Tag: estuaries

Celebrate National Estuaries Week and the Indian River Lagoon

by Holly Abeels
September 21, 2026

National Estuaries Week is celebrated every year during the last full week of September. In 2026, it takes place September 20-26. This special week recognizes the important role estuaries play in supporting wildlife, local economies, and coastal ... READ MORE

Category: Coasts & Marine, Natural Resources, Recreation, UF/IFAS Extension, Water, Wildlife
Tags: Coastal Ecosystems, Environment, Estuaries, Florida Sea Grant, Indian River Lagoon, Water Quality

Weekly “What is it?”: Carpenter Creek Headwaters Park

by Carrie Stevenson
July 16, 2026

If you want to truly solve a problem, it’s always best to go back to the original source. Piecemeal fixes can patch things up for a while, but they won’t last. For well over 70 years, Escambia County and the City of Pensacola have dealt ... READ MORE

Category: Natural Resources
Tags: Ecotourism, Estuaries, Habitat Conservation, Hiking, Native Plants, Panhandle Outdoors, Pensacola Bay, Stormwater, Water Quality, Weekly What Is It

Weekly “What is it?”: Breakwaters

by Carrie Stevenson
February 19, 2026

Last week, I wrote about how riprap consists of a cluster of medium-sized rocks placed at the base of a seawall to prevent erosion. The same concept is put to work when creating a living shoreline, but the rock gets moved offshore. As I’ve ... READ MORE

Category: Coasts & Marine, Natural Resources, Water
Tags: Estuaries, Water Quality, Weekly What Is It

Weekly “What is it?”: Blowout Tides

by Carrie Stevenson
February 11, 2026

Every season living on the Gulf Coast reveals its surprises and interesting natural phenomena. Recently, my social media feed was ‘flooded” with photos of extreme low tides in local bays, bayous, and even the Gulf. The water was so low ... READ MORE

Category: Coasts & Marine, Natural Resources, Water
Tags: Barrier Islands, Estuaries, Gulf Of Mexico, Weekly What Is It

Weekly “What is it?”: Riprap

by Carrie Stevenson
February 4, 2026

I got my foot in the door for my first environmental job by volunteering at the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) while still in college. The Submerged Lands and Environmental Resource Program (aka “SLERP”, now ERP) ... READ MORE

Category: Coasts & Marine, Natural Resources
Tags: Estuaries, Habitat Conservation, Weekly What Is It

Weekly “What is it?”: Flash floods

by Carrie Stevenson
July 9, 2025

Like many of you, my head and heart have been wrapped up in the news of the devastating Texas floods along the Guadalupe River. A close friend’s son was evacuated from a boys’ camp on the river in the middle of the night. And my daughter ... READ MORE

Category: Natural Resources, Water
Tags: Estuaries, Flooding, Gulf Of Mexico, River, Weekly What Is It

Weekly “What is it?”: Satori Foundation

by Carrie Stevenson
July 2, 2025

In Japanese, “Satori” means “awakening,” “understanding,” or “comprehension.” It is the perfect term for a program started just 10 years ago here in Pensacola. A nonprofit housed at the Pensacola Yacht Club, the mission of ... READ MORE

Category: Coasts & Marine, Natural Resources, Water
Tags: Estuaries, Pensacola Bay, Weekly What Is It, Youth Science Lessons

Weekly “What is it?”: Gulf toadfish

by Carrie Stevenson
June 17, 2025

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
Tags: Coastal Wildlife, Estuaries, Fish, Gulf Of Mexico, Weekly What Is It

Weekly “What is it?”: Bruce Beach Park

by Carrie Stevenson
June 11, 2025

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
Tags: Ecotourism, Estuaries, Water Quality, Weekly What Is It

Weekly “What is it?”: Peat Bogs

by Carrie Stevenson
May 1, 2025

In 1950, two brothers were out harvesting peat in the marshes near their homes in Denmark. The water was low, and they saw what looked like the outline of a human body whose skin was perfectly intact. Alarmed, they quickly notified the authorities ... READ MORE

Category: Conservation, Natural Resources, Water, Wildlife
Tags: Estuaries, Plants, Weekly What Is It

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