, Stump, Survey, Tree, Trunk, Tyler Jones, UF, UF-IFAS, University Of Florida, Urban Environment, Wendy Wilber, Wildlife Pole, Woodpecker, Woodpecker Pole
A small Hairy-Woodpecker foraging for insects in the bark of a live oak tree with draped spanish moss and dehydrated resurrection ferns

Transform Your Yard Into a Wildlife Haven

by Yvonne Florian
February 19, 2025

by Yvonne Florian, Edited by Andrea Lazzari What does it take to turn your landscape into a “Wildlife Haven” and why would you want to?  Observing wildlife can foster a sense of well-being and increase your quality of life and knowledge ... READ MORE

Category: Home Landscapes, Wildlife
Tags: Bird Watching, Butterfly Gardening, Feeding Wildlife, Florida Friendly Landscape, Home Landscape, Native Plants For Wildlife, Native Shrubs With Berries, Wildlife Photography
Kayaking in Florida

Gearing up for Florida Master Naturalist Program courses!

by Carolyn Kovacs
February 19, 2025

We are just a month away from one of my favorite programs I get to run each year – the Florida Master Naturalist Program Coastal Systems course.  I love this course because we get to spend so much of our time outdoors learning out about and ... READ MORE

Category: Coasts & Marine, Conservation, Natural Resources, Recreation, UF/IFAS Extension, , Water, Wildlife
Tags: Coastal Systems, Education, Flagler County, Florida Master Naturalist Program, Florida Sea Grant, FMNP, Marine Habitat Restoration, Volusia County

Subscribe For More Great Content

IFAS Blogs Categories