ALLIGATOR CREEK PRESERVE

10941 Burnt Store Road Punta Gorda, FL 33955 phone: 941.575.5435 fax: 941.575.5497 www.checflorida.org e-mail: chec@sunline.net

CEDAR POINT

ENVIRONMENTAL PARK 2300 Placida Rd Englewood, FL 34224 phone: 941.475.0769 fax: 941.475.1899 e-mail: bobbi@sunletter.com

FOUNDING MEMBERS

• Charlotte County • City of Punta Gorda • Charlotte County Public

Schools • Peace River Audubon

Society

ALSO INSIDE THIS ISSUE • CEO Jim Thomson’s message, page 11 • CHEC, INC. Wishing Well, page 3

• Fun Photos, p. 12 • Wishes Do Come True ! page 11

~ Monica Dorken, CHEC educator/program coordinator

Wonders of wildlife celebrate autumn at Alligator Creek Preserve Broom sedge lines the highways and byways (like wheat wafting in the breeze); while frilly‐stemmed cow‐parsley plants stand tall along the Alligator Creek Pre‐serve paths. White vine wiggles up from the wetlands and ponds. American beauty berry hangs heavy with purple fruit. Wild muscadine grape vine winds its way up fence posts and trees along with Virginia creeper, which is waning from glossy green to crimson red as the days shorten. Winged sumac bushes, displaying bunches of burgundy berries, line the walkway between the boardwalks. Migrating birds will appreciate the bounty, while re‐newing their energy after their long flight. All are subtle signs of autumn return‐ing to the southland. When we drive down Burnt Store Road mornings and evenings, we often see two or three sandhill cranes flying low over the road. These stately, grey birds are either returning after their day in the field or flying out to forage. Where these elusive big birds actually settle on this 3000‐acre preserve remains a mystery. Yet the eagles have definitely found a preferred tree in which to roost and watch for prey. Often they can be spotted on the broken pine near the water tower, on the north side of the preserve far from their nest. (photo by Chet Lewis)

These beacons of wildlife, returning to their natural behavior pattern after the long rainy season, moti‐vated me to explore the one‐mile Eagle Point Trail. I prepared for the field by spraying with Skin‐So‐Soft oil, donning socks and tucking my blue jeans and big feet into a pair of white rubber boots. Finally, put‐ting on a cap and long‐sleeved shirt, I was ready to hike; carrying orange juice to quench thirst.

Continued on Page 2

CHEC Points Fall 2011 Conservation through Education

Continued from page #1 Though there were many pieces of cabbage palm fronds and boots littering the entrance to the trail, it was dry and passable. Swamp and leather ferns still grew from the mud of this wetland section, with companion golden polypody fern clinging to the remaining crevices in the palm bark. An open area, due to several storm‐strewn trees and bushes, revealed delicate swamp lilies growing from the bog. Past the footbridge to the higher, drier section of this trail, lavender‐pink puff balls were reaching toward the light from the sensitive briar patches. Each blossom was surrounded by tiny rows of leaves that close to the touch. Who said that plants can’t move? Interpretive signs begin at the salt marsh, along with a shelter with shaded benches. I sat for awhile, soaking in the beauty of the shadows across the needle rush and listening to the warning call of a red shouldered hawk. When I journeyed on, I found the ever expanding shiny blueberry looking healthier than I have seen. Crossing the service road to the multi‐pond area, I spotted the Land Before Time pond covered in duck‐weed, one of the world’s smallest flowering plants. The four other ponds (all dug by early homesteaders to water livestock) appeared dark and clear. Bubbles emitted proof of life from every surface. This is alligator territory, though I saw none. Nearby myrtle trees were insuring new growth by displaying waxy berries. Birds will feast on the offering and droppings will seed the new generation. Finally, I witnessed a little blue heron (in its immature white phase with greenish legs) trolling the banks of the retention pond. That pond had been cloudy and lifeless until recently. Wetland plants – duck potato and alligator flag – line the banks. This bird was definitely finding edible prey as he stalked and stared into the tannic‐stained water. Autumn is in the air. Happy Trails!

Volunteer Meeting @ Alligator Creek Preserve

Volunteer Meeting @ Cedar Point Environmental Park

Rainy Field trip for 4th Grade Students at Alligator Creek

Happening in November 2011 November 7th: Betty Staugler, UF/IFAS Sea Grant Agent: Topic Master Naturalist Program. At Alligator Creek Preserve ‐ Volunteer Meeting in the Caniff Visitor Center starts at 9:00 AM November 10th: Archaeologist George Luer will give a free talk on the Calusa & Tocobaga Indian Culture, at the Visual Arts Center, Punta Gorda. The Lecture begins at 4:00 PM ‐ this is hosted by CHEC November 15th: Native & Florida Friendly Plant Sale and Workshop at Alligator Creek Preserve from 9:30 AM until 2 PM. Educational workshops begin with All Native Plant Nursery at 9:30 AM, Native Plant Society Mangrove Chapter at 10:30 AM and Florida Yards & Neighborhoods at 11:30 AM.

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HEADS UP! • Volunteer meetings at Alligator Creek Preserve are held the

1st Monday of the month at 9:00 AM.

• Volunteer meetings at Cedar Point are the first Monday of the month at 3:30 PM. You are welcome to attend.

• CHEC’s Facebook page has the latest news and pictures. Visit and become a Friend of CHEC on Facebook:

Search “Charlotte Harbor Environmental Center”

CHEC, INC. WISHING WELL

Donations of materials or services are important in the day­to­day operations at CHEC. Can you help us with any of the following?

• Aluminum Cans — Drop off at the wooden storage bin at the Alligator Creek Preserve location • Newspapers—Place in the red paper dumpster next to the aluminum can bin • Carpenter—Lumber & Supplies to help with decking and repairs at Alligator Creek Preserve • Pressure Washer: (used but in working order) to help us keep the place clean and pretty

Chet Lewis made a $10,000 dona‐tion. Chet has been active with CHEC since our inception, he gives his time, energy and talents. Chet support is greatly appreci‐ated and loved. Pictured: Monica, Chet and Captain Rich.

Eagles along Eagle Point Trail

Photo by Chet Lewis

CF Industries made a special $2,300 donation to help sup‐plement school busing costs for the 4th Grade Field Studies Program. Pictured: Richard Ghent and Stefan Katzaras of CF Industries along with Monica and Captain Rich

CHEC

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Cedar Point Environmental Park & Beyond: Bobbi Rodgers, Resource Manager

We are very fortunate to have a community of public lands in south‐west Florida in which to explore and enjoy the natural beauty around us. To assist visitors in learning about these natural resources, CHEC offers guided walks throughout the fall, winter and spring months at several Charlotte County preserves and parks every Saturday and Sunday: Cedar Point Environmental Park, Oyster Creek Regional Park, Buck Creek Environmental Park, Amberjack Environmental Park, Tippecanoe Environmental Park and Tippecanoe II Mitigation Park. These walks generally begin in mid‐October and end in April.

Call 941‐475‐0769 for dates and times or go to www.checflorida.org. Special groups are always welcome to request a guided walk anytime during the year. Thank you to all of our volunteer trail guides for educating the public as to the beauty of southwest Florida on these walks.

Although fewer in number, thanks to funding from the Charlotte Harbor National Estuary Program and to donations from our private supporters such as the Coastal Wildlife Club, CHEC will continue to offer some Seagrass Adventure Wading Trips into Lemon Bay free of charge. These are very popular, hands‐on pro‐grams that take participants into the shallow waters of Lemon Bay in search of marine creatures found there. While we are often visited by larger mammals such as dolphin and manatees, organisms that can be caught in our nets are a bit smaller such as dwarf seahorse, juvenile fish and crabs, and sea squirts (one of many types of tunicates). Of course, many species of herons and egrets dot the shoreline and the white peli‐cans have even returned from their northern summer‐grounds!

Want to know if a particular species has ever been seen at Cedar Point? A Black‐throated Blue Warbler for example? We now have that information available thanks to Barb Seibel, one of CHEC’s wonderful office volunteers at Cedar Point, who has been very busy compiling data from the Cedar Point Park wildlife logs into usable lists of plants and animals seen since 1997 according to month and year. And, YES, a Black‐throated Blue Warbler was identified only once…on March 27, 2009.

Thanks to the generous support of Wildlands Conservation and the Coastal Wildlife Club, Bobbi Rodgers will be participating in course work to meet FWC published requirements as Authorized Gopher Tortoise Agent in Gopher Tortoise Surveying. The two‐day class covers Basic Natural History, Safety Issues and FWC Guidelines and Permitting Requirements.

CHEC will be a vendor distributing educational literature at the brand‐new Englewood Farmers Market and may, at times, sell some environmentally based items. So stop in and visit the CHEC table on Thursdays from 9 AM to 1 PM on Historical Dearborn Street’s Pioneer Park in Englewood, FL.

CHEC Staff JIM THOMSON

CEO

MONICA DORKEN Educator/Program Coordinator

CAPTAIN RICH DORKEN Head Naturalist/Boat Captain

MARTHA CLEMENTE Naturalist

BOBBI RODGERS Resource Manager/Site Coordinator

Cedar Point Environmental Park

CHRIS SALMONSEN Naturalist

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Friends of CHEC receive the CHEC Points Newsletter, mem-bership card which entitles the bearer to a discount on pur-

chases in our Nature Shop at the Alligator Creek Site. YES! I want to be a Friend of CHEC

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Meet the CHEC, Inc.

Board of Directors

Dorothea Zysko President Stacy Calvino Vice-President/Treasure Mary Ann Hughes Secretary

Dorothea Zysko Stacy Calvino Mary Ann Hughes Glenn Frazee Larry Friedman Steve Osborne Cathy Olson Lee Swift John Aspiolea Bob Starr Michael Haymans Larry Linn Jack Lyons Kelly Beall

Donations & Sponsors

The WalMart Store in Punta Gorda on Jones Loop Road made a $500 donation to CHEC programs.

Pictured: Dale Barghausen, Manager. Dorothea Zysko, CHEC Board President and Jamie Joslin, WalMart H.R.

Peace River Wildlife Center is sponsoring a Sea Grass Wading Adventure at Ponce de Leon Park, with a $200 donation. Pictured: Martha Clemente and Monica Dorken with Judy Liccini (center) Peace River Wildlife Center Board President.

Marketing Arm International is sponsoring Journeys through the Estuary boat trips with a $2,000 donation.

Pictured: Stacy Calvino, CHEC Board and Jose Lopez, President Marketing Arm International Company

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Donations &

Sponsorships

Charlotte Community Foundation (CCF) awarded a $4,225 grant to CHEC to upgrade our multi‐media system at the Caniff Visitor Center. Pictured: Jim Thomson CEO CHEC, Brian Presley Chairman of CCF Board and Glenn Frazee CHEC Board Member

Charlotte County Young Professionals donated $500—the proceeds from their annual card board boat race. Pictured: Captain Rich, Monica, Jim and Liz Green President of the CCYP Board

Additional Support: • Charlotte Harbor Fund Grant: This is a legacy fund established by our founder Charles Caniff, provid‐

ing essential financial assistance towards CHEC’s environmental education programming. • Larry & Patti Linn are sponsoring a sea‐grass wading trip at Ponce de Leon Park with a $200 donation

to CHEC. • Port Charlotte Garden Club sponsoring a sea‐grass wading trip at Ponce de Leon Park with a $200 do‐

nation to CHEC.

We have been fortunate to receive sponsorships, donations and grants within the last year. They are important and pro­vide significant financial help to CHEC.

CHEC HAS A COOKBOOK ! CHEC Friends and Volunteers have gathered their favorite recipes for our first ever Cookbook. It is at the printer and will be available soon.

Cost $10.00. To be available at Cedar Point and Alligator Creek.

Great Holiday Gift Idea with the added benefit of helping CHEC. All proceeds go to support CHEC’s Environmental Activities and Programming.

PURCHASE YOUR COOK BOOK AND SUPPORT CHEC

Coastal Wildlife Club is sponsoring a sea‐grass wading trip at Cedar Point Environmental Park with a $200 donation to CHEC. Pictured: Bobbi Rodgers CHEC Cedar Point Envi‐ronmental Park and Carol Lenard, CWC

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Adventures in Southwest Florida Land & Water

They’re back! We are delighted to have the CCPS 4th Grade students returning again, in the big yellow school buses, to the Alligator Creek Preserve (also to Cedar Point Park in November) for their two­day environmental education field trips on both land and water. These young people are eager and very ex­cited to experience the Florida outdoors first hand. For many, it is their first ride on a boat in Charlotte Harbor Estuary and/or walking on a nature trail.

Here is a brief list of some of their amazing, wild encounters so far:

Watching a roseate spoonbill flying over or feeding at the shoreline; watching a pair of adult bald ea­gles soaring overhead, one with a fish in its talons, with a juvenile eagle close behind; spotting a red­shouldered hawk, after hearing its noisy call; watching an osprey snatch a fish from the water with its powerful talons and bottlenose dolphin rolling in the Harbor; discovering zooplankton (did you know there’s a “zoo” of tiny plants & animals in the estuary water?); spotting wild alligators sunning on the banks of the Peace River; meeting blue crabs, fresh out of the CHEC crab trap; spying a snake skin, woven among pine needles and fronds in the flatwoods; finding a southern toad, hopping beside us on the trail; finding tadpoles in puddles (some are getting their legs already!); observing “sheet flow” in the driveway after recent rains (hmmm … how did those fish get into that puddle?); spotting red­bellied and hairy woodpeckers (or was it a downy?) on dead trees in the flatwoods and a pileated woodpecker in flight; discovering a juvenile alligator, quietly camouflaging itself at the water’s edge of a pond; collecting pine nuts & acorns – a banquet for a squirrel; watching Mr. Chet braid wiregrass into a cord strong enough to pick up a 4th grader (you have to ask him to tell you the story about how he learned to braid!); the scent of fresh bayberries, rubbed between your fingers (aaah – smells like Christmas!); discovering an unusual black­banded yellow caterpillar on the cassia plant (searching the butterfly field guides tells us it will soon transform into a beautiful orange­barred sulphur butter­fly – WOW!); watching expectantly at the opening of an active adult gopher tortoise burrow (also found a baby burrow – yeah!).

Will you come and join us sometime? Shhhhhh – remember, the quieter you can be, the more you’ll see! We’ll see you on the WILD side!

*NOTE … THANK YOU to all the individuals, businesses, organizations, companies and other sources of do­nations who are helping to provide funding for this program so that CHEC can continue to make this ex­perience possible for these young people. You have made a priceless investment in the future of Florida and in a generation of fine young people, who love learning about being good stewards of this beautiful place we all call home.

Martha Clemente, Naturalist

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How I Spent My Summer Vacation.

For the last three years I have spent my summers, early May through October 1st, managing a Loggerhead Sea Turtle program in South Carolina. The property I work and live on is called Botany Bay and for three years now it has been part of the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources as a Wildlife Management Area. Botany Bay is approximately 5000 acres with 3.5 kilometers of Atlantic Ocean facing beach. This year I was also asked to manage two other beaches, Botany Island is a private community that has four home sites and a lodge with about two kilo-meters of beach that wraps around the North Edisto River, and Interlude Island is about 1 kilometer long and is only accessible by wading Townsends creek at low tide. My summer workday typically begins at 5:30 am as I get all our gear and the two ATV’s that we use ready for action. At 6:15 am the volunteers arrive and we

load up and ride the 1/2 mile causeway out to the beach. We start at the south-ern end of Botany Bay Beach and begin our search for turtle tracks. Loggerhead Turtle tracks are typi-cally easy to find. They often look like someone drove a small bulldozer up the beach and given the fact that adult turtles weigh between 250 and 300 pounds on average, this is not that much of an ex-aggeration. Once we find turtle tracks we follow

the outbound track back to the area were she nested. We then use a long metal rod with a tee-shaped han-dle called a tile probe to carefully find the nest cavity. Probing for nests is a job that requires a delicate touch and a lot of experience. We use the probe to feel for the soft spot in the sand where the female turtle has dug a chamber, laid around 120 eggs and then cov-ered them up. Sounds easy, except if you are not careful you can push the probe to far into the nest and puncture an egg. We take one egg from every nest and this is then sent to the University of Georgia where researchers can extract the mother females’ DNA from the eggshell and give us a record of all the individuals fe-males who have nested on our beaches. From this we can learn how often Logger-heads nest in one summer, how many years between nesting activity, how far apart each individual nest a female lays is and what the population trends look like.

Botany Bay

Botany Island Interlude Is-

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Every nest location must be evaluated for the possibility of relocation. Some nests are located well up into the dunes above the high tide line and these can be left in-situ (in place). Other nests are located in areas that are below the high tide lines or are in an area of beach that will wash over during storms and these nests must be relocated. If we need to relocate a nest we start by digging into the nest and carefully removing all the eggs and

placing them in a five gallon pail. When relocating eggs, it is critically important to keep the egg in the same orientation. The embryo inside the egg attaches to the top of the shell and if you tilt the egg

in any fashion you can break the embryo free. We move the eggs down the beach until we find a spot that looks suitable for relocating the nest. Using a pair of post hole diggers we dig a new nest that very closely resembles what the female turtle dug with her back flippers. After placing the eggs carefully in their new home we cover the nest and place a self releasing cage made from 2 inch by 4 inch plastic mesh, or dog fence if the raccoon predation is bad, over the nest to keep out predators. After 45 to 60 days these nests will hatch out and we will find little tiny tracks in the morning left by hatchling turtle as they make there way to the water the night before. Three days later we inventory the nest to see how well it hatched. In a very good year we would like to get a hatchling success rate of 80% or better. To put all this hard work into per-spective a wild nest that receives no guidance from us typically hatches at about a 3 % success rate. You can find out more about Botany Bay WMA at: http://www.preserveedisto.org/Botany%20Bay/BotanybayWMA.html

https://www.dnr.sc.gov/mlands/managedland

To find out more about Logger-head Sea Turtles go to: http://www.dnr.sc.gov/seaturtle/

http://www.seaturtle.org/

Chris Salmonsen, Natu-ralist/Educator at CHEC during the school year,

manages the Loggerhead Turtle Program at Botany

Bay in the summer.

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Calendar CHEC Web Site is under repair. Once completed, it will have an activity calendar. You can also keep updated on events and activities on our Facebook page. As always, you can call our offices for more information.

Please Call and Register for Walks, Hikes and Wading Trips— space is limited

Daily Guided Walks at Alligator Creek Preserve 575­5435

• (Monday through Friday) starting November 8th. These guided walks begin at 10 AM Guided Walks West Charlotte/South Venice Area (Unless note all start 9:00 AM) 475­0769

• Oyster Creek Environmental Park: November 5 and13

• Buck Creek Environmental Park: November 6 and 26

• Tippecanoe II Preserve: November 12

• Cedar Point Environmental Park: November 15 (starts at 8:00 AM) and 27

• Charlotte Harbor Preserve/Cape Haze: November 17

• Lemon Bay Preserve/South Venice: November 22

• Deer Prairie Creek Preserve/Venice: November 30

Ponce de Leon Park Wading Trips: 575­5435 • November 2, 9, 16 and 23 (start at 9:30 AM) Guided Hikes on Southwest Fl. Water Management District [SWFWMD] Conservation Properties 575­5435

• Prairie/Shell Creek Preserve: November 11 and November 30 (start at 8:30 AM) • Deep Creek Preserve November 18 (start at 8:30 AM) Cedar Point Environmental Park Wading Trips in November 475­0769

• November 9 (start at 9:00 AM) SWFWMD sponsored • November 23 (start at 9:00 AM) National Estuary Program [NEP] sponsored Calusa American Indian Lecture by archaeologist George Lure Ph.D.

• November 10th at the Visual Arts Center, 210 Maud Street, Punta Gorda, begins at 4:00 PM • A free event hosted by CHEC Native & Florida Friendly Workshop and Plant Sale

• November 15th begins at 9:30 AM at the Caniff Visitor Center, Alligator Creek Preserve, Punta Gorda. • Native Plant Society, All Native Plant Nursery and Florida Yards & Neighborhoods will have presentations Charlotte Harbor Nature Festival / CHNEP Event at Charlotte Sports Park/SR 776

• November 19th, a FREE event Opens at 10:00 AM until 3:00 PM. . “Hands Across the Harbor”

• CHEC Annual Fund Raising Event is a 8K run, walk and biking event this coming January 28th. Mark your cal‐endar, CHEC is the benefiting non‐profit. It’s a fun event as you cross the Peace River Bridge. We are seeking sponsors, please call 575‐5435 for more information.

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CHEC volunteers for their gifts, time and energy ! Alligator Creek wishes to thank you !

CHEC volunteers who labor with love ! Cedar Point wishes to thank you !

• Thank You to all the volunteers that keep CHEC’s Cedar Point Park going strong!

• Wildlands Conservation and Coastal Wildlife Club for sponsoring CHEC staff in Gopher Tortoise Certification Class

• Mary Dommermuth and Roberta Gregorchik for their EagleWatch work

• The Coastal Wildlife Club for sponsoring a Seagrass Wading Trip

• George and Jane Paulovicks for bee assis‐tance

• Thank You to all the volunteers that keep CHEC’s Alligator Creek Preserve going strong!

• Peace River Audubon Society for the donation of a laptop computer.

• Thanks to Chet Lewis for mowing & mowing & mowing trails. • Thank you to Bob and Ed for their work on

decks and trimming

From the CEO Jim Thomson

It was a busy summer for Charlotte Harbor Environmental Center. The past year has been very enjoyable working with our volunteers, supporters, and sponsors. We have lots of plans for the Charlotte Harbor / Lemon Bay pro‐gramming in the coming year. We are developing a new web site that will include an activities calendar, a constant contact communication system to update our friends, our face book page continues to grow in activity. We found a fund raising event “Hands across the Harbor” a run, walk and biking event coming in January. It’s fun and rewarding to see CHEC begin another school year offering 4th grade field studies program to Char‐lotte County School District’s students; 112 field trips will be provided this school year. We have been blessed with volunteer participation, sponsorships, donations and grants within the last year. Individual donations are important and provide a significant financial help to CHEC. On a sad note, we lost a friend. Missy Christie pasted away this September after battling cancer. She was a friend to so many in the community and was dedicated to helping protect our wildlife, and the habitats they need to survive. She taught me about the world of sea turtles and shore birds. She spent countless days, nights and weekends along our coast; monitoring and educating visitors and residents. She will be missed.

A copy of CHEC’s official registration may be obtained from the Florida Division of Consumer Services by calling toll-free 1.800.435.7352 within the state. Registration does not imply

endorsement, approval, or recommendation by the State. CHEC retains 100% of all contributions received.

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Visit us at WWW.CHECFLORIDA.ORG

Visit Us on Facebook for the latest pictures and no-tices of up-coming activities. Search: Charlotte Har-bor Environmental Center.

Be part of the family be a CHEC Volunteer

Andy Stevens & Jack Lyons

(Cedar Point) Cedar Point

(Summer Work Crew Volunteers)

Marcia

(Alligator Creek Volunteer)

Lisa

(Alligator Creek Volunteer)

Jean (Cedar Point)

Dennis (Alligator Creek)

Cautionary Sign at Cedar Pt

Dick (Alligator Creek )

4th Grade Students

Field Studies Program

Donna & Bessy (Alligator Creek)

Estuary Tour: Green Futures Expo on October 1, 2011

4th Grade Field Trip, Oct. 2011